Page 33 of Resist
She smiled in my direction as I settled into my seat, which was a bit tattered and … snug.
“Mornin’, Helena.”
“Good morning, Patsy.”
“That it is,” she said, stretching like Merv Hughes during a cricket game. “A new destination equals a new adventure.”
“True, but before a new adventure begins, the one before it must end. And I’m hoping our last one ended with a bang?” I smiled in anticipation of her answer. We hadn’t spoken about the show’s success while in Brisbane.
“It did! In fact, I have the sales figures for you right here.” Patsy fanned her face with a small stack of paper before handing it to me.
I gave it a quick flick through, happy with what I saw. “These are good!”
She nodded. “But next time, we’ll need to source a bigger venue or extend our stay in the major cities and perform more shows.”
“Hmm … extend our stay, yes, but I definitely don’t want to book bigger venues. We’ll lose intimacy between customer and performer if we do that. Wild Nights is about a ‘personal’ experience, and that’ll diminish if we increase numbers.”
“I agree. Friday night was crazy. I could barely MC over the crowd.”
“I noticed. Speak to Dex about increasing the volume output of your mic, or perhaps we can implement some kind of crowd-calming technique.”
“I could get my baps out,” Patsy said, jiggling her breasts with her cupped hands. “That’ll shut them up.”
“Actually, I was thinking more along the lines of playing around with the lighting.”
“Oh, riiiiight. That’ll work too. A bit of ‘mood’ lighting never hurt anyone, ay?” She punched my shoulder, hard.
The sudden jab at my body shocked me, and all I could do was sit and stare at her, unimpressed. I didn’t appreciate being ‘man’ handled, even if by a very butch, muscular, lesbian woman.
Patsy let out a nervous laugh at my silence. “Sorry. Maybe I’m getting ahead of myself.”
“Maybe you should try keeping your hands to yourself, please.”
Said hands shot into the air. “Oh, don’t worry, you’re not my type,” she blurted, defensively. “Well, you are … but you’re my boss.”
Closing my eyes, I massaged my fingertips into my temples. “That’s not what I meant. Honestly, I don’t care that you’re gay. You’re entitled to be and to feel however you want, and I support that one hundred percent.” I opened my eyes again. “What I meant was I don’t like to be … invaded … or touched without permission, so please don’t do that again.”
She stared at me wide-eyed then shot Baz a what-the-fuck-please-help-me look, which was when my stomach plummeted into a pit of guilt; I hadn’t meant to snap the way I had. “I’m sorry, Pat—”
“No, no. No need to apologise. You’ve every right to want your personal space. I didn’t mean to invade it. It won’t happen again. I promise.”
Lowering my head to once again focus on the sheets of paper in my hands, I didn’t look up when I spoke. “Would you mind getting me — in due course — the projected ticket sales for our shows in Cairns?”
“Sure thing,” Patsy said before continuing along the aisle of the bus to the very back where she sat down on the farthest seat.Shiiiiit!
Couldn’t say it surprised me.
Knowing I’d need to explain my reaction to her at some point, I rubbed my arm where her knuckles had connected.
“Are you cold?”
My eyes shot up at the sound of Lucas’s voice, the concern in his tone coupled with the scent of his aftershave sending a chill through my body, a chill that somehow had the ability to heat me at the same time. Funnily enough, it also eradicated the throb in my arm.
“No, I’m fine.” I offered him a smile, albeit an uneasy one, as memories bulleted to the forefront of my mind of how he’d stared at my lips in the elevator, and how I’d been so turned on I’d gone back to my room and subsequently dreamt of fucking his face. “I’m actually a little hot,” I added, letting out a ridiculous laugh while fanning my face with the stack of paper in my hand.
Lucas pressed his lips together, his jaw clicking, and I swear my nipples popped. “Definitely more than a little,” he murmured, before quickly adding, much louder, “Do you mind if I sit?” Lucas nodded toward the empty seat beside me. “I didn’t get a chance to talk about my solo act last night.”Oh, I’d like to hear all about your ‘solo act’ if it were anything like mine.
“Sure.” I moved my handbag to my feet and internally grumbled at the lack of space Bertha offered. “Take a seat.”
