Page 3 of Rock Bottom
But they’d called me Jules all those years, so that was my name. I took dance in high school and went by Julie for a short time, just trying it out. When I’m being a little gay twink I sometimes tell people I’m Joey, but mostly, I’m just Jules.
Or I used to be. These days I’m Silver, and this wasn’t the place to go into my life story for this giant of a man. The magic spell around us had mostly broken, despite the fact neither of us had looked away for even a second since we’d first seen each other. I found my tongue, finally, and said, “I’m Silver. Who did you come with, Julian?”
“We are guests of the Rolling Thunder Motorcycle Club. I am here with Marco and Cora.”
I’ve been invited on theseGirls’ Night Outtraveling parties, and Cora goes on them, too.
“Oh, I know Cora. She’s cool. Did you enjoy the concert?”
He looked pained and took a few seconds before answering. “I enjoyedThem’s the Breaks, and the one about cats and unicorns. Also,Fighting Myself. I find modern music to be scattered and chaotic, which isn’t bad, just different than what I’m accustomed to.”
A strikingly beautiful woman with curves to die for walked up and laid a possessive hand on Julian’s arm. “Our boy is from Italy,” she said, voice cool and smooth as silk, “where he was immersed in the classics as a child. Forgive him for his boorishness.”
“Nothing to forgive.” I met Julian’s gaze. “I always appreciate honesty.”
I looked back to the woman, careful to look into her startlingly blue eyes instead of focusing on the acres of creamy cleavage on display above her painted-on dress.
“I’m Silver.”
She offered her hand, not for me to shake, but as if she expected me to kiss it. Her voice dripped with honey, but I justknewit was covering razor-sharp knives.
“Adelaide, darling, and Silver can’t be your real name.”
I ignored the hand. “Real enough. Are you here with the bikers, too?”
“I’m here with Marco, who was gifted tickets from the bikers for himself and his top people. Julian is here as his assistant, not a person of power, and you…” Her gaze slid down my body and back up, slow and deliberate. “Youintrigueme.”
I had no idea what to say to that. I glanced at Julian, who looked quietly mortified, and then back to Adelaide with a frown.
Her hand still hovered in the air, and she finally pulled it back, looked across the room, and her exquisitely lined eyes sharpened. “It seems I’m needed elsewhere.” Her smile was meant to appear warm, but I wasn’t fooled. I could easily see the mask she wore to hide her irritation at being called away, though I doubted many other people could. “I look forward to getting to know you better, Silver.”
When she was gone, I looked up at the giant man’s face again. He’d stepped closer, and it was a long way up. “If we’re going to talk, and I hope that’s the case, we should sit down somewhere before I get a crick in my neck.”
Before he could argue, I took his hand and led him to a quiet room, reserved for the band and our closest people. Frequently, it turns into a room for Animal to bring women to fuck — a ten-minute break before he goes back to the party. The room was thankfully empty, and I walked to one of the sofas and sat, hoping Julian would join me.
“I’m a big fan of the arts,” Julian said as he settled his large body a foot away from me on the sofa. “And I respect all performers. You and your people put on quite a show. Are you still revved from the performance, or are you tired?”
“A little of both, but more revved than tired. I frequently hire a massage therapist to help me calm down and sleep when we’re fortunate enough to be in a hotel room rather than the bus after a concert.” I realized how that sounded, and I added, “An actual massage therapist, not a sex worker who calls himself one. I’m not in the habit of having sex with strange men after shows, as some of my bandmates are.”
Mostly because I don’t want a whole lot of random people knowing my secret, and it occurred to me that if Julian wasn’t a fan, he might not know anything about me.
“Did your friends tell you anything about me?”
He nodded. “I’m told sometimes you appear as a man, and other times a woman. No one knows what you actually are?”
I met his gaze. “Very few people know what’s under my jeans — that’s true.” I sighed. “And if you’re to find out, I’m afraid we have to handle some unpleasantness first, but let’s talk a little and decide if we want to get naked with each other. Does that work?”
“It absolutely works for me.” He leaned back a little. “The whole pronoun thing, however, seems confusing? How would you like me to refer to you?”
“I don’t care. My identity isn’t bound up in anyone’s opinion of me. I don’t need others to tell me what box I fit into. You don’t even have to decide on one and stick with it, though you’re welcome to do so if that’s your preference. I am both genders, but also neither gender.”
* * * *
Julian
I’m not great at going into the minds of vampires and strong shapeshifters, but humans are usually a piece of cake for me. Silver, however, carried a layer of shielding I didn’t expect. It felt instinctive, like something built from trauma and held in place with willpower. Whatever the reason, I had to rely on scent alone.
And her scent was both male and female at the same time. Possibly a touch more female than male, but definitelyboth. She, or possibly he, wasn’t lying about that. It wasn’t a mask, and she wasn’t confused, it was simply the truth.
