Page 9 of Dirty Little Secrets
“Yes.”
“Fair enough,” I sigh. “I probably deserve it.”
“Fear not.” Her voice perks up to a warmer tone. “I forgive you, so you live to see another day.”
I shoot her an animated thumbs-up. “Thanks!”
“Go to sleep, Damon,” Josephine says as she walks away. “I think tonight you may finally be able to rest.”
“Uh-huh.” I pull out my cell phone and dial Javier’s number. He answers in a groggy voice. “I need something.”
“How did the meeting go?” he asks, yawning. “I was not expecting an update until the morning.”
“It was fine,” I say. “They’ll sign the contracts on Monday. Listen, I need?—”
“They will?” he squeals.
I roll my eyes. “Of course, they fucking will. I am deeply offended by your lack of faith in my ability to do my job.”
“Damon, I?—”
“Stop talking and listen.” I close my eyes, taking a steady breath. Everyone is out to piss me off today. “I need you to find someone for me. It is a top priority. Do you understand?”
“Find someone? Uh, alright. Give me a second.” Shuffling cracks through the phone. “What is their name?”
My jaw tightens. “That’s what I need you to find.”
“You don’t know their name?” he asks warily.
“Javier.”
“Right, umm…okay. Well, whatdoyou know?”
“She’s a dancer at Lux,” I state, attempting to keep my tone level and not give Javier any more ammunition. “She goes by the name Luna Lush.”
“A stripper? You want me to find you a stripper?” The suggestive undertones in his voice drum up aforeign burst of disdain in my chest. “Why didn’t you ask Georgina? I’m sure she’d?—”
“I tried,” I grunt, reliving the embarrassment she bestowed on me upon my departure.Sorry, hun, I can’t give you my girls’ personal information. We’ve got rules here.“Just find her.”
He chuckles. “Must have been some nice piece of ass if?—”
“That’s enough,” I growl. “I don’t need commentary. I need a name and an address.”
“Fine,” he says. “I’ll get to it in the morning.”
“First thing,” I state, knee bouncing with anticipation for the truth. “Got it?”
“Mhmm,” he mutters at my unusual request and hangs up.
He’ll find her. Hehasto find her. If he doesn’t… I freeze, listening to my own twisted thoughts. What iswrongwith me? What the fuck am I doing? Why am I searching for a woman I don’t even know?! Maybe it’s sleep deprivation. Or the symptoms of self-isolation. Or maybe I’ve finally lost my fucking mind. I’ve lost everything else. Maybe it’s the last thing He’s trying to take from me.
Deafening silence surrounds me as I stare off into the black box of my television, my gaze floating to the framed photographs on the surrounding shelves. My throat dries as I stare at the last family portrait we took before that fateful day. My father stands proudly in the center, with me on the right. My mother sits in front of us, her knees touching my sister’s. Our family never smiled with ourlips, we smiled with our eyes. Father said all men wear masks, but those masks seldom conceal one’s eyes. That’s where the truth lies. No matter the mask, the essence of a person is always present. All you need to do is look. To allow yourself to see behind the illusion.
A set of mystifying green eyes appears before me. Like a tattoo in my memory. I stare into those eyes, willing the illusion to shatter so I can seek out the truth.Damon. I don’t blink. I don’t look away. Ican’tlook away. They’re so familiar. So comforting. Like home.Damon. Who are you? Tell me! Fucking tell me! I keep staring, searching, hunting for something that I know is lost within them. Whatever is hidden, it gives me a sense of hope, a sense of wonder. I will find it. It’s right there?—
“Damon!”
Javier’s voice calls my mind back into my body, and I snap my head toward him. Rays of soft light stream through the window, the blinds casting diagonal rows of shadows on the living room floor.
