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“Everything alright?” She mumbled.
“Yeah. Everything’s fine.”
“Oh, that’s good.”
“You can go back to sleep.”
“Fucking excellent idea.” In no time at all, her breathing deepened and her hand felt heavy where it rested on my chest. She was sound asleep. I couldn’t sleep, though. I just lay there, staring up at the ceiling, wondering who the fuck I’d offended so badly that they’d come after me like this? Let’s be honest, the list was probably extensive. If I’d made enemies throughout mycareer, I’d always done it openly. So it was more the cloak and dagger nature of it that disturbed me.
Still, lying there with Stef in my arms, I knew that not going back to Raleigh was definitely the right decision.
CHAPTER 30
Stefania
Iwas sprawled out on the couch in the living room, the sky outside inky black. The sound of Tchaikovsky’s music blasted through the speakers. My eyes were closed, and I was conducting an imaginary orchestra with my hand, bouncing my foot to the beat. It was in that moment of pure bliss that I felt a tap on my foot. My eyes flew open to see Grayson standing over me, a gleam of amusement in his eyes.
“Tchaikovsky, huh?”
“Naturally.” I sat up, turning down the volume a notch.
“I took you more for a Strauss girl.”
I gasped in mock horror. “How very dare you! While Strauss did throw up a pretty good waltz, he doesn’t even come close to Tchaikovsky in terms of his ability to explore the full range of the orchestra’s capability.”
He laughed, a deep, rumbly sound that gave me goosebumps. “Oh, I couldn’t agree more. His work on Sleeping Beauty was out of this world.”
I loved this shit. I’d studied it for years. Being able to actually talk to someone about it was a first, though. “And yet, I prefer Waltz of the Flowers for unparalleled dramatic flair.”
Grayson’s eyes narrowed, and he tilted his head to the side as he surveyed me. “You are very intriguing.”
The only proper response to that was to snort derisively, which made Grayson smile again as the last strains of Symphony No. 6 faded away. And wouldn’t you know it, up next was Waltz of the Flowers?
Grayson held his hand out. “May I?”
“Fuck no! I have no idea how to waltz.”
“Oh, so you’re all talk, then.”
There was a challenge in his tone that immediately had me sitting up straight.
“I’ll teach you. Unless you’re too chickenshit.”
That did it. I slapped my hand in his and allowed him to pull me up from the sofa and lead me around the low coffee table to the center of the room.
He placed his other hand high on my back and I shivered a little at how warm it felt through my t-shirt. “Now, chin up and tilted to the left. No, you’re left, so over my shoulder. We find the beat and your right foot goes back, then you’re going to move left with your left foot, then bring your feet together. Yes, like that.”
We made it through a few steps, then Grayson turned us, which I wasn’t expecting, so I tripped over my own feet. “Fuck. Sorry.”
“You’re fine. Go again. Drop your shoulders and one…two…three.”
We were fine in a simple box step, but as soon as he tried to turn me, no dice. I just couldn’t seem to get the hang of it.
“How are you this uncoordinated?”
“Two left feet, I guess.”
“Bullshit. I’ve seen you move on stage.”