Chapter 6 Kayla #2
“What the hell am I supposed to do all day every day? Just sit around on my ass and wait for a call from your bat phone? I’m not dial-a-witch, you know.
” Seriously, if this guy expected me to operate on some sort of rental contract, he needed to think again.
I’d had an actual job before and been able to make my living.
Until Sebastian had come along and fucked that up, too, at his new, weird club where I was no longer a singer.
He chuckled, and the sound was smooth like caramel being poured. “You’ll be working at the club as the headliner, of course. Everything will be new — new look, new image, new atmosphere. I think you’ll like it.”
I waited for irritation to flow through my body at his very obvious attempt at manipulation.
Of course, he was offering me something I wanted now, when he was starting to want and need things from me.
But it didn’t happen. Not even a prickle.
Instead of annoyance, a familiar buzz of excitement claimed me. I’d get to sing…Really sing again.
Granted, it was on the same shitty terms Francois had always offered me—essentially selling myself out by doing his bidding so I could have the one thing I really wanted. At least Sebastian wasn’t also threatening to rip my vocal cords out if I refused.
Plus, I could hear the applause and just the idea of standing under the lights again appealed to me. I forgot everything when I sang. It was just me and the music. Me and the words, like everything else ceased to be important. Ceased to exist.
If I could have lived any dream, I would have been a singer. At least singing for these fucking vampires allowed me to have part of my dream.
Headlining at the club, even a new incarnation of it, didn’t seem like such a bad deal.
Hell, it was a great deal if I didn’t consider the servitude part of it. The price had to be right, of course. I still needed money to live.
I tilted my head like I was considering the idea.
Sebastian appeared to think the bargaining was done, but I needed to buy myself some time to negotiate a good deal.
Maybe even a better one than I’d had with Francois.
After all, Sebastian was pretty well in the dark regarding how things had been set up for me before, or he seemed to be.
He didn’t know a whole lot about how the Ricard royals conducted their business in town or how Francois had run The Neutral Zone.
Either that, or he was bluffing. Well, I guessed that would remain to be seen when we started my pay negotiations.
Francois hadn’t paid me the going rate for my singing at all, although I hadn’t researched that shit until after I’d signed his ridiculous contract.
Wasn’t like I’d had a lot of choice about that, though.
I quite liked my vocal cords where they were, and when he’d upped the stakes and made working for him the difference between living my life to a natural end or meeting my maker prematurely, I’d fucking signed on the dotted line.
But this conversation with Sebastian didn’t seem like quite the same kind of deal. I could use that.
“We need to discuss my salary,” I said. Then, “Both salaries,” I amended.
Sebastian sat back in his seat and lifted one eyebrow a fraction, a small smirk on his lips. “Ah, negotiation. Sounds like it’s time to play.”
I laughed at his unexpected comment, and he grinned.
“Come at me, Ms. McKenna. What have you got?”
I hesitated. Shit. What the hell did I have? Probably not even a decent sense of self-worth, but I could fake it for a few minutes. “I know the salaries club singers make, and I’m not prepared to accept less than seventy-five thousand,” I started.
His eyebrow lifted higher. “I think you’ll find the general max salary is sixty-five thousand,” he countered. “And starting is more like forty-five.”
I shrugged. I knew. I’d pitched high on purpose. “I’m not just starting, though, am I?” I kept my voice light. “Depends upon what I’m worth to you, I guess. There are other clubs…”
I deliberately let my voice trail off as I looked over my shoulder like I could actually see the other clubs that might employ me.
“And for the magic?”
“Five thousand,” I spoke quickly. Francois had never paid me extra.
Sebastian opened his mouth, starting to nod his head.
“Per spell,” I added, almost crossing my fingers as I spoke.
I would never have dreamed of saying anything like this to Francois.
Sebastian’s eyes widened, but he chuckled. “Five thousand dollars per spell?”
I nodded sharply. “Yes, and I decide what constitutes a spell. So, if I do three incantations in a session, I’ll charge for all three. Black magic doesn’t come without cost.”
He scratched his chin. “But you’re not the only dark witch in New Orleans.”
“I’m the only one currently sitting in your kitchen.” I almost bit off my tongue when I realized what I’d said. That had possibly been a little too snarky. I was challenging a vampire, after all.
Even if he was one who made my insides a little fizzy.
But he only laughed louder. “Touché.”
I didn’t really have anything further to add on the matter, so I pressed my lips together to keep from speaking just to fill the silence.
At this rate, I’d talk myself both into and out of any money at all.
Sebastian wouldn’t get a chance to join me in the negotiations because the anxiety I was trying to conceal would handle everything for both of us.
“Okay, Kayla. Yes, I agree to your terms. I like your self-confidence and the way you’ve taken control of your salary expectations,” he said finally. “Would you like to come to the club with me later this evening to see the remodel so far? We could grab some dinner after.”
Well, that was weird. Dinner with a vampire. But he’d just agreed to my borderline outrageous salary demand, and I wasn’t averse to scoring a meal from him as well, so I nodded. Besides, I might as well celebrate this windfall, even if it wasn’t exactly the freedom I’d hoped for.
“Sure.” I nodded. “That sounds…” What should I say? Great was too enthusiastic, good was maybe a little unprofessional considering our negotiations. “Acceptable.”
I held out my hand to seal the deal, and tingling raced up my arm as his fingers touched mine.
I sucked in a sudden breath that lodged in my chest and met his gaze for a moment, an hour, a day.
The world spun away and all I saw was blue.
Just his eyes. Just Sebastian, right to his soul, which glowed for me.
Then the room rushed back. Sebastian’s kitchen. I was dealing with a vampire. Our skin was touching. I yanked my hand away, and he narrowed his eyes a little as he watched me. Then he stood.
“I need to go to the club now and check on things. I’ll make reservations and either Kyle or I will be back for you at seven.” He didn’t look at me as he spoke, but his voice was gruffer.
I nodded, and Sebastian left without another word. Finishing my coffee in silence, I looked out of the window into the small courtyard that contained a bistro table and chairs and a fountain. French doors led outside, and when I tried the handle, they opened easily.
The courtyard was entirely contained by security fencing, but enough flowers and plants grew in the space that it didn’t feel at all like a prison yard, despite it being my own personal jail.
I lifted my face to the sun and closed my eyes, letting the rays warm me, as I drew the scent of the angel’s trumpets into my chest. The courtyard was a tiny oasis of freedom in this gilded cage of a house.
I finished my coffee while I sat at the little table and gazed around. But despite the incredible day, it was impossible to remain sitting all morning, I was too antsy.
The house loomed above me as I glanced up, taking in the small bridge that led from the main house to the guest wing. I’d crossed that bridge last night and again this morning. The tantalizing fragrance of coffee that I’d followed must have drifted through this courtyard.
But beyond the parlor and a hallway or two, I hadn’t explored the main house. Sebastian was out now, so it was a good time to poke around. Probably Kyle was also out, but I couldn’t guarantee it. I shuddered as a sudden image of the scarier vampire floated through my mind.
Still, if I had to live here, it made sense to know my way around, especially given the heightened risks of vampire politics right now. That was what I’d tell anyone who asked what I was doing, anyway.
I carried my coffee mug back into the kitchen and opened various cupboards and drawers until one of them turned out to be the dishwasher. It was pristine inside and still smelled new—probably never been used—so I washed out my mug by hand and left it on the draining board.
Then I walked down the silent hallways of the main house, peering into rooms as I passed by. I lingered in the doorway of a billiards room. I hadn’t even realized houses had them anymore. Only in Clue, and that never seemed to end well for at least one houseguest.
The biggest surprise was the pool. Well, aside from the fact the pool was in a basement that shouldn’t even have existed. A witch had already been here, and a good one at that. Made me even more curious why my services were required.
I found a movie room, and I perused shelf after shelf of DVDs. Hadn’t these guys ever heard of streaming services? Although I assumed it was difficult to keep up with the latest technology when decades and centuries formed a lifetime instead of weeks and years.
It was tempting to just plop myself onto one of the oh-so-comfortable-looking oversized chairs and dim the lights, but there was still so much more house to see. And I had time to kill before I needed to get ready for dinner.
I walked up the staircase to the first floor and headed away from the guest wing access. This felt a little forbidden. Surely, I was near Sebastian’s private quarters, now? That was definitely a place I had no business exploring. Oh, but it was so tempting.