Page 17 of Dancing With Temptation

Why did it matter to her? She thought snidely to herself. He’s just a client, remember? Nothing more. So what if he’s going to show off the things she’d taught him over the last week to the gorgeous actress? So what if he did take that woman to the playroom that Roxie worked so hard on? And who the fuck cared if that actress got to enjoy some of those toys they hadn’t played with yet before she did? There was no exclusivity clause in their contract, and Lincoln had never made any promises. Only that he’d always wear protection and check regularly for STDs. That was it.

“What’s up, Rox? You look pissed.”

“Nothing,” Roxie replied shortly, but then sighed and turned around. “Sorry, it’s not your fault. I just don’t feel like this all of a sudden.”

“Which is when you usually perform best, I have to say.” Kitty quipped but her face was serious. “Being upset comes out on the stage with you as magic.”

“I hope you’re right.” Roxie pulled off the damp dress, revealing a dark purple bustier and a flirty wisp of purple silk that covered the purple panties she wore. “At least I don’t have to change.”

“I wish I’d worn something I could wear under my clothes, but these shorts are just too hot to wear off-stage, and I just got them for this show.” Kitty shrugged again and put the last of her eyeliner away. “Chair’s all yours. I’m going to check with the DJ that he has our music.”

“Good idea. I’ll be out in a bit.” Roxie sighed deeply as her friend left the room. She had an hour to kill before Kitty left the stage. Time to check her makeup, curl her hair, and get ready to spend the evening smiling at people she didn’t know.

When she heard the DJ say Kitty’s name, Roxie wandered out to stand in the wings of the stage. She spotted Lincoln with Emily and Dylan right away, the actress by his side. Roxie frowned but didn’t move. If this was the kind of student Lincoln was, then he sucked. Imagine bringing another woman to watch her perform on stage.

Holy fucking moly, what a fucking idiot he was. How ungrateful was he to do something like that?

She didn’t want to admit that what was really eating her up was the idea of Lincoln fucking anybody that wasn’t her. She had feelings for him, some sort of feeling that she didn’t want to examine at length, in any way, so no, this wasn’t about Lincoln possibly fucking anyone else. It was about him disrespecting her as his teacher. Fuck this guy, she decided just before the DJ talked Kitty off the stage and called Roxie’s name.

The number was supposed to be hot, enticing, and riveting, but Roxie knew it somehow turned out sad instead, mournful even. The performance probably downright sucked, she decided, as her leg caught too soon around the pole just as she was trying to do a graceful dive down. Her head fell back so fast it banged against the pole, but she ignored it and kept moving.

She just wanted to get this over with, get out of the place, and not speak to Lincoln again tonight. She’d blow up at him if he came near her, she knew it. Best to skip out on the rest of the night, even if she caught hell from Emily tomorrow for doing that. Kitty had to wait for Roxie to get done before she could leave, unless she called a cab. So once the performance was finished, Roxie went back to their changing room to tell the other woman they were leaving early. Only Kitty wasn’t there.

Roxie fumed quietly in the room and waited, but an hour passed before Kitty finally saw Roxie’s message and answered her. Roxie sighed with relief when Kitty walked in, ready to go. “You’re missing a great party. Oh, and people loved us. I got so many cards from wives that want us for their events, it’s crazy! Look.”

Kitty all but bounced as she held out a stack of cards for Roxie to inspect.

“That’s great, honey, but I need to go. Do you want to come with me or are you okay with taking a cab? I’ll pay for it.” Roxie already had her bag over her shoulder, the soiled dress inside ready for Wendy’s tender loving care. Roxie had dressed in a black tank top and a pair of black shorts when she changed, hoping Kitty wouldn’t be long.

“Oh, I’ll take a cab, no worries. This party is the bomb, I’m not ready to leave yet, and the sitter will be there until midnight. And no, I’ll pay for the cab, honey. Go take care of whatever’s wrong. Text me if you want me, okay?” Kitty leaned over to kiss Roxie’s cheek.

“Sounds fair. I’ll give you a buzz tomorrow to check you got home alright.” Roxie always did that when one of her friends was staying somewhere she was leaving.

Roxie was about to start the car and pull out of the resort when her phone buzzed with a tone it didn’t often buzz with. Nick was in town! Perfect. He could soothe her shattered nerves like no other could.

9

Roxie

Roxie turned the car engine off and poked buttons until she heard the phone ring. Calling Nick was better than a text any day.

“Hey, beautiful, how are you?” Nick’s voice spoke from the phone with happy excitement. “You free tonight or do you have a hot date I have to compete with in order to get my fix?”

“Oh, you can have me all night, honey,” Roxie said with a throaty laugh, forcing happiness into a voice that wanted nothing more than to pout. Nick was gorgeous, fun to be around, and always made her feel better, no matter how far down in the dumps she was.

“Well then, let me take you out to eat, if you haven’t had dinner yet. Got any suggestions?”

“Hmm, how about cheap and cheerful? TGI Friday out by North Kings Highway?” She offered, knowing he’d have preferred something quiet, expensive, and intimate, but that wasn’t what she felt like right now. She wanted a place where she could have a drink, laugh, and not ponder what it meant that Lincoln had brought another woman to the event without letting her know. She didn’t want to end up in tears that would only add more rain to her parade, after all.

“That’s fine, I know you don’t care about eating at fancy places, so yeah, I’ll meet you there in fifteen minutes, shall I?”

“That’s a plan.” She agreed and hung up the phone. She hadn’t seen Nick since the fire at Elmo’s so this was a treat for her. She’d met him a while back and though it was obvious he was interested in her - he made no bones about that at all - he didn’t do it in a way that was creepy. On top of that he was supportive, funny, and most of all, loyal. That was hard to come by these days.

The fact that the man was a lookalike for Alexander Skarsgard and one of the richest men on the planet didn’t phase Roxie. She knew hundreds of handsome men with money. Nick was the marrying kind that didn’t fool around with dating. Once he found someone he liked, he pursued them with the idea of marriage in his mind. Which was why he didn’t just go out on dates with dozens of women at a time, he was in it for the long haul. It was too bad he was so focused on her, she thought as she pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant she’d chosen. There were so many other women out there that would love to have him.

“Hey.” She smiled as she opened the door and found Nick there waiting for her. She spotted his Maserati MC20 a few cars down and admired the car for a moment before she turned back to him. “I still love that car.”

“If only you’d marry me for it,” Nick said teasingly, but took her hand with a wide grin to let her know it was only a joke. “Let’s eat. Catch up, what have you been up to?”