Page 26 of Lawless in Leather

She felt like she was being served up to Mal’s gaze on a feathery platter.

What’s worse, seeing him looking made her feel hot and weak at the knees all over again.

Her body had no sense.

Mal reached the edge of the stage, stopped for a long look that swept slowly up from her ankles to the top of her head, then boosted himself up to stand beside her.

She was, at least, wearing dance shoes now, which gave her a couple of extra inches of height.

“Impressive,” Mal murmured. “That look has potential.”

“The version for your dance squad will be white of course,” Raina said. “And the outfits are white, too. With touches of silver and blue and yellow.”

Mal reached out and touched one of the feathers near her right ear softly.

There was something wrong with her because a shiver ran over her skin as though he’d stroked her, not the wing.

“I have kind of a soft spot for black and pink,” he said.

“Well, not sure your fans will go for those as team colors,” she said briskly.

“They might if they saw you in this outfit,” Mal said.

Behind her, Brady cleared his throat. “So you approve?” he asked.

Mal shrugged. “They look cool. But aren’t wings hard to dance in?”

“They won’t be wearing them for the whole routine,” Raina said. “They come in doing this slow sort of walk and then there’s a bit of a—” She demonstrated the slow-mo shimmy/twist/turn series of moves briefly, figuring that Mal wouldn’t understand if she started spouting dance terminology at him. She hadn’t thought about how he might react, though.

Which was to go still and deep while he watched her, his eyes once again full of wicked intentions. “Anyway,” she said, trying to pretend she hadn’t noticed, “imagine that with someone taller and blonder than me.”

“I don’t go for blondes,” he said. Beside her Brady choked down a laugh.

“Anyway,” she continued, soldiering on. “Then we do this.” She hit the release on the wings, shrugged out of them, and let them flutter to the ground. “Fallen angels, get it? Which leaves the girls perfectly able to do the rest of the routines. It’s like a big opening number. Get some attention, let the press get some good shots. Alex is using us for some publicity, so we’re going for a bit of spectacle and razzle-dazzle.”

Mal was still looking at her and she got the feeling he was thinking about things very far removed from spectacle and razzle-dazzle. Things that were far more personal. Involving a much smaller cast and a much smaller set.

Damn it, now she was thinking about it, too. She bent down and picked up the wings. She didn’t know quite how Brady had done it but they were light enough to be wearable without giving anyone a back injury but tough enough to survive being shed by the Angels during the routine.

She ran her hand down the wings, smoothing the feathers. The black with the odd brilliant pink one here and there was striking. Maybe she could come up with a way to use them in the show here.

One of her reasons for taking the job with the Saints was to try to get some publicity for the club as well, so it couldn’t hurt to have a fallen-angel routine that was a little more burlesque and naughty than she could get away with on a baseball field.

“So, what do you think?” Brady said.

“I’m beginning to understand Alex’s point of view on the cheerleader thing,” Mal said.

“Fab,” Brady said. He reached out and took the wings from Raina. “Well, I’ll just put these bad boys away and leave you two to chat. Many wings to make before Saturday and all that.” He disappeared behind the stage curtain before Raina could object. Leaving her alone with Mal again. Feeling even more naked without the wings.

Where exactly had she left her hoodie again?

She couldn’t remember. And she wasn’t going to give the Mal the satisfaction of hunting frantically for it to put it on so she felt less exposed. Instead she straightened her spine. “Thanks. That was helpful.”

“I want to talk to you about the graffiti. Luis said it wasn’t the first time.”

“I thought we already discussed that. I’m not an idiot, Mr. Coulter—” She couldn’t quite bring herself to use his name. Not with that kiss still tingling on her lips. “—if I thought there was an actual problem, I’d take steps. I take my safety and the safety of everyone who works here just as seriously as you take things as Deacon. Now, don’t you have somewhere to be?”

“I do,” he said. “But it can wait.”

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