Pressing his lips to hers was the only magic show Omar cared about. He felt sawed in half, put back together, and levitated all at the same time when he was with Lark.
It had nearly torn him apart when she'd left him for Rancik. But she was right. Omar couldn't produce her and love her at the same time, not with the public hounding their every move and decision.
All attention should be focused on her talent. Once the press and the people saw what she could do in a performance, they’d relent and lose interest in her personal life. Or at least he hoped that’s what would happen.
He could see the weariness setting into her pale eyes as she rested her head in the cradle of his shoulder. Yesterday, the wary look had only been at the corners of her eyes. Slowly, it was creeping in.
He wanted to peel back the layers, get her to tell him what troubled her. But he feared he knew what the answer would be; Rancik.
Omar’s instincts screamed to protect her. To shove Rancik away from her spotlight so the man wouldn’t dull her shine. But he couldn’t do that. He knew Lark was capable. He needed her to know he believed she could handle herself.
Sometimes it stunk being an evolved man.
So, instead of coming to a rescue she likely didn’t need and certainly didn’t want, he wined her, dined her, and then twirled her around the dance floor of his club until her eyes were shining bright. By the time he dropped her at Mondego House early into the next morning, the weariness was gone from her shoulders. He kissed her soundly, then went home to catch a few hours of sleep before his day was set to begin.
"What should I do with the rest of Ms. Voorheen’s things that were left in her dressing room?” said Marlena from behind her clipboard. "Donations?"
"No,” Omar frowned. “Give them to me."
“If you’re going to use them for your next little affair, you should know women don’t like re-gifts that belonged to the previous lover.” She checked off a box on her list.
“What new affair?” he said. "I'll give them to Lark myself tonight after her show.”
"You're still seeing her?"
"Of course. She's my girlfriend."
The clipboard clattered to the floor. "She's with Rancik, your rival.”
“It was the best thing for our relationship.”
“Relationship?”
“Lark is in my life. She will be around for a very long time. Forever, if I’m lucky.”
That little confession felt good. He wanted to repeat it to everyone he met on the street. He figured he’d get a head start at opening night for her show.
Surprisingly, Omar wasn’t the first of his friends to show up for the show. Alex and Jan sat with Princess Penelope between them in the royal box. Zhi’s box was empty. Omar could see the Duke, Duchess, and Spin seating a group of kids from their school down in the first few rows.
There was magic in the air. A spark of energy traveled through the crowd as people couldn’t keep still in their seats. Finally, the house lights dimmed. But the theater wasn’t cast in darkness.
There were glitter and sparkles everywhere. The faux magician, Blaze Mercury, came out … in a speedo.
Omar’s stomach dropped. His gut high kicked bile into his chest, giving his heart acid burn. To say he got a bad feeling was an understatement.
Where was Lark? It was her banter on magic history and women in magic that was meant to open the show. Several tricks wouldn’t work without that setup.
And then she appeared. Omar’s knuckles turned white as he held himself in his seat. She was barely dressed.
Her gaze found him in the crowd. The sparkle there was fake. The smile was forced. She swallowed and turned from him to begin.
He'd seen enough. She’d given up her dream to be with him, and it had turned into a nightmare. Omar left his seat and stormed down the steps in a rage.
Chapter Twenty-Two
The show had no intermission. It was no longer long enough to warrant one. But still, he left. The one person in the audience Lark wanted to impress.
Omar had risen from his box seat and left before she’d even performed her first trick. Maybe it was the reimagined set Rancik had constructed? Or perhaps Blaze’s speedo? Or the strategically placed sequins on her barely-there costume?