Jezebel (20 page)

Celeste rolled over and
allowed the words to sink in. Her gaze slid over the now cold coffee
sitting on her nightstand, to the white curtains fluttering in the
breeze. In the distance, the buzz of morning traffic rose and ebbed
in intervals. Somehow the sheer banality of the moment calmed the
quelling tide within her.

With a heavy sigh, Celeste
pushed the covers back but she didn’t leave the bed. Instead,
she sat on the side of the mattress and stared down at her arms and
legs. Her body provided her life’s blood and right now she was
completely disconnected from it. Her limbs felt heavy and bulky,
weighted down.

Even worse, her brain had
joined her downward decline because she could barely recall the
routine she’d chosen. A popular number with audiences, the
four minute routine filled with splits, spins and jumps showed off
her dancing skills, but also her athleticism.

Suddenly anxious, Celeste
felt her heart begin to pound.

“
You’re finally
awake!” Maggie chimed. Celeste watched her father’s
housekeeper, now hers, waltz across the room a cup of steaming coffee
in her hand.

Petite and round, Maggie was
a pleasant diversion from the dark place Celeste had suddenly
plummeted in to. “I hope you don’t mind the intrusion. I
thought you might need a fresh cup of coffee.”

“
N-no,” Celeste
stuttered. Like her limbs, her tongue had become a useless mass.

Oblivious to her
predicament, Maggie shoved the cup of coffee under Celeste’s
nose. One whiff of the strong brew chipped through the wall of
anxiety she was quickly building around herself. Hoping an influx of
caffeine would demolish the wall completely, Celeste took a hearty
gulp. Even though the elixir burned her throat, she tipped the cup
again.

“
While you freshen up
and get dressed, I’m going to finish your breakfast. I’m
hoping you like my biscuits. The recipe was passed down from my Aunt
Jeannie. Your daddy loved them.”

“
I’m sure I will
as well,” Celeste murmured between sips.

“
See you in a bit.”
Maggie didn’t shut the door behind her, but Celeste was okay
with that. She was done with hiding.

***

“
Name and talent?”

Celeste stared into the
darkness. She could just make out the silhouettes of two people
sitting in the fourth row. Not entirely over her earlier anxiety,
she wiped her sweaty palms on her shorts. “Celeste Newsome,
sir. I’m a hoof…I’m a dancer.”

“
How’s your
voice?”

“
I can carry a tune.”
She didn’t have the pipes Ethel Waters and Lena Horne
possessed, but she wasn’t a complete wash.

“
Where’s your
sheet music?”

Celeste glanced at the
pianist stage right. “I don’t need it. I create my own
rhythm.”

A pregnant pause and a shift
in the silhouettes, greeted her reply and then, “When you’re
ready.”

Celeste walked to center
stage and placed her hands on her hips. As she plastered on a smile,
she mentally counted to eight from five. During the second count of
eight, Celeste lifted her instep and tapped her right foot back and
forth. Like most hoofers, she liked to start with a steady simmer,
build into a rolling boil and then finish with a feverish crescendo
that would leave her audience gasping for air.

She established her rhythm
then repeated it with her left foot. Now that both feet were on the
same page, she moseyed into a steady shuffle that increased into a
rapid-fire drill. The wood floors sang beneath her feet and stoked
the fire of adrenaline now pumping through her veins.

Fueled by
the natural high she experienced whenever she danced, Celeste
launched into her routine. She blended intricate footwork with
dazzling barrel turns and dizzying
c
hainés,
which took her from one side of the stage to the other.

To the untrained eye, she
made everything look easy, effortless. But by the time she finished
with a gut-wrenching floor split, sweat dotted her forehead and she
was laboring for air.

Still, her smile remained in
place as she slowly rose to her feet.

Celeste
walked to stage front while the silhouettes c
onferred
in darkness. Inwardly shaking, she maintained a cool façade.
Waiting was the worst part of the audition.

“
Thank
you for coming, Miss Newsome.”

“
Thank
you for allowing me to audition.”Celeste bit her lip. She
sounded like a rookie. Over eager and a straight butt kisser, not a
ten year vet.

“
We’ve
come to a decision…can you clear your schedule for the next
six months?”

Ecstatic, Celeste grinned.
She’d made the show.

***

“
Your young man’s
here.”

Celeste glanced at the
antique clock on her vanity. It was only five-thirty. He was early!

“
Could you seat him in
the parlor and tell him I’ll be right down?”

“
One step ahead of
you,” Maggie replied. “I’ve enticed him with a
glass of my homemade lemonade, so take your time getting ready. For a
man that good looking, you want to make sure you put your best foot
forward.”

After Maggie closed the door
behind her, Celeste sighed in relief. In spite of their
employer-employee relationship, she’d fretted over what the
older woman thought of her entertaining a white man.

Celeste picked up a paddle
brush and ran it over her hair, smoothing the ebony waves. What if
she hadn’t approved? Then it was her problem, Celeste mused.
Trying to live up to someone else’s ideal was a wasted pursuit
and she was beyond ready to live her life by her own terms.

Galvanized, Celeste pushed
back from the dressing table and stood up. Dressed in only her
stockings, chemise and tap pants, she ambled over to the closet and
pulled down the floor-length, dove gray crepe dress she’d
chosen for this evening.

Conservative in color, the
dress had been cut on the bias causing it to cling to her curves like
a glove.

So as not to detract from
its overall purpose, accentuating the woman’s figure, the only
other embellishments were the tiny rhinestone buttons on the dress’s
dolman sleeves.

Celeste turned to and fro,
searching for flaws. Had she made the right choice? Was this one too
formal, too drab? Of course, she could choose something else, since
she had plenty of time.

Tempted, her gaze drifted to
her wardrobe. But she quickly nixed the idea of swapping out her
outfit because she feared she’d wind up changing clothes all
night long. And she didn’t want that with a man like Shane
Brennan waiting for her downstairs.

Setting aside her doubts,
Celeste pinned a fascinator embellish adorned with French gray lace
and rhinestone rubies to her hair. Positioned slightly off center,
the hairpiece added just the right amount of flair and boosted her
waning self-confidence.

Saved from a downward
decline, and with no desire to backslide, Celeste snatched up her
cape and gloves and made a quick escape.

As she descended the stairs,
Celeste paused in midflight. Shane stood in her foyer, gazing into a
hall mirror while fumbling with his tie. Her hand on the stair rail
tightened. Even under the glare of the hall light, he was
breathtakingly beautiful.

His strong jawline looked
clean from a recent shave and his dark hair was swept back and most
likely molded with pomade. Elegantly attired in a black suit and a
white dress shirt that contrasted vividly with his olive skin, he
looked dashing. It took everything in her power not to lean on the
balustrade with a besotted sigh.

“
Do you need any
help?” Maggie asked, snagging Shane’s attention and
snapping Celeste out of her reverie. While she recovered, Shane
pivoted around with a sheepish grin.

“
What do you think?”
he solicited, tweaking his tie.

“
You look fine, Mr.
Brennan. What do you think, Miss Celeste?”

Caught
red handed, Celeste cheeks bloomed with heat. Oblivious to her
plight, Shane turned around. Their gazes met, and a feverish rush
swept through her. Celeste doubted she’d ever wanted a man as
much as she wanted Shane Brennan.

“
Do I pass the
muster?” he asked, stepping forward.

Still tongue tied, Celeste
nodded. Even though she hadn’t uttered a word, he seemed
satisfied with the answer because he smiled as he lifted his hand,
presenting her with a bouquet of gardenias.

“
They’re
beautiful!” she exclaimed, marveling at the flower’s
snowy white petals.

“
Beautiful flowers
for a beautiful woman.”

Suffering from a sudden case
of shyness, Celeste ducked her head and inhaled. “And they
smell so sweet,” she said, taking them from him. Her fingers
brushed his and she noted how his felt strong and warm. How would
they feel running over her skin? Probably like heaven, Celeste
mused, biting her bottom lip at the erotic image.

A wanting so deep and
intense engulfed her, beckoned her to be bad. Reminded her she hadn’t
had a lover in a really long time and that her bedroom was only steps
away.

To make matters worse, if
she had any doubts regarding his attraction to her, his expression
vanquished all of them in one fell swoop. His eyes devoured her as
if he wanted to make her his last meal. And considering the heat
rolling in her nether regions, she’d let him.

“
How about I put these
in water for you?” Maggie stepped forward and plucked the
bouquet from Celeste’s hand. Her intrusion effectively broke
through the haze shrouding everything including her lack of common
sense. Twice in less than twenty-four hours her new housekeeper had
saved her from herself.

As she
walked toward the kitchen, she continued, “You two better get a
moving. You’re wasting a beautiful evening lollygagging around
here with me.”

Heeding her housekeeper’s
advice, Celeste handed Shane her cape. Before she could turn around,
he stepped forward. So close, she could feel his body heat and his
cologne tickled her senses. Unsettled by his closeness, her breath
skittered between her teeth.

Unaware of the affect he had
on her, Shane wrapped her cape around her. “The show doesn’t
start until eight thirty,” he said as he fastened the top and
only button. “So I made reservations for dinner.”

“
Dinner?”
Celeste asked, recognizing the popular restaurant on Brooklyn’s
waterfront.

Shane frowned. “You
haven’t eaten yet have you?”

“
N-no, I just wasn’t
expecting…”

“
To
be wined and dined,” he finished for her. He gifted her with
the most beautiful smile, her knees filled with champagne. “Stick
with me,” he said, holding out his arm. Grateful for the
support, Celeste accepted it. “And I’ll turn your world
inside out.”

“
Before you do, bring
her back in one piece,” Maggie warned with a smile. She swept
past them with a porcelain vase filled with gardenias and opened the
front door. “Or I’ll call the police.”

“
I’m
slightly punchy, but I not stupid.” Shane looked down at her
and winked.

“
We’ll see,”
Maggie replied with saccharine sweetness, before shutting the door
behind them.

CHAPTER
fifteeN

An
unsettling silence fell between them. Shane traced a finger through
the condensation on the window, while she secretly memorized his
profile. Of course, she wanted to say something, but she felt like a
school girl on her first date. Heck,
even her palms were sweating. Hating the silence, she breach it
before it drove her crazy.

“
So, how was your
day?” Come on you couldn’t come up with anything wittier
than that?

“
A complete wash,”
he said, turning away from his sketch.

Celeste gulped. His full
regard was disconcerting as if looking beyond the surface. An
exterior she’d worked so hard to perfect she feared he’d
find something he didn’t like.

“
How’s that?”
she managed through a lump of insecurity.

“
Thinking
about tonight and being with you.”

“
Stop teasing!”
Celeste gushed unable to temper the pleasure his words caused. “I
don’t believe you. A good-looking mug like you thinking about
little ole’ me,”

His gaze held hers and
Celeste’s heart pounded against her breastbone. “Ollie
called me a scatterbrain. Accused me of carousing all night. Bum had
me working the bag all day.”

Even though she’d
ruined his day, a swell of pure pleasure washed over her. Smiling,
she settled into the taxi cab’s leather seats.

“
Why didn’t you
come clean?”

Shane snorted, but it
sounded more like an irritable growl. “And let him think I was
mooning over a dame? I’d never live it down.” Without
warning, he reached out and palmed the edge of her skirt. He was
only touching her garment, but the affect was just as tangible if he
were caressing her skin. “Enough about me,” he said,
while rubbing his fingers together and causing her pulse to jump.
“What about you?”