The night was starting to wind down. The band had played their whole set, and three encores on top of it, and the bar was abuzz. Rifka looked over the crowd with a smile and saw Thancred trying to catch her eye. He tapped his watch and made a movement with his hands. She understood and stepped up to the microphone again.
"Last call, Lovers!" She purred to the crowd. They sighed, disappointed, and she laughed softly, smiling at all of them. "Now, now, none of that, please. You have to leave so we can clean up and do this again tomorrow!"
That made the crowd cheer again, and she laughed. "As the old saying goes – You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here!" Laughter, and she felt that flutter of power in her belly again. "Be responsible, ay? Drive safely or call a cab or a friend if you have to. I want to see all of you back again, so don't have any accidents, alright?"
She shut off the microphone and handed it off to one of the roadies. Her eyes drifted over to Estinien, and she grinned. He'd been drinking, and she saw he at least had something to eat too, but the way he drove? If he wrecked that Rolls-Royce and killed himself before she ever got to talk to him? It would be an awful waste of both a gorgeous man and a killer car.
He held her gaze, easily, and grinned at her, his eyes glinting. She felt her belly flutter deeply and bit her lip, inhaling in surprise when Dola snuck up behind her.
"You've been making eyes at that tall Elven drink all night," the guitarist murmured playfully, "you gonna snog him or what?"
Rifka blushed brightly and covered her mouth with a laugh. "Hmm! Maybe. He seems game. Guess we'll see."
Dola clapped her on the back with a laugh. "That's what I like to hear! Now, are you really singing with us again tomorrow? Or was that just to hype up the crowd?"
"Oh," Rifka let her hands rest comfortably on her hips, "I guess that depends on Livia. If she shows up tomorrow, she has the right to take her job back. If she doesn't, though… I plan to be here."
Dola's grin faded to a serious expression, and Rifka considered her, tilting her head. "We've been thinking about firing her, Riffie… She does this a lot. She's obsessed with some guy named Gaius, Military type. She chases him everywhere he goes, and never tells us when, neither. I hope she marries him or something, at least, to make it make sense."
"Huh… I had no idea, Dola. I'm sorry."
"What the hell for, Honey? If it means we get to keep you as our frontman, I hope Livia stays gone! I ain't never seen anyone work a crowd like you do. You one of those Empaths they always talk about on the aethernet?"
Rifka blushed again, smiling at the fierce woman. "Oh, maybe? I've never actually been tested. But, it was a lot of fun to sing with you all."
Dola winked at her. "Based on how much we made in tips tonight? This could be the start of something beautiful, Beautiful! Just make sure you're here tomorrow, alright?"
Rifka's blush deepened with happiness, and she felt her grin widen, enough to show the tips of her fanged eyeteeth. "I will be here."
She helped the crew pack things up until they finally shooed her away. She went backstage and changed out of the heels and into her sneakers and put her jacket on before heading back out to the front. She went up to the bar and hopped up onto one of the seats, drumming her nails spiritedly across the counter.
Thancred grinned at her and started fixing her a drink. "I saw you talking to Dola a bunch tonight," he poured Chambord and Sprite over ice, tossed in a shot of vodka, gave it a mix and slid it over to her.
Rifka accepted the drink and took a long sip, closing her eyes briefly. "Ooh, a raspberry one? I like it! Does it have a name?"
"It's called a Zipper." Thancred chuckled, resting his elbow on the bar and putting his chin in his hand. "You really like it?"
She took another sip. "Mmm, I really do! Raspberries are my favorite."
He quirked a brow. "Really? Well, I'll remember that now, won't I?" They grinned at each other, easily intimate. "But, back to my question, Darling. Dola seemed serious, what did she have to say?"
Rifka bit her lip. "She told me they want to fire Livia and keep me as their frontman." She grinned. "So I guess I don't need to ask how I did tonight."
Thancred looked at her seriously. "Riffie, the Everything's never been this packed before, you know that. This used to be a quiet place!"
Rifka leaned toward him, her lips curling at the corners in a playful, catty smile. "Should I say Sorry, or You're Welcome?"
He rolled his eyes, grinning at her. "Oh, honestly!" He shook his head and sighed lightly. "Get you anything from the kitchen?"
"Oh, whatever's leftover. I'll help clean up." Since it sounded like she'd be staying a while longer, she took her coat off, draping it over the back of her chair.
"I'll go see what they have. You sit there, and keep our guest from out of town company, hmm?"
He grinned devilishly and winked, and Rifka turned and found Estinien watching them casually with a small smirk on his lips, his gray eyes glinting. He was leaning casually against the bar, his phone nearby.
Their eyes met and held, for the third time. He smiled slowly and picked up his drink, and she noted that he had switched to water. She also noticed he was still wearing his gloves. "You're a great performer," he told her in his deep, rough voice, "not that I know anything about music, but you sounded good to me."
Her heart thudded and she smiled at him, doing her best to pretend he hadn't just gone for her throat with his casual compliments. "Thank you. That's actually a great boost to my confidence! It's been a long time since I sang for other people."
She picked up her drink and took a sip, enjoying the sweet and tart sparkling berry flavor. "So! What brought you and your gorgeous car to our humble little city?"
He grinned at her, and her belly fluttered. "You."
She put her drink down with a soft thud, staring at him. "What?" She cleared her throat and pushed her hair back, laughing. "Be serious! Do you know me or something?"
"Not at all, unfortunately…" He smiled again, slowly looking her over, admiring the vivid tattoos on her shoulders, "I'd like to remedy that, though."
She seemed to arch languidly under his gaze, letting him see just how well she fit the sexy red dress she was wearing. "Is that so? Well then, for starters," she put her hand out to him with a confident smile, "I'm Rifka Dushane. My friends call me Riffie."
He took her hand and squeezed slowly, looking into her eyes again. Through his glove she could feel that his hand was callused and strong. A working man's hand. "Estinien Varlineau. People call me a lot of things, but most of them are unkind."
If he had been trying to intimidate her with his gaze, it stopped working when he piqued her curiosity. She arched a brow, leaning toward him. "Is Dragon one of the unkind names?" She kept her voice down.
He growled at her quietly. "It used to be, but times are changing and I'm starting to warm up to it." He flashed a small smirk. "How do you feel about Hellcat?"
She felt her cheeks heating up again. She'd never met someone as feral as her before. It was making her heart, and her belly, do excited doughnuts. "It's not nearly as cool as yours." She grinned.
He laughed sharply, closing his eyes and grinning again. He picked up his water and saluted her with it before drinking deeply.
"Not a lot makes you laugh, huh?" She purred playfully, smiling up at him. She lifted her drink and saluted him back.
His smile faded and he looked up and away, exhaling slowly. "No, not really. Ishgard is tearing itself apart and my boss is a morally bankrupt leech, holding my best friend hostage in order to keep me in line." He glanced at her. "I have very little amusement in my life."
Rifka's mouth fell open slightly. "Oh, shit," she put her drink down, her tone easily shifting to serious, "I don't know much about Ishgard, so I'm sorry to hear that. Is your friend okay?"
Estinien glanced at his phone. "For now, but there's always a constant threat, if we don't do as we're told."
He saw her face flush angrily, her soulful brown eyes darkening to smoldering briquettes, and she growled deeply, showing him her sharp teeth. "Your boss sounds like a bastard."
Estinien glanced away, feeling his heart starting to thud in his chest. So, the Hellcat name was well-earned after all! That was an interesting fact. The corner of his mouth twitched in a small smile. "Yeah. We're in town to spy on you, until he gives us his real orders, but it's not what we want to do. So don't hold it against me or anything."
"Hmm," she took a long drink, leaning her head back as she let the information filter through her mind, "jeeze, that's really fucked up. What the hell does he want from me?"
"No clue. At least, not yet. He might just be scoping out competition, or he could be looking for power to usurp. All we can do is wait and see."
"And you deal with this shit all the time?"
"All the time."
"Yeah… I can see now why you might not be used to laughing."
He looked at her again, his eyes intense, and she saw him breathing deeply. Was his belly fluttering as much as hers? Were they… alike? She pondered that idea for a moment and glanced at him sympathetically. If things in Ishgard were truly that bad, he couldn't have had much time for flirting, either.
She didn't mind. She was good enough at flirting for the both of them. She looked toward the kitchen, wondering what was taking Thancred so long, and lifted her Zipper for another drink.
"You two an item?" The question was asked casually, but it made her grin because of the interest it suggested.
"Not exclusively. We've been working together for a long time now, and we're both shameless flirts. One day we went a little farther than flirting, and realized we actually liked each other. I know he has other lovers, though, and so do I."
He took a slow, deep breath. Why? Was he nervous? "Do you take new lovers… frequently?"
Her lips curled upward at the corners, and she slanted her eyes at him in that provocative look she had. She was an expert at it. He shivered helplessly and watched her shake her head. "Both of the ones I have now are people I know I can trust with my life. So no, I don't take new lovers casually. At all."
His cheeks tinted, and he cleared his throat, taking another drink. She purred at him, still smiling, and arched a brow invitingly. "Why, Mr. Varlineau… Are you interested?"
He put his glass down with a soft curse, trying his best not to show that she was driving him mad. "I've no idea what you're talking about, Ms. Dushane…" He growled.
Her grin sharpened, her dark eyes glittering. "Hmmm… but you've been staring at me all night…"
"Maybe, but you were staring back… and wiggling around, and smiling at me…" His gaze darted back to her. "Did it mean something? Or was that all just for the show?"
Her eyes drifted over him as she idly swirled her drink in its glass, making the ice cubes clink together. He was holding completely still again, as if restraining himself. "Oh no, I was definitely flirting with you on purpose, make no mistake. I find you insanely attractive." She smirked, "So, the Hellcat got a rise out of the Dragon, huh?"
He growled again, glaring at her. "Be careful with that sass…"
She shivered excitedly, and her grin was fearless as she purred deeply. "Ooh? Why?"
He closed his eyes and leaned his head back, taking a deep, shuddering breath. "Because… I'm not used to… flirting."
She arched a brow at him, surprised by his admission, and her grin softened. "Alright, alright, I'll give it a rest. Take it easy."
They returned to their drinks, breathing deeply to calm their hunger, and Rifka took stock. They had plenty of chemistry, and no shortage of desire. All she needed to know now was if she could trust him. He seemed honest, which was a great start. Her gaze drifted back over to the kitchen, and she saw a long, white ponytail hovering in the port window. Her brow quirked, and she fished out one of her ice cubes, eyeballed her shot, and pelted the eavesdropper across the crown of her head.
"Eeek!" Alisaie stood up and pushed the kitchen door open, bringing a stack of carry-out containers quickly to the bar. "Sorry! I'm sorry!"
Rifka started to laugh, covering her mouth politely. "Honestly! Was Thancred spying too, or did he put you up to it while he ditched me here?"
Alisaie was blushing deeply. "He asked me to keep an eye on you until he came back, which should mean he's going to come back eventually! I don't know if he really left. Please don't ask me anything else about it I didn't want to do it and I'm not good at it anyway!"
She was babbling quickly, blushing clear to the tips of her ears. Rifka snickered and shook her head, waving a hand to calm her down. "It's alright Ali, it's fine. I promise, it's fine. What did the kitchen have for me? I'm starving."
Alisaie sighed heavily with relief. "There's a burger, a slightly burnt strip steak, an order of potato wedges, and a slice of peach cobbler."
"Holy shit, jackpot!" Rifka grinned broadly, and Estinien saw that all four of her eyeteeth were sharp little fangs. They were adorable! Was she not human? Mixed, perhaps? He tried to check her ears, but unfortunately they were covered by her hair.
Her eyes darted back to him sharply and he inhaled, caught, but all she did was grin and look back at her friend. "Thanks, Ali. If Thancred's still here, tell him I'm heading home."
"He has to close up the bar anyway, he didn't give me the keys."
"Hmm. Is there a bag back there, Ali?"
"Oh, yes, of course. Sorry. I got distracted." Ali shook out a brown paper bag and started stacking the to-go boxes into it and passed it to Rifka. "Should I add the cost to your tab, Riffie?"
"Yeah, go ahead."
"Add it to mine." Estinien butt in.
Rifka arched her brows at him. "Oh my, that's very generous of you, Mr. Varlineau."
He snorted and smirked. "Not really. It's Thordan's money, I'm just happy to waste it on something worthy." He paused. "Call me Ien."
She grinned back at him. "Alright. Thank you," she paused meaningfully and looked into his eyes, "Ien."
Alisaie glanced between the two of them, blushing at their obvious flirtations. "Okay! Well! I'm clocking out and going home now! I'll try to find Thancred, but if I don't, are you staying to wait for him?"
Rifka sighed, hiding her irritation, and smiled instead. "Yeah. Don't worry about it Ali."
Alisaie sighed with relief. "Thanks, Riffie." She turned and fled back into the kitchen.
Rifka drummed her fingers on the bar for a minute, glaring up at the ceiling. With a sigh, she brushed away her thoughts and dug into the bag, pulling out the burger and potatoes. Opening the container, she inhaled the smell of the char-grilled burger, and saw the container had a stack of toppings piled on the side. She picked through them, adding in the pickles, tomato and lettuce, but leaving the onions out.
Estinien glanced around the bar, swiveling on his seat to lean back and stretch out his long legs, a motion that revealed the fact that only the middle buttons of his shirt were done, revealing an intriguing silver pendant, but also a peek of his flat, toned belly. "Does he often leave you hanging?"
Rifka quickly looked away from the alluring belly window. "No, actually. Thancred's usually very reliable," she took a giant bite of her burger and closed her eyes happily as she chewed. He took advantage to gaze at her with a small smile but made sure to look away again before she opened her eyes. "He probably thinks he's playing matchmaker, or something. Like I can't pick my own men."
"Oh no, is he trying to set us up?" He started to laugh, leaning his head back.
She looked at him, shivering as she enjoyed the sound of his mirth, and her eyes slowly followed the curve of his throat. What would it sound like, she wondered suddenly, to hear him moan her name? She blushed brightly at the intrusive thought and took a deep breath. "I don't know, maybe." She looked up at him. "How do you feel about it?"
He glanced at her, and she could see a tint to his cheeks. "I'll have to thank him."
She leaned her head back with a delighted laugh that rang throughout the empty bar. He shivered as he watched her, his eyes sliding down over her throat and lower. His heart thudded in his chest again. What was happening to him?
"Did you get your food, Minx?" Thancred slipped smoothly behind the bar, materializing seemingly out of nowhere. Had he been cloaked and watching them the whole time?
Rifka considered him dryly, smiling with her eyes narrowed, and he smiled back innocently, splaying his hands. "What?"
She rolled her eyes. "What, indeed. Yes, I got my food. I started eating while I waited for you to come back, since you didn't leave the keys with anyone. I let Ali go home."
"Oh," he clicked his tongue and snapped his fingers, "damn, I missed that detail, didn't I? Well, either way, I was upstairs, making a call. I guess it took longer than expected." He smiled at her again, his eyes softening at the corners. "Forgive me?"
She took another big bite out of the burger, and regarded him as she chewed, considering her words before swallowing. "For what? Leaving me all alone with tall and sexy over there?" She looked at Estinien and winked, snickering as he scoffed and looked away, revealing that the tips of his ears were pink. "It's fine. It's also late, and I need to get going."
"Alright, alright. See you in the morning?"
"If not the morning, I'll be back here tomorrow night. Either to sing with the Echoes again or to hang out if Livia shows up." She put the burger back in its container and pushed the lid down until it clicked. She made sure it was closed before stacking it in the bag.
"Alright. Goodnight then, Riffie."
She smiled and slid off her chair. "Goodnight, Than." She walked toward the door.
"Would you like a ride?" The question was a deep, casual purr, but when she glanced back, it was to see Estinien grinning at her shamelessly.
"In your car? Oh. My. Gods. Yes!"
He laughed and got to his feet, grabbing his phone and getting his keys out as he strolled toward her. Rifka glanced back to Thancred, and he winked. She grinned and rolled her eyes, then followed Estinien out to his Rolls. He opened the passenger door for her and smiled as she slid into the seat. He walked around to the driver's side and climbed in. The key was plugged in and turned, and the Rolls roared to life around them.
Rifka closed her eyes and leaned her head back with a grin, sliding her hand over the leather and cherry interior with a deep purr. "Hoo! Wow, what a beast…"
Estinien chuckled. "You haven't even felt him fly yet. Buckle up, Kitten."
She glanced at him sharply but put on her seatbelt as ordered. "Kitten?! What, are we skipping directly to pet names?"
He grinned shamelessly again, putting the Rolls in gear and checking his mirrors before pulling out of his parking spot. "You keep purring at me, what else am I supposed to call you? Baby Girl?"
She looked horrified. "Fuck no! Don't you dare!" They laughed together.
He changed gears and the Rolls growled with power, shooting forward into traffic, weaving smoothly. "So, where am I taking you?"
Anywhere you Goddamn want, her mind wanted her to say. Her belly growled with hunger, and she leaned her head back against the seat, feeling the car's power purring around her. "Up the hill to 127th, then take a left."
They sped up the hill and took the left. Down an alley between apartments and garages, and she got her keys out of her jacket pocket with a sigh. "I suddenly wish I lived farther away… It's this one here."
He grinned at the implications of her admission and pulled up outside a modest apartment complex. Putting the Rolls in Park, he switched off the engine and climbed out with her, walking her to the door.
She smiled up at him, pursing her lips playfully. "Ooh, he's a killer and a gentleman?" She unlocked the heavy outer door, and he reached up over her head to hold it open for her, gazing down at her quietly.
"Careful with that sass, Kitten…" He warned her again.
Her smile sharpened into a devilish grin, and she turned toward him, her eyes slanting daringly. "Or what?"
He grinned and slowly leaned down to her. "Or I might kiss you."
"Ooh," she purred up at him, grinning and gazing into his eyes, "but, that's the best kind of consequence…"
His other hand slid into her hair and gripped the back of her neck. She was tipped upward, and his lips descended upon hers, kissing her deeply. She gasped and reached up to clutch him, tangling her hand in his ponytail, and as she kissed him back, she heard him, felt him, growl at her, deep in his chest. The sound made her belly flutter excitedly.
He gently released her, but not until they were both breathless. "You like to play dangerous games, Riffie…"
There was heat in her gaze as she smirked at him. "Only with willing participants…"
He pressed closer to her, his hand slowly sliding down her back. He felt her shiver and pulled her against him tightly. "I'm definitely willing," he growled quietly, "but you don't know what you're getting into…"
"Not yet, so…" She bit her lip, slowly pulling away from him. His hand relaxed, and she slipped out of his grasp. "Stay in town, Ien…"
He watched her go, his pale eyes intense as the door closed and locked between them. She waved softly, smiling, and vanished up the stairs to her apartment. When she was gone, Estinien returned to his car and sat behind the wheel, leaning his head back.
"Calm down," he ordered himself, clenching his teeth. "It was just a kiss, it was just one kiss… Cool off!" He needed a minute to catch his breath, then gunned the engine and tore out of the parking lot, breaking several traffic laws on the way to his hotel room.