Page 44 of Indigo Sky

And that’s how it was my first week on the job. I worked those first couple nights—I was flying solo for two of them—and went home to my parents’ house. I met two of the other dancers—a girl who called herself Crystal Rayne and another who went by Ivy Keres—and had a couple of brief conversations with Sam, Saul’s brother and the guy who owned the place. I liked everyone. They were all good people, nice and welcoming, and I felt like I fit in.

For the first time in years, it seemed like I belonged somewhere, and I was even starting to feel grateful that I’d lost my job at Roy’s shop. I mean, I wouldn’t go so far as to say I was thrilled about it, and I wouldn’t thank Nate for letting me take the hit, but …

I was happy. Content really.

And after Indigo and I finally talked again …

Well, let’s just say …

The chemistry wasn’t dead.

***

“Rev!” Wendy called to me when I walked into Midnight Lotus.

It was about a half hour before we opened to the public. The girls were in the dressing rooms backstage, getting ready for their shifts as waitresses and performers. Wendy was standing at the mouth to the hallway, wearing a pink robe and waving her arms to grab my attention.

“What’s up?” I asked, walking over and taking care not to see something I didn’t intend to see.

“Crystal has a date,” she announced, practically bouncing on her toes with excitement.

“Oh,” I replied, unsure of what the appropriate response should be. “Congratulations.”

“She’s been in a bit of a dry spell,” Wendy explained. “Her ex broke up with her over a year ago, and she hasn’t found anyone else who’s met her standards.”

Crystal emerged from her dressing room, wearing only a bra and sweatpants. Her hair was held back by a puffy-looking headband, and her makeup was only half-done.

Being around women in their underwear didn’t faze me nearly as much as I would’ve expected it to, even after just a week of working there. Actually, it was starting to feel close to normal.

“Okay, if you’re gonna air out my dirty laundry, you might as well tell him whatactuallyhappened,” Crystal said, rolling her eyes at Wendy before turning to me, arms crossed over her chest. “My ex and I were engaged. He slept with some little whore at his fuckin’ bachelor party, decided he liked her pussy more or some crap, and broke it off with me a week before our wedding. So, yeah, it’s taken me a little while to get back out there, but I can’t help that all men are cheating piles of dog shit.”

“Um …” I cleared my throat and shuffled my weight from one foot to the other. “Wow, that … yeah, that sucks. I’m sorry that happened to you.”

“I bet Rev doesn’t cheat on the girls he’s with,” Wendy said, stepping in closer and laying her hand on my arm. “You ever cheat before?”

“Well, my history with women is, uh, brief, but, no, I can’t say I’ve ever—"

“Oh my God,” came an old, familiar voice.

I looked up to see Indigo Sky, standing in the hallway in a velvet purple robe, decorated with sequined stars.

I had worried she wouldn’t remember me, but those worries were squashed now by a look of obvious astonishment blanketing every one of her features. Her eyes stared wide, looking directly at me and then a big, bright smile spread acrossher face. She walked down the hall, coming to stand closer to Crystal, who was glancing over her shoulder with confusion.

“What?” Crystal asked.

Indigo ignored her coworker and continued to stare at me. “When Saul said he hired a guy named Rev, I wasn’t sure it was you, but—"

“How many guys named Rev have you met?” I asked, nervously tucking my hands into my pockets, just to give them something to do.

“Just the sweetest one,” she replied, her eyes meeting mine as her smile went from excited to shy. “But I might be biased.”

“Oh, get outta here,” I said, laughing and shaking my head. Playing it cool while my heart became a shaking idiot in my chest.

Wendy looked from Indie to me, her finger pointing back and forth between us. “Wait, are you telling me you know each other?”

“Not—"

“Well—"

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