He raised a brow.
“What’s your name? I don’t think I caught it.”
He flashed me that wicked smile again. “Because I didn’t give it to you.”
I gave him a blank stare. Was he really going to have me audition for his club and not tell me his damn name? “And it is…?”
“Asmodeus.”
I bit back a laugh. What the hell kind of name was that?
Was he joking? Or was he giving me a fake name for some bizarre, unknowable reason? I met his dark gaze. He looked serious enough. There wasn’t even a hint of a smile on his face.
“Nice to meet you,Asmodeus,” I grumbled. Though…was it really? That sense ofwronghad only increased since I’d stepped foot inside his club. I didn’t belong here with this fancy man and his fancy famous friends. With a deep breath, I stepped inside the cage.
Immediately, the door slammed shut behind me, and the cage tipped beneath my feet. It inched off the ground, swinging lightly on its heavy chain. I bit back the urge to scream and stood stock still until the cage shuddered to a stop. Gritting my teeth, I peered through the glittering bars at the sleek, marble floor far below me. Asmodeus stared up at me with a grin that could only be described as pure evil.
I was going to have to dance in this thing.
My heart took flight as Asmodeus strode over to the stage, rounded a DJ stand, and punched a few buttons. Music blared through hidden speakers, an upbeat, clubby song that bounced against my skin. I swallowed hard and wiped my sweaty palms against my jeans. I knew ballet and jazz but nothing more modern. How the hell was I going to pull this off?
“Whenever you’re ready,” he called.
Pulling my breath into my lungs, I closed my eyes and listened to the beat. This place, this guy, all of it was unnerving and way out of my comfort zone. But I needed a job, desperately so. I hadn’t asked about wages, but I didn’t need to. The diamonds and the wall of famous faces said it all. I would be paid well if I got this job. Probably well enough to get my own apartment.
All I had to do was put up with a weird asshole of a boss and dance in a cage for a few hours several times a week. That really wasn’t so bad in the grand scheme of things. A lot of people had it way worse than that.
The bass thumped through the club, reverberating through the thick soles of my boots. Slowly, I began to nod, letting the music fill my body. The notes wound into my ears, mixing with my blood. I’d always felt attuned to music, like it was part of me. After a few moments, my body moved. I didn’t overthink it. I lost myself in the sound and let my soul take over.
I’d spent years training my body, and it knew what to do without me asking. My arms twisted in the air as my legs bounced from side to side. I pushed up onto my toes and spun, my fingers skimming the bars, my hair swirling around my shoulders.
The world dropped away as I danced. All my fears were forgotten. My worries and anxieties whispered away. The job didn’t matter. My parents didn’t matter. The trial and the charges and the social media hate I’d endured were momentarily nothing but a shadow in my mind.
The music cut off. Suddenly, it all came rushing back in. The accusing eyes. The headlines. The sirens. The look on my parents’ faces when they shouted at me to get out. Tears flooded my vision, but I quickly blinked them away.
I looked down to find Asmodeus staring up at me with appreciation in his eyes. I swore I even saw the hint of a smile. My chest lifted as hope chased away the fears battling their way back inside my mind. I’d impressed him.
The job was mine. I could see it in his face.
Asmodeus motioned to the ceiling, and the cage cranked down to the gleaming floor. I tried to push the door open, but it didn’t budge. My lungs squeezed tight. I was locked inside.
For a moment, Asmodeus stood on the other side of the door and made no move to release me. My heartbeat hammered my ribs, and panic rose like a rock in my throat, choking my breath away. Darkness swirled across my vision, and a sudden heat pulsed against my skin, as if a nearby radiator had suddenly flared to life.
I’d been an idiot for walking into this club. Alone. No one even knew where I was. All I had was a few borrowed dollars in my pocket. My hands fisted by my sides as the instinct to fight rose within me like a storm. If he didn’t let me out of this damn cage, I would scream bloody murder. This might be a quiet street, butsomeonewould hear me.
Maybe. How thick were these club walls?
After far too many tense moments, Asmodeus cracked a grin, shoved the key into the lock, and released me from the cage. I stumbled forward with narrowed eyes. “For a minute there, I didn’t think you were going to let me out.”
“You think I would bother trapping you in a cage?” He turned his back on me and strode over to the empty bar in the far corner. It was a curving wooden thing that had been polished to perfection. Behind it, rows of top bottles glimmered beneath a hidden spotlight. There were champagne bottles that cost more than Serena’s monthly rent.
“The way you said that makes it sound like an insult.” I stayed beside the cage, watching him grab a bottle of gin from behind the bar.
“Would you like a drink before you go?” he asked, ignoring me. “You look like a gin and tonic kind of girl.”
I wasn’t sure what that meant, and annoyingly, he was right. Begrudgingly, I trailed over to him. “Sure, I’ll have one.”
A slight smile lifted the corners of his lips as he mixed the drink. He grabbed a second glass, made another, and then pushed one into my hands. His fingers brushed against mine, and a shot of electricity went down my arm. I stiffened and sucked in a sharp breath, and then scolded myself for being such a goddamn idiot. His eyes darkened as he pulled back his hand, and I swore I saw the reflection of flames deep within the sharp blue.
