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One ti could make me a star and had been disappointed when she tried to let ently Noas a star, and I had no idea what that s to ht find oal And yet all I could think about was a half-Abyssinian brigand’s eyes, his hands on ainst ers heldover the one thing I needed ht knock on the door startled me, and I huffed a "Yes?"

"La De a painted smile that was at least half false While sheto the cabaret under her tutelage, she had to hate that I had trickedrespect the old-fashioned way I couldn’t keep the snark out of racefully The bagload of silvers cleaned up off the stage last night probably helped

"Entrez, Charline" No more Mademoiselle

"Did you sleep well, chérie?"

"Very"

"I’d like to discuss tonight’s show"

My grin widened "I’d love that"

She cleared her throat and pulled out her red notebook, and I noticed that it iven me one of her private stash; no wonder she was annoyed "What we ht’s act or try so entirely different Of course, it will not be such a"

"Surprise?"

Charline pinched the bridge of her nose "Indeed It won’t be a surprise But it doesn’t inconvenience the rest of the girls, and we already have the equipment and , and I did have some ideas"

She held out her notebook, and I held outin coht the urge to screech at me in her typical manner

"Look, Charline I refuse to wear a hat shaped like a coffee cup, even if it works with the name"

"But this costume you propose is"

"Utterly indecent?"

"Unprecedented"

"This is Paris We set the fashion So let’s set it Besides, very little skin is revealed They’ll see irls dance than they see when I contort"

Angry old skin like ink on tissue "Must you be utterly contrary at every juncture, ainst my pillow "Why not? So the sa N’est-ce pas?"

"Perhaps But you don’t keep the established clientele by suddenly changing everything they’ve co the same"

She smiled in triumph

"Except for my act"

The smile died

"My act should be last, and it should start the same way, on the hoop Or , then bring all the girls out to dance the can-can together with locked are of one of rinned "Dress thear bowls, teacups Like a giant table, putting on a show just for the diners Inviting the audience to be our guests"

One eyebroent up as she considered it "I regret to say that it’s not entirely horrible Perhaps instead of a hoop, you could e it Me, sliding down the rope to aaround it as it slowly descended to the floor Paris had surely never seen its like, and that was exactly what I was hoping for in rand finale Until then, can we count on an exact replication of last night’s sensation?"