Chapter Five
Sharla Davidson rushed to her dressing room, adrenaline pumping through her veins. The rehearsal was impeccable, and ever since she and Brad had started dating, their love scenes were spot-on. The director even told her that she had a glow about her whenever she’d kiss Brad onstage. Mr. Peery didn’t know about her blossoming love affair with the handsome leading man. None of the cast or crew had any idea about it, and it was so hard for her to keep from gushing and telling everyone she knew. For reasons she still didn’t understand, Brad wanted to keep their love affair secret.
A faint knock on the door made her heart pound in anticipation. “Come in.” Expecting to see Brad walk in, she was disappointed to see Lexi enter. “Hey,” she said weakly, turning back to the mirror on her dressing table. Taking another makeup tissue, she ran it over her face. “What do you want?”
Sharla wasn’t too fond of Lexi ever since she’d heard her badmouthing her to the director after the auditions for the play. Sharla couldn’t believe it because Lexi had acted like they were best friends for months before auditions took place. When she’d landed the lead role, Lexi distanced herself, acting like she barely knew her; to add insult to injury, Lexi was her understudy.
“I was wondering if you could go over some of the lines with me in case you get sick or something, and I have to go on in your place.”
Sharla discarded the soiled tissue and pulled out a clean one, swiping it over her face. “That’s not going to happen. I have no intention of getting sick for the next six weeks.” She focused on cleansing her face, hoping Lexi got the hint and left.
“I guess I’ll just have to ask Brad to help out. He’s a very friendly guy.”
Sharla could see Lexi’s cruel smile in the reflection of the mirror. Her blood turned cold. There was no doubt that the bitch would swoop in and snatch Brad right from under her nose. Lexi had a reputation of liking everyone’s boyfriend and husband—except her own. Sharla’s sister, Dawn, had reminded her that Lexi was that way in high school too. Sharla had forgotten that, but then she hadn’t hung around her very much.
Turning around, she clutched her throat when she saw Lexi opening the door. “All right. If you want to go over some of the lines, I can do it with you. No reason to bother Brad. He told me he’s pretty beat, and I can see why—he works full-time and is the lead in the play.”
“He needs the right woman to relieve some of the stress.” A glint of competition shone in Lexi’s eyes.
She knows about us. Dammit! How did she find out? Act cool. “Maybe he already has one.”
Lexi gave a hollow laugh. “I’m positive he has a woman, but he needs the right one.”
Wanting to shift the focus off Brad, Sharla smiled. “Did you hear that Jordan Burnside is back in town? She’s here with that band, Iris Blue. She goes by Isla Rose. I had some friends go hear them play; they said they were awesome. I can’t believe we have a bona fide rock star from Alina. Too cool. I remember when she got all the leads in the school musicals.”
Lexi cocked her head. “Really? Isla Rose is Jordan Burnside? I didn’t know that. I’ve been following them on Instagram for a while. Their drummer, Benz, is so hot. I’d love a night with him.”
“Isn’t he going out with her? I thought I read that somewhere.”
“So what? If he’s that much in love with her, no woman could take him away.” She ran her long fingernail over her lips. “Let’s just say, I wouldn’t place any bets on him. That is, if I were a gambling woman, which I’m not. I always know exactly what I want.”
All of a sudden the room got stuffy, and Sharla had to get out of there. She brought her slender fingers to her temples and massaged them, hoping that would stop the throbbing. Another knock on the door and her eyes flew open. Lexi rushed over and opened it, a wide smile filling up most of her face as she grabbed Brad’s hands and tugged him inside.
“Brad, we were just beginning to rehearse some lines. Even though I’m just an understudy, I want to be ready if I have to.”
Brad’s gaze went to Sharla’s and lingered there. “I get that. I thought you were tired,” he said to her.
Sharla nodded. “I am, but I can go over a few scenes.”
“That’s ridiculous. Just do it tomorrow.” Directing his attention to Lexi, he opened the door. “I need to talk to Sharla about one of our scenes. See you tomorrow night.” His tone was casual, but there was an edge of finality to it that made her smile. Lexi threw her a mean look, smiled sweetly at Brad and slowly walked out, making sure she brushed her chest against Brad’s arm before closing the door behind her.
“Thanks for that,” Sharla whispered. In two long strides, he had her in his arms, kissing her feverishly, his hands roaming all over her body. Moaning, she threw her head back and let him devour her neck, knowing that the thick theater makeup would cover up any marks.
For the next two hours, he ravaged her until she couldn’t take it any longer, the explosion of sensations was too much. She lay on top of him on the sofa, totally sated and buzzing with love. I love him so much! If only he didn’t want to keep their affair secret. They could go to restaurants, the movies, dancing—how I love to dance, but their time together was confined to rooms: hotels, motels, her apartment, or backstage. How she longed to walk through the park with him, hand-in-hand, proclaiming to anyone who would see them that they were a couple in love.
“What’re you thinking about?” he asked, making circular movements with his finger on her shoulder.
“That it would be nice to go out sometime. The two of us, and not care who sees us. I don’t understand why we have to keep our love hidden.”
The moment he withdrew his arms around her, she knew he was angry. She’d overstepped some arbitrary boundary he’d drawn. “Please don’t be mad,” she whispered, wanting his arms around her again. Sometimes the depth and magnitude of how much she loved him frightened her.
Brad pushed her off roughly. “I gotta go.” He bent over and picked up his clothes then slipped his boxers on quickly.
“Don’t. Please.” She sounded pitiful, but she couldn’t help it. If she had to beg she would. She wouldn’t put it past Lexi to be waiting to pounce on Brad. She couldn’t let that happen; if he ever left her, she’d shrivel up and the essence of who she was would die. “I’m sorry I said what I did.”
“I hate like hell when you keep bringing it up. I told you from the beginning that we had to keep this secret.”
“But why? That’s all I want to know. Just tell me that.”
He stared hard at her for what seemed like an eternity then he finished buttoning his shirt. Walking toward the door, he paused, then turned around and shook his head. “Because I’m getting married after the play closes. It doesn’t have to stop with us if you don’t want it to.”
It would’ve been easier if he’d rushed up to her and stabbed her repeatedly in the heart. She was sure the pain wouldn’t be as acute as his words were. Dumbfounded, she just gaped at him—her mouth open and limbs trembling.
“So there you have it. I understand if you want to stop. I have to go. Think on it.” And then he was gone.
If I want to stop? How can I stop? Love isn’t something you turn on and off like a faucet. How could he deceive me like that? Did he ever love me? She fell back on the sofa where she’d just spent the last two hours in blissful ecstasy and stared at the wall. She couldn’t even cry. It was too unbelievable.
A soft knock and her heart leapt to her throat. He’s come back to tell me this was all a joke. He can be cruel sometimes. She slipped her cotton robe on and rushed over to the dressing table and sat down. Sharla didn’t want him to think she was brooding. She wanted to act casual and not let him know how deeply his cruel joke had hurt her.
“Come in,” she said, closing her eyes while she rubbed the moistened tissue over her heavily made up eyes.
The door opened and closed quietly. She knew he was there. He’s probably waiting for me to say something. Well, two can play at his game. How dare he play around with my heart. She kept rubbing the black mascara off her lashes. She heard the creak on the floorboard and smiled. He was coming to her, like he often did when she was taking off her makeup. He’d come over and pepper her neck with small kisses while he cupped her breasts.
He was behind her. She could hear his breathing, feel the light brush of his body against her upper back, smell—Wait … that doesn’t smell like Brad. Her eyes flew open, and she stared at the figure behind her in the mirror. That’s not Brad!
“What are you doing here?” Annoyance made the fine lines around her eyes crinkle. Each time that happened, she wished she wouldn’t have baked in the sun since she was twelve years old. At twenty-five, she was too young to have any lines. “This is ridiculous,” she mumbled under her breath.
The lamp on her dressing table fell down, breaking the light bulb and throwing the room into darkness. Then smooth, gloved fingers tightened around her throat, cutting off her airway. Frantically, she clawed at them, but they held on. Panic set in, and tears rolled down her freshly cleansed cheeks. By now, her eyes had adjusted to the dimness in the room, the only light coming from a large white sign lit-up from the church across the street. In the dimness something flashed, and she couldn’t quite make it out. When it was brought close to her neck, she saw it was a knife. In that one moment of clarity, she realized that she would never perform her role on stage. She knew her next performance would be a cold, rigid corpse in a coffin at her own funeral.
The knife cut smoothly over her neck, and she stared at her fuzzy reflection in the mirror, watching the life seep out of her.