Page 93 of Mafioso's Muse
‘I’m listening!’
Vaughn eased off. ‘No unprofessional behaviour towards Willow will be tolerated from this point on. You’ll continue to teach her and mentor her to the best of your ability, and you will do all that without putting your fucking hands on her, being an arsehole, ormentioning her weight. Is that clear?’
Harrison was sweating now, unable to suppress his reaction to the pain. ‘Yes.’
‘Good.’ Vaughn released Harrison’s hand but maintained eye contact. ‘Because if you break your word, I’ll break that thumb, then your legs, then your career. One word from me to the right person and you’ll never work in the arts again.’ He tilted his head. ‘You still paying attention, Harry?’
A shudder rippled through Harrison’s body. ‘Yes.’
Vaughn clapped him on the shoulder, then stepped back, observing him. There seemed to be a healthy amount of fear there. Whether it was enough to ensure professional conduct on his part remained to be seen. ‘It’s late. We should really let you get your beauty sleep.’
Harrison didn’t speak. He just stood there cradling his sore thumb.
As Vaughn made his way to the door, he pointed to the alarm. ‘You should really turn that on after we leave. You never know who’ll show up at your home at night.’
Finn opened the door, and the pair exited the house.
‘You were a lot nicer than I was expecting,’ Finn said as they got into the car.
As much as Vaughn wanted to go back inside and finish the job, the last thing he wanted to do was disrupt Vic Ballet and ultimately impact Willow. ‘He got me on a good day.’
The car pulled away, and Vaughn phoned Antonio.
‘Hey,’ Antonio said when he answered.
Vaughn looked out the window. ‘I need eyes on Willow.’
There was a long pause at the other end. ‘Okay…’
‘Make sure Harrison Walsh doesn’t go anywhere near her.’
‘What happened?’
‘Arsehole finally showed his true colours. He left Willow so shaken she phonedme.’
Antonio exhaled. ‘Yeah, I bet you hated that.’
Vaughn switched the phone to the other ear. ‘Make sure whoever’s watching her is discreet. I don’t want her any more spooked than she already is.’
‘Of course.’
The call ended, and Vaughn was able to relax knowing that Harrison would be well away from Willow outside work. Hopefully the fear instilled in him would be enough to keep him in line.
Time would tell.
29
July 2024
The days spent in the studio with Harrison following the disastrous dinner were some of the most uncomfortable of Willow’s life. But she tried not to let the lack of eye contact and absence of words distract her from what she was there to do—dance. To the contrary, she uncovered a fresh enthusiasm for it. Dance really was the ultimate escape from all of life’s problems. It could get her through anything.
‘You have a weird energy about you this week,’ Lili told Willow on Thursday after a studio session.
‘I do?’ She decided not to tell Lili about the Harrison incident for two reasons. The first was that she didn’t want their working relationship impacted. Second, she didn’t ever want Lili to think that her upcoming role inGisellewas given for any reason other than she absolutely deserved it. That kind of disappointment was all too familiar. Besides, it was likely something he’d said in the heat of the moment. Willow had to trust he would do the right thing.
‘It’s a strong energy,’ Lili continued, ‘maybe even masculine—and I’m here for it.’
Willow laughed as she towelled off. ‘Masculine? Okay, I’ll take that.’