Chapter 22
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chelsea
“Who did you have to bribe for these seats?” I sat on the aisle, nothing between me and the stage but a metre or so of leg room.
Atlas grinned. “I didn’t have to bribe anyone. I’m friends with the saxophonist, Jasper Wells. He lives a few doors down from me.”
Given Jasper lived in the more opulent part of Dusk Bay, their houses probably weren’t that close together. By ‘house,’ I mean ‘huge house near the bay.’ My brother lived up there too, in the house his boyfriend inherited from his late father.
“Of course you are,” I said. “I didn’t realise you were an Ice Blue Roses fan.”
“From way back,” he said. “Since before they were big. Jasper and I practically grew up together. Funny how we both ended up here in the same city.” His lips twisted to the side, clearly still not impressed at ending up with the Smashers.
“That is funny,” I agreed. “Did it make coming here any easier?”
“Some,” he said with a vague half-shrug. “He’s the one who introduced me to Daze. I guess you could say the rest is history.”
I cocked my head at him. “Did you ever think of saying no to her?”
“Not really. I like to live dangerously.” He demonstrated that by dipping his hand into my tub of popcorn.
“People have lost body parts doing that,” I said.
He grinned and shoved the popcorn into his mouth. “No idea what you’re talking about. I’m as pure as hell. As innocent as anyone else here in Dusk Bay.”
“I don’t think that’s saying much, considering.” Innocent and Dusk Bay didn’t go together very well. Or at all.
“You wouldn’t really hurt me for stealing your popcorn, would you?” he asked. “You might find my hands useful.” He placed one of them on my thigh.
“I’ll think about it.” I leaned over and stole a handful of his popcorn. Smiling at him with my eyes, I shoved it into my mouth.
“I think that makes us even,” he said.
“I think so,” I agreed. “But keep your hands out of my popcorn.” I shook a finger at him.
“Or what?” he asked. “Do I seem like the kind of guy who follows the rules?” He wiggled his eyebrows at me.
“To some extent,” I said slowly. “You wouldn’t be a professional rugby player if you couldn’t follow the rules some of the time.”
He made a face. “Okay, you got me. Sometimes I follow rules. Off the field though, that’s a different story.”
“You’ll have to tell me some time,” I said. The seats around us were filling quickly, and the arena was getting louder. I wanted to ask what he did for Daze, but that would have to wait until after the concert.
“Hey, dickhead.”
I whipped my head around to see Jasper Wells had stopped beside us. He offered Atlas a fist bump.
“Hey, asshole.” Atlas leaned past me to bump fists with the saxophone player. “Shouldn’t you be warming up?”
Jasper ignored him and turned his gaze to me. “Did you lose a bet? That’s the only reason I can think of for a woman to go out with a reprobate like Atlas Underwood here.” He smiled and gave me a wink.
“Fuck off, Wells,” Atlas said on a laugh. “She’s here voluntarily. Because she has excellent taste.”
“If you say so. She looks smart enough to figure you out for herself.” To me, he added, “When you figure him out, get him to give you my number. I’ll show you a better time than he ever could.” No one would ever accuse Jasper of being humble, including him.
My face actually heated. It wasn’t every day I had a conversation with a rock star, much less have them flirt with me.
“I’ll keep that in mind,” I said. As if I didn’t already have my hands full. Otherwise, I might consider adding him to my growing group of guys. If he’d go along with that.
“There’s no way in hell I’d give her your number,” Atlas said. “Chelsea is too good for a prick like you.”
“I think that’s up to Chelsea, don’t you?” Jasper asked. “Maybe I should give it to her myself.”
“Not if you need all of your fingers to play,” Atlas growled.
Jasper leaned down and spoke to me. “How adorable is that? He’s actually trying to threaten me.”
“I noticed that,” I said. I had to admit Jasper smelled good, a combination of leather from his jacket and soap. “I’m sure he’d never act on it.”
Daze wouldn’t be impressed if two of the guys who worked for her started trying to remove each other’s fingers. That was usually reserved for the enemy. Or anyone who stole from her or the people she worked for.
“Not unless he gives me good reason,” Atlas said. “Which he won’t, because Jasper is a dickhead, but he’s not going to muscle in on another guy’s date.”
“I would, but I have to go and warm up.” Jasper leaned in even further, close enough to whisper in my ear. “Think of me when you’re fucking him.” He gave me another wink before straightening up and heading up to the stage.
A ripple of surprise and excitement passed through the audience. They must not have realised he was talking to us until he left. Just as well, or security would be busy stopping him from getting mobbed.
I turned to Atlas and raised my eyebrows at him.
He frowned. “What?”
“You two are like brothers,” I said. “I bet you give each other hell, but you actually like each other.”
“He’s the brother I never had,” Atlas said easily. “When I called him and asked for tickets, he was happy to give us these. He’s a grumpy prick, but he’s a good guy deep down. Mostly. He would totally have taken you backstage and fucked you if you let him, even though you’re here with me.”
“I’m shocked a rock star would behave that way,” I said sarcastically.
Atlas snorted. “I know, right? He’s such a horndog. No doubt he’ll have a party with a few of the groupies after the concert. The whole band will.”
“What’s the point of being a rock star if you can’t have fun with your fans?” I asked. If I was a rock star, I’d fuck groupies left and right too.
“Good point,” Atlas said.
“I’m sure you’ve had your share of ruck bunnies,” I said.
“And then some,” he agreed. “After a while, it becomes a blur.”
I could relate to that. My clients at Flirts became a blur too after the first few weeks. Every now and again, one would stand out, like Storm, Frost and Dallas, but the rest had faded from my memory.
“What are you thinking about?” Atlas asked.
“Maybe I should tell you about it after the concert,” I said. I didn’t want to ruin a fun evening with the reality of my past.
He sat around to face me and lightly touched my forehead with his. “How about you tell me now. It looked important.”
“It— I suppose it kind of is,” I agreed.
“Go ahead, I’m listening,” he insisted.
I opened my mouth and the words came out in a rush. “Until recently, I used to be an exotic dancer.”
“Exotic…” He pulled back and stared at me, a frown creasing his brow. “As in…”
“I took my clothes off for money,” I said. “And had sex for money.”
The roar of the crowd had lessened compared to the roar of blood in my ears. I hadn’t expected to have this conversation with him like this. Not in the front row, waiting for a rock concert to start.
“I see,” he said simply. “You said ‘until recently.’ You don’t do it anymore?”
I shook my head. “It was only to put myself through university. A girl has to eat.”
My laugh was nervous. I couldn’t tell what he was thinking. I wasn’t sure he knew yet either. He was still trying to process what I said.
“Right. I suppose she does.” He sat back in his chair. His body was rigid, jaw clenched tighter than Storm’s ever was. That was the only sign he was trying to contain himself. He was using his on-field discipline to keep from losing his shit.
“I would have said something sooner, but it’s an awkward topic to bring up,” I said.
My palms started to sweat. I shouldn’t have said anything to him here. I should have insisted we wait until we were alone, somewhere else. Would that have been better? He might have responded the same, but it wouldn’t have been so public. I felt as though everyone was watching me, even though I knew they weren’t. Their attention was all on the stage. Where ours should be.
“I’ll say,” he agreed. “Do the other guys know?”
“They do,” I said. I decided not to elaborate on that right now. If he was going to judge me for what I did, he’d likely judge them for frequenting Flirts.
“Okay,” he said slowly. That seemed to irritate him even more. It wasn’t just me keeping secrets from him, it was them as well. It must be annoying the hell out of him to realise Storm knew, and he didn’t.
“Only them, not the team as a whole,” I said quickly.
“Okay,” he said again. “Let’s just enjoy the concert.”
“Yeah.” That sounded final to me. Like he was disgusted to learn about my old life. Apparently it was okay for him to fuck footy fans, but not for me to fuck for money. “If the team finds out…”
He turned his face to regard me. His golden brown eyes were deep and dark, betraying nothing but simmering anger. Who was it aimed at? I couldn’t be certain. Me for my past? Him for not somehow knowing? The other guys for knowing already? Maybe all of those. Or maybe something else. Perhaps the understanding that being seen with me could be detrimental to his career.
“I’m sure it won’t be pretty,” he said finally.
“I’m sure it won’t,” I agreed. “I should leave.” If I was gone before people started taking photos of him, or asking for selfies, it might lessen the impact on his future. He could pretend the only dealings we ever had was professional, as his doctor. He could distance himself from me and any scandal that might arise.
Honestly, that was a sensible approach for him to take, although the idea of it stung.
That was selfish of me, I decided. There was a lot more at stake than my feelings, my ego. Not just his future, but the future of the team. I was insignificant in comparison. I blinked away the moisture that threatened to spill down my cheeks.
One hand on the arm of my chair, I started to push myself to my feet. Before I could take a step away, he grabbed my wrist and pulled me back down.
“I said, let’s enjoy the concert,” he said so quietly I almost missed hearing him over the crowd. “We can talk afterwards.” His gaze bore into mine, quiet determination that I should do what he said. Along with that, an underlying threat of what he might do to me if I disobeyed. It wasn’t the threat of being stripped and spanked, it was something far worse than that. I might be the next body in the cemetery beside Ivy.
His hands rested in his lap, but his fingers were curled like he was picturing wrapping them around my neck.
My tongue darted over my lips. I didn’t like being told what to do. I certainly didn’t like to be threatened, there was something about him that suggested it wasn’t a threat. He could get to me and destroy me long before anyone who cared about me could stop him. He wasn’t scared of the potential retaliation. If anything, he was facing it down.
I nodded and sank back into my seat. Enjoying myself might be a big ask, but I’d stay.
What choice did I have?