Page 48 of Smolder (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter 29)

I could finally draw a deep breath and let go of the anger. Therapy helped me work out my anger issues, but nothing seemed to make them go away. I looked up at Ethan; his white hair spilled around the top of his face, still cut short enough on the sides that the top was the only volume he had. That one dark red streak that went from his forehead to the back of his skull looked like a skilled hairdresser had done it, but it was natural, the only hint of his red tiger lost in white and gray that signaled white and blue respectively. His eyes were a solid gray and if you didn’t know what you were looking at you’d never guess they were tiger eyes in his human face. Nothing in his human form gave away his golden tiger heritage, but I could call the scent of it to his skin.

“Thanks,” I said, and the background music was low enough he could hear me. There were strip clubs out there where the music blared so loud all night you couldn’t hear yourself think, but Guilty Pleasures wasn’t like that.

Ethan smiled down at me and said, “You’re welcome, but it is part of my job.”

I nodded and said, “Still, thanks.”

Rodina turned her head and said, “They’re taking pictures.” She was keeping her voice low so she wouldn’t be overheard by the group of people who were standing just outside the half circle that she and Ru had created around us and the wall. The women had their phones out and were filming me clinging to Ethan. They’d had to turn theirflashes off because there were signs everywhere for that, so the pictures wouldn’t be high quality, yay for that.

“Get security over here and remind them that they aren’t allowed to take pictures of performers or their families inside the club,” I said.

Ru started to go find someone, but a black-shirted figure was already there chasing them back and telling them if they broke another of the club’s rules they’d be kicked out and there wouldn’t be any refunds.

Buzz still had his black hair in a close crew cut and small, pale eyes. He was built like an old-fashioned weightlifter, as if with one good flex his shirt would explode off him. He was a vampire, so he could keep his muscles without lifting another weight for the rest of eternity. “Sorry, Anita, I’ve got new guys on the door.”

“I hope they’re better at the door than they were just now.”

“I’ll yell at them later. Allow me to escort you to your table, though I’ll have to get an extra chair. I didn’t expect four of you.”

“I can stand,” Ethan said.

“Nah, you’ll block the view of the table behind you,” Buzz said as he ushered us through the small tables that filled the room around the stage to our table, well, my table since now it was always reserved for me and whatever bodyguard I had with me. Last time I’d been here, Nicky had been with me. I had a sudden pang of missing him. He’d been my main bodyguard for so long that I was used to having him at my side almost everywhere, and I was in love with him, so that contributed. I hated that the rumors had stripped me of him.

Ethan knew better than to hold my chair for me, but Ru didn’t yet, so we had that awkward moment of me trying to help him scoot me forward and failing to be helpful. We finally got it done but only because Ru was stronger than human normal and could finally just push the chair to the table even with me being in the way. I’d never managed to figure out how to be graceful when a man did the chairthing, and if Jean-Claude couldn’t teach me how to do it, then no one could.

Ru leaned over and whispered, “I’ll remember not to do the chair next time.”

I whispered back, “Thank you.”

Rodina started to sit down beside me, but Ethan moved forward and put his hand on the other side of the chair back. They stared at each other for a long minute while Ru took the far chair that wasn’t claimed, leaving the two of them to do whatever they were doing. Ethan was usually easygoing and didn’t try to dominate anyone else in my security detail, so why was he suddenly asserting himself now with Rodina?

“We all agreed on this,” Ethan said, and he was as serious and unhappy as I’d heard him in a while. He spoke low so that no one could hear but us.

“I didn’t agree, I was outvoted,” she said, voice still soft.

Buzz came up with our extra chair. “Everything okay here?”

Ru said, “The crowd is starting to notice.”

I glanced away from us to the room, and he was right, people were starting to openly stare. This was not going to quiet the rumors. “Both of you just sit down,” I said.

They continued to glare at each other. What the hell was going on? “Ethan by me; Rodina, take the chair from Buzz.”

Ethan took the chair and sat down beside me, and Rodina let him. Buzz scooted the chair in for Rodina and she was much better at making it look graceful instead of awkward. Maybe she could give me pointers later?

Buzz stepped back and looked at us. Ethan put his arm across the back of my chair, which I don’t think he’d ever done. Rodina glared at him. “You guys okay here?” Buzz asked, but he looked at me when he said it.

I looked at my three bodyguards, but only Ru met my gaze; the other two were too busy paying attention to each other. I frowned but said, “We’re good; thanks, Buzz.”

“Okay, just yell if you need anything.”

“Will do, Buzz.” He looked at all of us one more time, then walked away. I turned to Ethan and Rodina. “Okay, what’s going on?”

Ethan looked at her and Rodina looked at me. He was smiling and she wasn’t. “He called rank.”

“Rank? What rank?”

Ethan leaned into me so that his arm curled around my shoulders instead of resting on my chairback. I was torn between telling him to move his arm since he seemed to be doing it just to piss off Rodina, but he spoke low enough that I leaned in to hear it. “The Harlequin have been trying to dominate all of us, and we’re all tired of it.”

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