The effect was immediate. I jerked my hips as the intensity increased and b
it my bottom lip to keep from crying out.
And then, just like that, it was over.
He slid it down to zero.
He stepped back and grinned at me as he put my phone into his pocket. “Ready to go inside?”
“This was a very bad idea,” I breathed.
JACK IT was packed. We pushed our way through the crowds, people calling out my name in greeting. I nodded at them but kept moving, not wanting to be stuck down here with the commoners. We reached the door that led up to the Queen’s Lair, and the bouncer blocking the door nodded in greeting. “Corey,” he said as he opened the door. “Go right on up.”
I thanked him with a smile, but before I took the first step, the bouncer reached out and pressed a hand against Jeremy’s chest.
“He’s with me,” I said.
The bouncer eyed him warily. “Helena knows?”
“Yeah.”
He dropped his hand. “All right. Have a good night.”
He closed the door behind him as we walked up the stairs. “What was that all about?” Jeremy asked.
“You’re not allowed up into the Queen’s Lair unless Helena says it’s okay.”
“And she’s fine with me?”
“Yeah. She told me earlier you could come up. You should feel honored.”
“I do,” he reassured me.
I opened the second door at the top only to find Helena snarling at Paul and Darren as they fumbled with her corset. Vince was standing as far away as possible so he wouldn’t face her wrath. Charlie was ignoring everyone as he fiddled with his camera. “Is this your first fucking time? Do I need to find new help? Because right now, I am considering firing you both.”
“Shut up,” Darren muttered. “We’re fixing it. It’s not our fault you let it get tangled from last time.”
Helena turned her head slowly to look at him, eyes narrowed. “What was that?”
Darren rolled his eyes. “I love you.”
“Of course you do. I own you.”
“Jesus Christ,” Paul mumbled.
“Um,” Jeremy whispered. “Maybe I should just stay back here.”
“It’s fine,” I told him. “Helena gets like this before every show. This is normal. No one has been stabbed yet, so it’s actually going pretty well.”
“What do you mean stabbed?”
I arched an eyebrow. “Exactly as it sounds. If there is no blood, it means things are fine.”
“I really should go back down—”
“Is that Jeremy?” Helena asked without looking over at us. “Come here. Let me see you.”
“Too late,” I murmured. “She’s knows you’re here. She smelled you. Remember to compliment her like she’s the greatest thing you’ve ever seen.”