I never ever would have thought that King could dance. He’s way too serious, too scary to be so blessed with so many talents. If you ever wondered if God played favorites, just look at King. Then again, wasn’t Lucifer also a favorite? When the beat slows, I rub my body against his, and then just as the closing chorus starts again, I smirk from over my shoulder, grinding into him. He pulls me in again, and I lean back, my hair sashaying across the ground. The dance is intimate, our movements igniting fire beneath our feet.
The song finishes and the next one starts playing, but I bounce away and hit pause, spinning back around to face him. “What the fuck! I had no idea you could dance!”
King shrugs, wrapping his lips around a bottle, his eyes still on mine.
“It’s no secret that he can, Little Bird.” Val slithers in, and I spin around to see a whole lot of people in the tent, obviously watching our little—thing. “It’s just that he doesn’t want to.”
“Fuck off, Val,” King bites, tossing the bottle across the ground. I try to search out the rest of The Brothers but only find Kyrin. Keaton and Killian long since left.
Kyrin leisurely walks onto the stage, and King starts laughing, shoving him back by his shoulder. “You can fuck right off.”
Kyrin’s eyes slide off me and onto King. “Why? At least let me in.”
King pauses.
Kyrin chuckles. “Or don’t you trust her?”
“I don’t have to trust her. We’re just fucking.”
Val winces, as do I, deep down. Val quickly composes herself and walks off.
“Well, then if we’re just fucking, sure, Kyrin. Take a seat.” I glare at King and grab one of the chairs from the audience.
“Oh, I’m here for this.” I hear one of the Demon actors say from the seating area.
Kyrin shakes his head, finally bringing his eyes to mine. “You know where my room is when the time comes.” He turns to head out of the tent, and I spin around to face King, my hands on my hips.
“Don’t go bitch on me, Little Bird. You know damn well that’s all we’re doing.” He leaves behind Kyrin, obviously going to do damage control. I’m confused with what’s going on, and I can feel the tension between them all. All I know is I don’t know why. I know how I felt when we had sex earlier today. Multiple times. But there were times that were more. I don’t know if he noticed it, but when he’s lost inside of me, a small part of his wall cracks, and I see flashes into his soul.
“Hey, chica!” Rose hits my hip with hers. “You and King finally there.”
“Yeah,” I say, bringing my eyes to hers. “Though I’m not sure if it’s something I should be talking about.”
“Hey,” she says, looking around skeptically. “Did you open that note I gave you?”
“Oh shit!” I whisper. “I forgot all about it. It will still be in my room. Come on, let’s go.”
“I’m coming!” Maya yells out, leaving Val and Mischa behind, dumbfounded.
“She’s different, Dove. You can trust Maya.” I’m not sure why she felt the need to tell me that, but I thank her anyway. We start on our way back to the RV, and while Maya and Rose talk about some guy who’s missing, I’m lost in my head trying to figure out what The Brothers could be fighting about. Is it about me, or is it still about Killian and his mom being some weird sex addict? And what about all those strange men? Killian’s mom had the same tattoo. My eyes close for a brief second, but it’s enough for a flashback to come over me.
Red hair fell over the girl’s shoulders as she ran toward a field. I stopped; my hands tightly secured in my father’s. I pulled on him. “Where is she going?”
Father looked ahead and smiled. “Probably to watch the hot air balloons. It’s your favorite part of carnival weekend.”
“I know.” I rolled my eyes at my father’s obvious fact. “But why is she excited?”
“Well, you’re not the only one who loves hot air balloons, Little Bird. Your sister does, too.”
I freeze, my footing falling. We’re a few footsteps away from the RV when Rose and Maya both turn to see what’s stopping me.
“Now what’s wrong?” Maya asks.
I think over what I just saw inside my head. The clean, crisp blades of grass underneath the soles of my shoes. The early sunset off in the distance burns against an orange sky. The girl with red hair, who looked like a replica of me. “Nothing.” I keep walking, my brain fuzzy in confusion. I’ve never seen that before, never had a memory that dated that far back. Maybe I fabricated it somehow. I squeeze my eyes shut and count to three before swinging the door open.