Authors: Lisa Carlisle
“What? That’s not paying you back. You know I’m already a
fan.”
“Fine. How about dinner on Saturday, after we’re done here
and before I need to set up?”
“Absolutely,” I agreed. “That’s the least I can do.” I took
his hand and looked at him in earnest. “Thank you, Mike. I have been so
overwhelmed ever since I started to make this dream become a reality. You don’t
know how much I appreciate your help.”
After Mike left the studio, I took care of a few more things
before I closed up. In class, I found myself distracted, which was unusual.
After years of yoga I was well-practiced in clearing my mind. It was more
difficult to do with Mike on it. I pictured him in class the other night and
tried not to smile, my horror at having him show up now replaced with the humor
in the situation.
He was a conundrum, without a doubt. He used women for sex,
yet he could be more considerate than most people I knew. He didn’t seem like
the type of guy who’d be capable of being in a relationship. Yet the more time
I spent with him, the easier it was to see him in that role. The little things
he did showed me he was far more considerate than he let on.
I had to keep my defenses up though, unless I wanted to get
hurt. No matter how much I looked forward to Saturday, I had to find a way to
keep my distance.
Saturday came and Mike arrived with a box of supplies. By
two o’clock, he had my laptop set up with better anti-virus software and backup
systems, a multi-function printer, and had downloaded software I could use to
run everything I needed for the studio from my laptop and even on my
smartphone. All I had accomplished was teaching several morning classes and
purchasing a couple of chairs and display stands from an office supply store.
“You are a godsend,” I told Mike. “I don’t know how to repay
you.”
“You do know how to repay me. We’re going to dinner and then
you’re coming to my show tonight.”
“I seem to be benefiting greatly from this arrangement.”
“Fine. Throw in a free yoga class.” He grinned. “For
beginners.”
“If you insist. Although I find it hard to concentrate on
teaching when you’re in the class.”
“Hard not to notice this fine physique,” he teased, rubbing
his hands down his side. “Especially when arched in some rather graceful
poses.”
I laughed. “That’s one way to state it. Another way is
saying it’s hard not to notice someone with arms and limbs working
independently of the rest of his body. I still can’t believe you came to my
class.”
“I wanted to see you,” he said, glancing into my eyes. “And
it seemed like a better idea before I actually tried it.”
My eyes fixed on his endless hazel pools for several
moments, noting the blend of green, brown and gold. “I’m glad you did.” Then I
leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you.”
“We’re not done yet. I still have to teach you how to work
with the software.”
“Computer lesson?” I asked. “Oh hold on. I’ll pick up some
coffees.”
After I returned, we sat down together in front of my laptop
in my office area, which now looked and functioned like an office with much
help from Mike.
“I found the most intuitive program out there to make it
easier to use. You want the software to help you, not make you struggle. This
one groups functions together in a way that makes it easy for you to run a
basic yoga studio with a small number of clientele and few classes, yet it’s
also robust enough to grow with your business. If you hire new instructors,
it’s easy to create multiple accounts with various access rights.”
“What does that mean?”
“You can give them only as much access as they need. So they
can add clients to classes, for instance, but won’t be able to see your
financial info.”
“This is exciting,” I said, leaning forward in my seat. “I
plan to add new instructors and more classes as I grow the business. This is
pretty amazing.”
“I think you’re pretty amazing for having the guts to do
this on your own.” His high appraisal made me beam like a child receiving a
parent’s praise.
“Or foolish.”
“The only foolish thing would be if you didn’t try and then
were left with regrets.” He faced the screen again. “I have all the basic
studio info in here and created an admin account for you. First I’m going to
show you how to add clients to the system and then I’ll hand over the laptop so
you can do it.”
Mike glanced at my hands, which I’d been wringing. “I’m
nervous,” I explained.
“Don’t be. The best way to learn how to use this system and
make it work for you is to play around with it. It’s easy to create dummy
entries and then delete them. If you ever make a mistake, you can click Undo.”
I took a sip of coffee. “I’m caffeinated and ready.”
“That’s my girl.” He patted my thigh, an innocent gesture
but one that pulsed intense need through me. Then he demonstrated how to create
new client accounts and I did one on my own.
“You used my name,” he said.
“You’re next to me,” I explained, feeling foolish. “I’ll
delete it.”
“No, don’t. Who knows, maybe I’ll find the courage to try
yoga again, after the humiliation fades.”
I grinned, picturing the thought. “Okay.”
“Now I’m going to show you how to create classes and how to
add clients to them. Then I’ll show you how to make sales in the system. How
you can view your sales reports. And so on. I’ve connected your credit card
processing system and your bank account so you can view it all here.”
“Holy crap.” I leaned in with excitement. “You mean I don’t
have to log in to my bank accounts and credit card accounts and enter all that
data into spreadsheets?”
“Nope, you can export data into Excel or QuickBooks or
whatever format your accountant wants. You can see your financial status at any
time by clicking on this tab.” He clicked a tab that read Reports, which showed
a number of financial options.
“This is unbelievably awesome. You rock!” I threw my arms
around him to hug him.
He laughed, a sound that melted me, leaving me as warm as
the richest chocolate fondue.
“I haven’t even shown you how we can add it to your website
yet. Or access it on your iPhone.”
My eyes widened with admiration. “I appreciate all you’ve
done for me. You really are a genius.”
“No, just a software engineer. I create programs like this
to make people’s lives easier.” He squinted. “Why are you looking at me like
that?”
“Because you’re even hotter now than when you’re in tight
leather pants on stage. I never thought smart could be so sexy.” The sound of
the front door opening distracted me from the desire that had begun to well up.
“That must be Lily. She’s coming to take pictures for the website.”
“Good,” Mike said. “I can give her the code to embed the
program into the website. Once you figure out your schedule, people can buy and
book classes online.”
I clasped my hands together and kissed him on the cheek. “I
am so lucky to have you both.”
Mike
After we left Allana’s studio, she took me to a Thai
restaurant for dinner. I could barely get through the meal without touching her
in some way. Her hand, her arm, her leg. Being around her stirred an unfamiliar
longing to get closer to her. She was beautiful, her blonde hair soft as silk
and eyes that could unglue me with their intense blues. But something else drew
me to her besides the overwhelming sexual attraction. I liked her.
Over dinner she mentioned an animal shelter she often went
to in Gloucester and her eyes lit up.
“What do you do there?”
She shrugged. “I have a shift once a week volunteering. Help
with feedings or clean the cages or just play with the animals. They need some
attention.” Her eyes dropped to the salt and pepper shakers. “It’s usually four
hours, but with all that I have going on, I can only do two right now.”
My heart panged, seeing this soft side of her. Not only did
she care about people wanting them to improve their lives, but animals too. How
did this smoking hot woman have such a caring heart?
“That’s more than most people do.”
Her gaze drifted up past me. “I wish I could take some of
them home. But with my landlord’s rules…”
“What would you bring home first?” I asked.
“I love all kinds of animals,” she said. “But I’d love to
bring home a little puppy.”
I pictured her smile as she played with one. Not only did my
heart surge, my cock stiffened as well. How the hell did this woman get to me
so? Spending time with her was more than just trying to get into a woman’s pants.
I liked hanging out with her. Listening to music at my house, having a
conversation over a meal, even helping her with the studio. It didn’t seem like
work, but pleasure. Doing something I was good at to help a friend.
We parted ways after dinner but she promised to hold up her
end of the bargain and come to Vamps tonight to watch us play.
* * * * *
The moment I spotted her from the stage while we played
Vampire
Bromance
, I couldn’t tear my eyes off her. Watching her sway her hips in a
black minidress with a sexy zipper that went the entire length of the front of
the dress gave me a semi-erection on stage. The sleeveless dress showed off her
pin-up style floral tattoos on her toned arms.
Several guys noticed how hot she was. When they checked her
out, a dagger of possessiveness struck me. If they touched her…
Is this what Nico went through when Lily came to our shows?
I glanced over at him, but between the lights and my position, I couldn’t gauge
what he was looking at.
We played through several of our popular songs, including
Never
Trust a Woman with an Asp
and
Annabel Lee
, the song Nico had written
after meeting Lily.
A guy came up behind Allana, his hands in front of him. My red
signals went up and I focused on him. We’d played this song
A Discourse in
Scarlet
, a modern day banter between Sherlock Holmes and Watson, hundreds
of times so I could do so on autopilot.
He was too close and it bothered me. Although I couldn’t see
what was going on with the crowd in the way, I saw her raise his hands and drop
them. Had he touched her inappropriately? She turned back and appeared to say
something to him. Then she moved a couple of feet away from him to her right.
The tension building up inside me eased with the distance
between them, but when he followed in her direction, I was wound as tight as my
guitar strings. I didn’t like this. He moved in behind her, moving his body
behind her as she danced. He must have made another move, touched her again,
because she pivoted and raised a finger to his face, giving him a piece of her
mind.
She peered up at me and our eyes locked until the glare from
the stage lights broke it. When my eyes adjusted, she’d disappeared. I scanned
the crowd, searching for her. Panic rose as I searched the dark recesses of the
club.
She was so petite she was difficult to locate. But her blonde
hair stood out against the black-clad dancers so that’s what I scanned for. My
heart pounded, wondering where she had gone. And where was that dickhead?
I spotted him first. He was tall and gangly, sporting a
stupid goatee. As I watched the direction he moved in, I located her. She was
moving closer to the stage. Closer to me. It was easy for her to squeeze
through the bodies with her tiny figure. She planted herself amid a group of
people dancing.
Her distance didn’t dissuade him. He pushed his way closer
her, moving around the figures that separated them. Although he was bigger and
slower than her, he didn’t let the mass of figures disrupt his pursuit. All my
senses flared to their highest alert.
Calm down. Maybe he’ll change his mind. Or she’ll brush
him off enough this time he gets the picture and gives up.
The glint in his eye disturbed me, I’d seen it one too
many times when people passed a certain point during a night of drinking
.
When they’d become immune to reason as they embarked on a drunken quest, usually
followed with repeated poor decisions.
Allana scanned to her left where they had just stood and
seeing he was gone, visibly relaxed. She began to dance again.
He dodged the last few people and reached her again. This
time they were close enough I could see more of what unfolded. He reached
around her and grabbed her hip and bent low to whisper something into her ear.
His hand slid up, covering her breast. Maybe he kissed her neck. She spun
around and slapped him. He grabbed her wrist and kissed her. She struggled, her
free hand pounding his chest and tried to pull away. Even worse, he lifted her
skirt and I saw his hand disappear underneath.
Rage spread through my body, but when his hand disappeared
up her dress, a fury like I’d never experienced bled into every nerve. I
dropped my guitar and flew at him, everything clouded with red. Except him. My
vision focused on him with deadly accuracy. Prying his hands from her, I threw
him into the crowd.
“Get away!” I told her.
“Oh my God, Mike!” A part of me realized how clearly I could
hear her. The guys had stopped playing.
I searched through the club to see where the guy had landed
and saw him near the fringes of the crowd. Lunging through the people, I pulled
my fist back and punched him in the jaw. As he recoiled, blood spurted from his
nose. I jumped on him, knocking him to the ground. I punched him over and over,
his blood covering my knuckles. He raised his hands to deflect the blows and
punch back. If he made contact, the pain didn’t register with all the
adrenaline hurdling through my veins.
Arms grabbed me from behind and I fought to escape the hold.
“Stop fighting!” Nico said in his slight English accent.
“It’s the bouncers.”
The guy struggled to his feet, dazed. “What the fuck,
asshole?”
“Don’t ever go near her again.”
“The blonde?” He shrugged. “Who cares about some little
whore?”
I maneuvered out of the hands grabbing me and slammed my
fist into this guy’s gut. He hunched over and moaned.
“Cut the shit, Mike!” John, our drummer, said.
Arms bound my arms and led me out of the crowd.
“Where is she?” I searched for Allana, struggling out of
their grasp to find her.
“Calm the fuck down, dude. Let’s get backstage,” Nico said.
When I spotted Allana away from the crowd, her eyes were
wide blue circles of surprise. I mouthed “Come” and nodded backstage.
The two enormous bouncers hurled me backstage. One was
Byron, the muscular black bouncer from that night I’d found Allana backstage.
The other was the tall blond Viking guy, and he was giving me a really weird
look.
“What the fuck just happened out there?” Byron asked.
“That guy forced himself on my girl.” Hearing myself say
that sounded right, even if it wasn’t true. “He grabbed her tits. Kissed her
against her will. She tried to fight him off, but he got even worse. Sticking
his hand up her skirt.”
“So you flew off the stage to beat the crap out of him?”
Byron asked.