Facade (7 page)

Lastly, there was an envelope with her name scrawled on it.

“He came by,” Helen whispered.

Her muscles tensing, she tore the envelope open and pulled out a piece of white paper.

Christine, I have tried multiple times to get in touch with you. My gut tells me you’re fine and just avoiding me. I won’t bother you again. Ramon.

She pressed her lips together. Yes, she could have contacted them, even left a note with Helen. That’s what Erik wanted her to do, assumed she had done. Now, after the days and the notes passing, how could she tell him she quit? He already knew. At this point, it was just easier to avoid them. The
Stage of Stars
was huge and the chances of them both making it on the show was miniscule. Yes, she knew she might not make it either, but with Erik she knew she had a better chance.

However, her stomach still twisted. She should have done the right thing, but it was too late now. Hopefully he would stay true to his word and not bother her again. There was nothing she could do except ride it out.

Her whole life had been about riding it out and, for a moment, she put her hand over her eyes and tried to think.

When her father died, she thought she would ride out the time until she was eighteen and then she could make a name for herself. Her aunt seemed more than thrilled to let her walk out the door, and she started out renting a room, intending to ride it out until she could get an apartment on her own. Time went on, her aunt and any other tie to her bloodline died off, and she had no job. Suddenly, she found herself without even a room and was going to ride it out until she got on her feet.

What the hell? That had been six years ago, and she was out of time to wait for the next ride. She needed to take control of her life, not wait for it to happen to her from the
Stage of Stars
to Ramon or especially Erik. If she spent as much time making things happen rather than riding it out and praying for it to get better, she would have a life now. Maybe she would have had a home, a relationship, a real job, something to show for spending nearly two and a half decades on a the planet.

Then again, she might never have met Erik. Was it possible everything else was simply a placeholder until she stumbled into his theatre? How else would she have met him if it wasn’t for everything else that happened to her? It had to be the final stop.

She crumpled up all the papers, quickly scanned her junk mail and tossed the whole lot in the trash.

“Did you want to do some work today?” Helen patted her shoulder.

Rather than ride this out, she could start this minute. “I have to get back…home.” She smiled at the word. “I found someone.”

A huge smile graced Helen’s face. “I had a feeling. The blush on your cheeks says everything.”

“I can’t thank you enough for everything you’ve always done for me.” She leaned in and hugged the woman again.

“You make sure you visit.” Helen gave her a kiss on each cheek.

“I will.” Before leaving, she grabbed a change of address card, gave Helen a kiss, and dashed out.

Goal number one, she needed to talk to Erik. Goal number two, she needed to practice for the upcoming auditions. With her plan in place, she rushed over to a local farmer’s market. For the first time in forever, she walked through the stands with the potential to actually buy something more than an apple, and she picked up some fresh eggplant and tomatoes hoping to make some eggplant parmesan for her and Erik later.

By the time she made it back to the theatre, the sun had set, leaving just an orange glow in the sky, and she smoothed down her hair before entering.

The theatre was quiet, dim. She put her vegetables down and tiptoed onto the stage. “Erik?”

Nothing.

“Erik?” She tried again, even looked up to the flies where he seemed to like to perch.

Still nothing.

The lack of anything, any sound, any movement made her shudder. She wrapped her arms around her shoulders and rushed downstairs. She stopped at her room, breathing in a sick sigh of relief that everything was still there. However, there was still no sign of Erik. Finally, she delved into the depths of the theatre and went to Erik’s quarters, a place she’d never been before. The carved wood door was shut tight, but in keeping with the theme that she would go after what she wanted, she knocked, causing the door to open slightly. “Erik?”

When no one answered, she pushed the door open a little wider and peeked inside the space she never had seen before.

Dark, ornate gothic furnishings decorated the room. A four-poster bed with blood-red velvet covers took over the center of the room. There were no mirrors of any kind, and everything was exceptionally neat. “Erik?” She tried one more time and with nothing, no sound at all, backed away.

Once more, she made her way back up to the stage, then she searched for him in the front lobby and business offices. Nothing.

At last, she made her way into the auditorium. She was alone in her own home. Had he left her or was he sending her a message?

She supposed she had to ride it out.

Chapter Nine

Part of Erik loved watching Christine run around the theatre in search of him. Part him wanted to run to her, take her in his arms and hold her tight, thanking her and God that she’d returned at all. Thinking perhaps a bit more torture was in order, he stayed in the flies where he had been working and thinking. The girl who seemed to want him so bad had been gone for hours, and suddenly she expected him to appear.

“Erik?” She looked around and sat down in the front seat of the auditorium.

She was in the prime location for a performance. Maybe she needed a little show. He shimmied to what would be the center of the stage and with a little bit of his old flourish jumped down, landing right in the center of the stage. His only bit of luck was his mask stayed firmly in place

“Erik!” Hands pressed to her chest, she leapt out of her seat.

Well, damn if he always wasn’t one to get a standing ovation.

“My little Cricket has conjured me. What can I do to be of service now?” Sarcasm dripped off his voice and he bowed.

She panted to catch her breath. “Did you want to practice?”

Now she wanted to practice. The audition was in less than forty-eight hours, and she gallivanted around doing god knew what and when she decided she needed him, she returned. “Absolutely we should practice.” He paced around the stage ending up at the piano. “I should have been more on the ball. Sorry, but I was working.”

She joined him up on the stage. “I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“Well, you did, so we may as well get on with it.” With a bit of drama, he played the intro to her song, a haunting ballad that had been popular about two years ago. He had been playing up her voice and infusing a little opera into the rock. The result was truly magnificent.

He prepared for her to start singing, but she completely missed her cue and he turned to her. “Hello? Are you singing?”

Her skin paled, making the blush on her cheeks stand out even more. “You taught me not to sing without warming up first.” She glanced off to one side.

“Of course, forgive my
faux pas
. I was working when you showed up here wanting to practice.” His voice came out more of a snarl. He wasn’t even sure where his words were coming from. Before giving her a chance to respond, he played her first warm up scale.

Her voice shook as she sang, and he ground his teeth together. Music shouldn’t be like this, music was joy, a respite, where they first connected, and he shouldn’t be using it to prove a point. In an abrupt move, he stopped playing and stood. “I’m not up for a lesson right now. You should have gotten here sooner.”

“Oh, sure.” She took a moment and chewed her lower lip.

He waited for her to walk away, facing her when she simply shifted her weight from one foot to the other. “Is there anything else you require of me?”

“When I got home, I looked for you.” She stared down at the floor.

“While I know I’m not one for going out much, I didn’t know it was my job to sit on stage waiting for you to return.” He jutted his jaw out. “Please forgive me, next time I will stay at the door in breathless anticipation of your imminent return.”

“I asked you to go with me.” She shook her head.

“I think we both knew I was going to decline that invitation.” He wasn’t at her beck and call and she knew his limitations.

She looked up at him, staying true to his rules and not mentioning his mask.

“I’m not exactly the type you take on normal errands.” Yes, he pushed her. He wanted her to say it--realize any feelings she had for him were bogus, brought out of the fact they lived in this gilded cage where the prying eyes of the public didn’t matter. Once she figured it out, got her dream, she would be gone.

She gnashed her teeth together. “You’re a bastard.”

“Because it’s the truth?” He casually shoved his hands in his pockets.

“No.” She stepped right up to him. “Because it’s stupid, and it’s a lie. Don’t make your problems mine.”

At her strength, her words, he rushed to her and took her by the shoulders. “Where did you go? You seemed to be gone forever.”

Instead of flinching, she stared into his eyes. “I wanted to check my messages, I wanted to buy some things to make us dinner, and I wanted to fill out this.” She reached into her pocket and held up a card.

A quick scan of the document revealed a change of address card. “Fill it out.”

Her chest heaved with her breaths. “Why?”

“Because I want you to.” When did this get real?

“Then I want you to hear me.” She swallowed. “I don’t care what anyone else thinks. I’m proud to be with you.”

Somewhere back in the sane regions of his mind he knew he couldn’t or shouldn’t be in love with her. However, time, his injury, his life took their toll on him, and this Erik, the Erik that was now him, knew he was desperately in love with her, the kind of love that could crush them both. “You don’t know what you’re asking for.”

“For the first time I know exactly what I want,” she whispered.

Beyond his control, he pulled her in, pulled her tight against him and lowered his face to hers. Lord, she fit perfectly in the contours of his body, as if she belonged there. “I don’t think you do.”

“Yes, I do.” Her breath caressed his lips.

His body reacted accordingly. He had to have her, needed to kiss her, wanted to be with her. All he had to do was take what he was sick of denying himself. The second he kissed her that would be it, he would never be able to let her go.

She didn’t know what she was asking for, and he didn’t know what to do. He had to save them both. “We have an audition in two days.” At his own words, he did the hardest thing he ever did and let go.

Chapter Nine

“Come here, let me fix something.” Erik motioned for her.

Christine did the only thing she could and headed straight for the man who was determined to make her insane. Every time he looked in her direction, talked to her, dare she say even touch her, she was quite sure she was going to explode with either frustration or desire—she wasn’t sure which one was stronger.

He tilted his head, reached forward, and adjusted her necklace. “Now you are perfection.”

Well, if she was perfection, why wouldn’t kiss her? Instead, he chose to torture her. “Are you sure I’m not overdressed?” In a floor length black, body-conscious dress, with a long string of pearls around her neck and her hair done up in a copious amount of curls, she felt more like she was going to see a performance in a great theatre rather than give a performance at a trendy Hollywood theatre.

“Of course you’re overdressed.” Hand on his chin, he took slow steps around her. “And you are magnificent, a stand out in every way, no one will ever forget seeing you or hearing you.”

“Erik.” Her heart beat so furiously she was sure it would throw off her musical timing.

“Yes, Christine?” He handed her the contracts she needed to turn in at the time of her audition and a small beaded bag that held her ID and other necessities she might need.

“You’re going to be there, right?” Since she came to live with him, she never once saw him step outside, nor did he speak to anyone but her. Groceries and other things were delivered to them and left in the theatre loading dock, but no one ever came in their space.

“Do you honestly think I would miss this?” He put on a long black overcoat, turned the collar up, then held his arm out to her. “Come along, you can’t be late.”

Her mind was mush, and she was a mess. Without comment she took his arm and they left the theatre together.

She stopped at a long, black limousine parked right outside with the door open. “Erik?” She held him tighter.

“We cannot walk five miles, what did you expect?” He guided her into the car and slid in beside her. After closing the door, he knocked on the raised panel between the driver and them. “We’re ready.”

The car glided away.

“Erik.” She kept hold of his arm. Something was wrong with her if she was more enthralled with making sure she remained in contact with him rather than asking the identity of their mystery driver.

“Yes?” He faced her and brushed her bangs off her forehead.

Not sure what she really wanted to ask, she shrugged.

“You are all warmed up and ready, you know your music, everything’s fine.” He nodded.

Nothing felt fine. She sort of wanted to throw up or go back home to the theatre and throw up, maybe she just wanted to go back home, but then what would Erik think after all the work he put into getting her ready? “Erik.” Somehow she only seemed able to utter his name. Too bad she had to sing lyrics that didn’t involve his name.

They pulled up to the theatre, and she grabbed his hand. “Erik.” Her face felt hot, she hoped she wasn’t sweating.

“Yes.” He opened a bottle of water and held it to her lips.

Dutifully, she took a sip. “What if I don’t make it?”

With his thumb, he wiped a droplet off her lower lip. “What if you do?” He took her hand, opened it and placed a golden cricket broach on her palm before leaning over and opening the car door. “Now, go chirp and keep hold of that. It doesn’t really go with your outfit, but it is good luck.”