Page 55 of Just Between Us

A soft hand dragged across the nape of my neck, tearing my gaze from her. I turned to find a woman I didn’t know standing behind me and smiling.

“Hi there.” The woman licked her lips and leaned closer to me.

“Ma’am.” I nodded and shifted away from her touch.

A barking laugh cracked out of her. “Ma’am?” She laughed again, this time letting her hand rest on my forearm. “I’m too young to be anyone’sma’am.”

I stood, slipping from her touch, and offered a polite smile as my eyes searched again for Veda. I flattened my lips and offered the stranger a terse nod. “You have a good night.”

I was only two steps away when she called out to me. “I know who you are, you know ...Mr.Right.Now.”

I glanced back. She shimmied her shoulders, and her tongue swiped across her lip. “You can be my Mr. Right Nowanytime.”

I was stunned, too shocked to move. My mind spun.

How did she know who I was?

The whole point of my online persona was to be completely anonymous. Knowing I could set free the dominant side of my personality was part of the thrill. Despite the public platform, behind the camera I had always feltsafe. The degrading way the woman was openly gawking at me made my skin crawl.

I imagined that must have been how Veda felt when, at the wedding, I had tossed in her face that I knew her online identity.

Being on the opposite side of it was gutting.

“You might not show your face”—the woman’s finger swirled in my direction—“but you and those sexy-ass tattoos have a starring role in my fantasies almost every night. I dumped a boyfriend because he couldn’t live up to you.” She pouted and stomped, the motion bouncing her breasts in a way I was certain worked to capture the attention of most men.

My gut turned leaden. It was surreal having my online persona and real life come crashing together. The urge to flee was instinctual and insistent.

I stuffed my hands into my pockets in an attempt to appear aloof. “I wish I could say I knew what you were talking about,” I lied with a tight smile. “Good luck, though.”

I wound through the crowded bar in search of Veda, leaving the woman pouting behind me. With every pair of eyes that moved my way, I wondered if they knew. I had never been ashamed of the content I created, but keeping my identity hidden had been my choice. The anonymity protected me but also gave the viewers the opportunity to picture whoever they chose in my role.

Mr.Right.Nowwas like a part of me I had plucked out and put on a shelf, but there it was, being shoved down my throat.

A frustrated growl tore out of me as I stomped through the bar. In the dark corner near the band’s merchandise table, I finally spotted Veda with her profile to me. Next to her was a man I recognized as the band’s lead guitarist. He was a skinnyguy wearing tight black jeans and high-top sneakers. His arms were slim, and he had a few faded tattoos that could use some rework on the shading. Veda seemed to be enjoying the conversation, so I made a mental note to offer him my card and a consultation to clean up his ink.

When she pointed to a shirt, he leaned in close to her.

Too close.

When she let out a hearty, genuine laugh at something he said, I wanted to tear his head from his fucking shoulders.

He could live with his shitty tattoos.

I sucked in a deep breath. She was a grown woman and was allowed to talk with whomever she’d like.

I stared harder and closed the distance between us. She stood across from the musician as he spoke to her. She was concentrating. I recognized the cute line between her eyebrows and the slightest pout to her lower lip.

He noticed too.

A jealous spike of awareness pinched my back. If he looked at her again like a meal he was ready to devour, I was going to lose it.

Trying not to be an overprotective man-baby, I casually joined their conversation. The guitarist’s eyes flicked to mine, and he paused.

Veda turned. “Hey, Royal, this is Dan. He’s the guitarist. Dan, my friend, Royal.”

I was surprised to hear the giddiness had faded from her voice, but I held out a hand. “Nice to meet you. The band sounds great tonight.”

Dan’s chest puffed. “Nice to meet you, friend. I was just telling Veda here that the second set was going to blow the roof off the place.”

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