Page 38 of Chaos
Agirlish giggle escaped as I spun around in my room, dancing to the music playing on my phone with abandon. I hadn’t felt like this in so long. Whole. Healthy. Excited. My days had been little more than a series of carbon copies until a few weeks ago. There were brief sparks of enjoyment to be found in my routine, but nothing I looked forward to the way I did these new nightly visits.
As I sang along with the chorus of the song, I leaned close to the vanity mirror and used my fingers to swipe a honey-infused moisturizer across my forehead, cheeks, and chin. My skin was glowing, complexion clear and luminescent in a way one might use to describe the ethereal beauty of the fae. Hell, I was positive if I walked around like this, that's exactly what I’d be mistaken for.
I caught myself mid-cheek pinch and laughed. I was prepping as if I was about to go on an actual date. The butterflies in my stomach sure seemed to think that’s what was happening, even if my partner for the evening had no idea about it. I had more of a physical connection with Sin than any of the other guys, that was undeniable, but something about being able towalk in their subconsciouses made this feel more intimate. Like I was peeking behind the curtain at things they kept from the world.
In only three days, I’d learned so much about the men I was cohabitating with. Things I’d bet they’d never willingly share. Maybe that made these visits a little unfair since I was essentially collecting their secrets without their knowledge, but it wasn’t like I was using the information against them.
If anything, it was bringing us closer together.
And if Malice was allowed to spy on me via his cameras and computer spyware, then I say turnabout is fair play. Because there was no way he was keeping what he discovered to himself, so really, I was just creating an even playing field. Girl power and all that.
The itch of anticipation hummed under my skin as I glanced at the time, hopeful the late hour meant Sin would have finally nodded off for the night. He didn’t need to sleep, per se, but all the horsemen did it by force of habit. Neither did demons, actually. Lilith had explained it to me once. She said it helped our brains handle the weight of our long lives and, in some cases, immortality. Those who didn’t use these little opportunities to power down tended to go mad after a few centuries.
Settling myself in bed, I closed my eyes and homed in on Sin’s energy. He wasn’t hard to find, the feel of him distinctive, just as the others had been. Perhaps he was so easy because the two of us shared so many similarities. Or maybe it was simply because I’d gotten stronger. Either way, I could sense him before I opened the door labeled Stage Door and stepped into his dream.
The smell of the smoke machines hit me first, followed quickly by the heat of the spotlights, even though they weren’t directed my way. From what I could tell, I was tucked off on the side of the stage, on which Sin stood front and center, cradlinghis mic stand as if it was a lover and belting out the final notes of one of the Apocalyptic Unicorns’ biggest hits.
Good God, he was beautiful. Shirtless, in low-slung leather pants, sweat making his skin glisten under the lights, Sin was every inch the rock star of my fantasies. The song finished, and the crowd went wild. Sin smirked and silenced them with a single lift of his hand.
I’d heard the expression about holding someone in the palm of their hand, but until this moment, I don’t think I’d ever seen it in action. Sin was in complete control of the crowd, and they trusted him fully. It was a powerful thing. No wonder he loved it so much.
“All right, we’re just about to wrap up for the night?—”
The crowd was immediate in their protest.
Sin laughed. “I know, I know. I’m having a blast too, but you see, I promised a very special lady that I wouldn’t miss our date tonight.” He looked over to where I was tucked behind a curtain and winked at me. I felt a flutter low in my stomach at the acknowledgment that I was said special lady.
There were a few cries of disappointment in response to Sin’s explanation—fair enough, part of the fantasy was believing the rock star would fall head over heels as soon as he spotted his soulmate in the crowd—but most of his fans let out heartfelt swoons.
“You know,” he started, holding his hand out and practically summoning a guitar tech from thin air. “I spend so much time as the frontman, running around on stage, singing for you all, and I love it. But what I really love is getting to show you the softer side of me.”
He put the guitar strap over his head and strummed across the strings before beginning to pick out a tender melody. “Do you guys want to hear what I’ve been working on?”
A cheer loud enough to make my ears ring filled the arena.
He chuckled. “I’ll take that as a yes.” Then Sin looked my way, his eyes blazing as they locked with mine. “But only if I can get a guest out here.”
My heart lurched as those words hit me.
“Well, what do you say, kitten? Come out here and let me serenade you so they can all see how much you mean to me.”
Shock sent my heart tumbling in my chest. Of all the things I thought I might discover in Sin’s dreams, a mid-concert serenade hadn’t even made the top one hundred.
I pointed to myself and mouthed,Me?
He laughed and then turned to the crowd. “Looks like she’s feeling a little shy. Let’s make her feel at home, yeah? Will you show my girl how much you’d like to meet her?”
The audience erupted into applause, and a stool manifested out of nowhere next to Sin right as the stage lights dimmed so only two spotlights remained.
“Come on, baby. I want to show off my beautiful girl.”
My knees shook as I stepped onto the stage, and Sin’s expression morphed from a little unsure to absolutely beaming. I could feel the heat in my cheeks as a full-body blush swept over me. Thankfully the crowd was kind, and Sin didn’t waste any time prolonging the moment. As soon as I was settled on the stool, he started to play.
Just like with his last song, his voice hypnotized the crowd. My whole body tightened as he bared his soul to all thirty-odd thousand of us through the poetry woven into the lyrics he wrote... about me. It wasn’t all sex and rock ‘n’ roll like most of the Apocalyptic Unicorns’ music. This was filled with yearning, hope, and happiness at finding the one meant for him.
Unexpected tears misted my eyes, and I was having a little trouble swallowing around the ball of emotion lodged in my throat. I knew this was a dream, which meant Sin’s admissionwas subconscious at best. But I didn’t have that same excuse to hide behind. My reaction to his confession was fully realized.
As the song ended, he lifted the guitar over his head and handed it back to the assistant, not even waiting for the crowd’s applause to end before he pulled me into his arms and kissed me long and deep.
