Into the Spotlight Read Online Free PDF

as the far more dangerous allegation. A headache throbbed behind one eye when Malcolm saw that his path across the lobby abandoned the rich marble tile to descend red carpeted steps, and he hesitated before the very lounge he’d already talked himself out of visiting.
    Sliding his hands into his pockets, Malcolm wrestled with his conscience. Pandora said she needed his help. But that could just be a ploy by the Overseers to throw him off his game. Cynical as the thought may have seemed, he would hardly be the first man distracted by the most desirable creature he’d ever met.
    Irritation flared at the concept that she baited some kind of trap. Despite the gloriously sexual allure she wore like a second skin, an air of innocence gleamed in her green eyes. The tremble in her words hesitated genuinely.
    He descended the last three steps into the shadowy lounge. The quiet tables hummed with life and the show unfolded on the stage below. If it was a game the Overseers wanted to play, then he would not allow them the satisfaction of chasing him off.
    It had nothing to do with the intense desire to see her again.
    As though on cue, a spotlight burned through the blackness and illuminated the woman in question, standing center stage. Her hands clasped together and unlike her bejeweled appearance the night before, she wore the simplest of strapless, floor-length black dresses. Her skin shone like the richest gold.
    His breath clogged in his throat. Her blonde hair fell in long tendrils from an elegant twist atop her head. Her green eyes glittered among the barest traces of makeup. She was like a splash of sunshine, vibrant and alive.
    The stirring crowd stilled and even the succubus walking up to greet him went silent.
    Pandora stared up into the light and began to sing. The words barely registered as her silken voice, low and throaty, rippled throughout the theatre. She sang of being bound in chains, lost and buried in dust. The power in her lyrics slammed into his gut and lit a slow fuse in his blood.
    The music faded beneath her voice, leaving only Pandora as she stood, arms extending as she decried her fate, lost to the world and desperate to find her way. His legs began to move, as if by their own volition and he descended deeper into the theatre, following the haunting invitation in Pandora’s song. She wanted to trust, to reach out and to be free from the darkness threatening to swallow her.
    Youth, vitality, innocence and a need to believe filled every nuance of the music wrapping around him. Awareness of the succubus trailing after him faded. He found a chair and sat down, hands clasped together, elbows on his knees, and leaned forward.
    He wanted Pandora to know he was here, that he listened to her entreaty and his conscience reminded him that she’d already asked for his help. His fangs pushed at his gums, sharpening. The music thrummed through his blood, pounding long after the last note faded away and the spotlight went dark, erasing her from the stage.
    He exhaled and released the breath he hadn’t even realized he held. The crowd stirred, released from her spell as the stage lit up and the other dancers exploded to life, shattering the compulsion binding him in place.
    “Drink, sir?” The succubus at his elbow pushed against his awareness and he nodded once.
    “Please send an invitation back to Pandora. I would like her to join me after the show.” So much for not allowing her to distract him, but even if she was a game the Overseers played with him, he could use that to his advantage. In the back of his mind, guilt nibbled on him. Would using the singer’s need against her really solve any problems?
    He sat through the full set of performances. His doubt fled every time she walked onto the stage. The long strands of pearls stroking her breasts through the final dance sent all the blood in his body rushing to his cock. Her dusky nipples peaked with every caress of the hard little beads.
    His palms itched to