Page 122 of Charming Like Us
“Fuck you,” he sneers.
“Oh my God, Charlie, can you say that to me too?!” someone jumps up and down.
“Charlie, please fuck me!” A chorus of requests pitches the air.
Charlie just turns around and meets my eyes. “Go.”
I begin to lead him into the theatre when I detect a projectile sailing at Jack.A shoe.An ugly rubber sandal—and I smack that shit out of his way.
What is so unlike me while on-duty—I nearly lunge and backtalk.
“Stop.” Jack curves an arm around my waist. He guides me away from the source of my frustration and rage. I hated Oslie stans before, but now that they’re physically attacking the guy who has my heart, I almost can’t even withstand them.
We’re in the theatre and Jack cups the crook of my neck. “Hey, I’m fine.”
I nod, cooling off, my chest rising and falling heavily. I almost kiss him.On-duty, Oliveira.And this is why you don’t bring your boyfriend to your dangerous-as-fuck workplace.
We pull apart.
Shit.
Charlie has already darted away.
I grind down on my molars and shoot to action. Picking up my pace, I jog out in front of Charlie. Hurriedly, we make it backstage where a white guy with a short mohawk balances on a ladder, fixing the large stage lights. Beside him, the stage is empty.
“Hey!” Charlie yells. “Clifford Flannagan!”
Clifford glances down.
My muscles strain, on edge, but I see what Charlie is about to do before he even moves. Being tactical means being five steps ahead, and even though I’m a single foot ahead of Charlie now, I don’t stop him.
I don’t want to.
It’s not really my job to.
So I skid to a complete halt, and Jack just gives me a thunderstruck look.
Charlie rams his right foot into the ladder like he’s shoving an enemy off a cliff. It careens, and the metal ladder and Clifford plummet to the stage with a loudcrack!
“Fuck,” he groans, holding onto his knee. His eyes flash murderously to Charlie. “You psychopath!”
Charlie skirts around him and squats down a foot away. “And so the psychopath says to the thief,” he says coldly, “you have something of mine, and I want it back.”
Clifford’s nose flares. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” His gaze cuts to me and my cold glare. Fear bubbles in his eyes. “Uh…”
“You have thirty seconds,” I tell him.
Clifford shakes his head. “Fuck you both.” He looks to Charlie. “I’m selling your writing to the nearest buyer and for how weird and disgusting it is, I’m getting my money’s worth.”
Charlie blinks. “Final answer?”
Clifford breathes heavy, still clutching his knee.
“Think quickly here, Clifford,” Charlie says, lighting a cigarette. “You’re running out of time, and this psychopath is so easily bored.” He blows smoke in his direction.
Clifford lets out a breath. “It’s underneath the prop table. In the basket.”
Jack jogs there and digs through the basket of props.
Table of Contents
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 4
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 9
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 26
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 39
- Page 40
- Page 41
- Page 42
- Page 43
- Page 44
- Page 45
- Page 46
- Page 47
- Page 48
- Page 49
- Page 50
- Page 51
- Page 52
- Page 53
- Page 54
- Page 55
- Page 56
- Page 57
- Page 58
- Page 59
- Page 60
- Page 61
- Page 62
- Page 63
- Page 64
- Page 65
- Page 66
- Page 67
- Page 68
- Page 69
- Page 70
- Page 71
- Page 72
- Page 73
- Page 74
- Page 75
- Page 76
- Page 77
- Page 78
- Page 79
- Page 80
- Page 81
- Page 82
- Page 83
- Page 84
- Page 85
- Page 86
- Page 87
- Page 88
- Page 89
- Page 90
- Page 91
- Page 92
- Page 93
- Page 94
- Page 95
- Page 96
- Page 97
- Page 98
- Page 99
- Page 100
- Page 101
- Page 102
- Page 103
- Page 104
- Page 105
- Page 106
- Page 107
- Page 108
- Page 109
- Page 110
- Page 111
- Page 112
- Page 113
- Page 114
- Page 115
- Page 116
- Page 117
- Page 118
- Page 119
- Page 120
- Page 121
- Page 122 (reading here)
- Page 123
- Page 124
- Page 125
- Page 126
- Page 127
- Page 128
- Page 129
- Page 130
- Page 131
- Page 132
- Page 133
- Page 134
- Page 135
- Page 136
- Page 137
- Page 138
- Page 139
- Page 140
- Page 141
- Page 142
- Page 143
- Page 144
- Page 145
- Page 146
- Page 147
- Page 148
- Page 149
- Page 150
- Page 151
- Page 152
- Page 153
- Page 154
- Page 155
- Page 156
- Page 157
- Page 158
- Page 159
- Page 160
- Page 161
- Page 162
- Page 163
- Page 164
- Page 165
- Page 166
- Page 167
- Page 168
- Page 169
- Page 170
- Page 171
- Page 172
- Page 173
- Page 174
- Page 175
- Page 176
- Page 177
- Page 178
- Page 179
- Page 180
- Page 181
- Page 182
- Page 183
- Page 184
- Page 185
- Page 186
- Page 187
- Page 188
- Page 189
- Page 190
- Page 191
- Page 192
- Page 193
- Page 194
- Page 195
- Page 196
- Page 197
- Page 198
- Page 199
- Page 200
- Page 201
- Page 202
- Page 203
- Page 204
- Page 205
- Page 206
- Page 207
- Page 208
- Page 209
- Page 210
- Page 211
- Page 212
- Page 213
- Page 214
- Page 215