Page 78 of Forbidden Romeo
How many times did Mom tuck this flask into her purse on her way out the door? How many functions and luncheons did she add nips of gin to her tonic water when she thought no one was watching?
Sadness gripped my throat, strangling me, pulling me down into the darkest depths of the ocean.
I was exhausted from constantly battling against it. Part of me wanted to give in and let the waves consume me, while another part fought to stay afloat. It was a never-ending internal struggle that left me feeling lost and confused.
I twisted off the cap and lifted the flask into the air. “This one’s for you, Mom.”
I took one single healthy swig of the gin and winced.
One sip wouldn’t hurt anyone.
In the green room, the entire cast was buzzing. We weren’t at places yet, but we might as well have been with how everyone was congregating outside of the dressing rooms.
The room was filled with the scents of hairspray, perfume, and nervous sweat. But amongst it all, I caught a whiff of Katherine's rose-oil scent that always reminded me of a garden in spring.
Over the sea of cast mates, I spotted Katherine, her blue eyes warm and wet and her smile spread wide when she saw me, too.
It was like the sea parting to reveal a shiny pearl at the ocean floor, her eyes sparkling and her smile radiating warmth like the sun.
Her dress was a work of art, the delicate blue lace draped like a veil over her svelte body, the blue mask on her face pushed up on her forehead and her hair in an intricate twist at the nape of her neck.
I pushed my way through the people toward her and barely let her get a word out before I crushed her against me, taking her mouth in a firm kiss.
“Are you okay?” she asked when we finally separated.
“I’m nervous as fuck and I vomited twice in my dressing room. But I’ve also never been better.”
Katherine giggled. “I know what you mean. At least this show is less intense than that Scottish play.”
That Scottish play?
I tilted my head, not knowing what she was talking about.
“You know,” she said, eyes widening. “The Shakespeare play. The Scottish one.” Leaning in, she whispered, “Out, out damn spot!”
“Oh. Macbeth?”
A collective gasp surrounded us and everyone who had been chattering moments ago went silent.
“Holden,” Katherine whispered, her eyes wide. “You can’t say that in a theater! It’s cursed.”
I snorted a laugh. “I’m sorry… what?”
Addison smacked Holden across the arm. “It’s bad luck to say that in a theater!” she shrieked and threw her arms into the air, theatrically. “We’re fucking doomed now.”
“That’s a little dramatic, don’t you think?”
Katherine shrugged. “Maybe. But it’s well-known theater lore.”
Theater lore I just broke.
Great.
I wrapped my arms around her waist and tugged her flush against me. “Well let’s prove to them that it’s bullshit, huh?”
She chuckled and squirmed against me as I pulled her close and dipped my mouth to her neck. “Holden, stop. Everyone’s here.”
I leaned into her ear and whisper, “From what I remember, that’s one of your fantasies, isn’t it? Being on stage. Having an audience.”