Page 11 of Promises & Pumpkins (Haunted in Hazy Cove #1)
Harper
“First position.” A room of little feet shuffled to the right place.
“Very good. Third position.” I smiled when most of them did it again, giggling when a few small faces scrunched to try and remember that their front heel should line up with the middle of their back foot.
When a couple stumbled, Kelly moved over to help them.
The second class was almost over, and parents were starting to filter in through the front door.
I tried to avoid looking over my shoulder each time the door opened, keeping my focus on the gaggle of little girls struggling to keep their focus while the temptation to wave at their moms grew stronger.
Their focus started to slip in the form of stifled giggles.
“Okay, okay.” I clapped my hands together lightly to bring their focus back to me. “Let’s show your parents what you learned today. Hand on the bar.”
A patter of hands clasping onto the bar echoed down the line.
“Hi, Mommy! Are you watching?” one of them asked, even though all of the parents were lined up along the side of the mat.
When the door opened again and Maddie’s smile grew wider, I could feel Miles’ eyes on me, and I took a deep breath.
He’s just another one of the parents, Harper.
“Ready, ballerinas?” I asked, earning an excited nod from each. “Now plié. Remember to bend your knees!”
A small chorus of oohs and ahhs came from the small audience waiting to take their daughters home.
When the girls stood up straight again, Kelly and I clapped.
“Beautiful, girls! Absolutely beautiful,” she said, winking at me.
“You’re all starting to look like real ballerinas now. We’ll see you all in a couple days!”
The girls scurried past us toward their parents, some holding hands and others practically racing. Was it just me, or were they taking longer than normal to leave? I avoided turning around, listening while the door opened and closed with each group that walked out.
“Okay, spill,” Kelly said, walking up behind me. Even with the abundance of mirrors in the studio, I hadn’t seen her walk up behind me. I sucked in a deep breath to get my suddenly rapidly beating heart to return to a normal pace.
“Spill what?”
She looked at me like I had insulted her, resting her hands on her hips and cocking her head to the side with a scowl. “Don’t do that. Why are you being so weird today?”
I shrugged, gathering the small blocks we had used during class for balance. “I’m not being weird.”
“Yes, you are.” Kelly took one of the blocks from me and narrowed her eyes. “Is it because the hottie single dad from the other day has been staring at you since he walked in the door?”
I rolled my eyes. “He’s not staring at me.” The goosebumps on my arms and the hair on the back of my neck that stood on end said otherwise.
“He’s totally staring at you, and every single mom in this place knows it, too.” She smirked, and I looked back over my shoulder. When I made eye contact with Miles, I gasped, whipping my head back around. “Oh, now he’s coming this way,” Kelly said, clearly excited for my pending embarrassment.
“Shit, shit.” I looked around for a quick excuse to escape. “Act natural,” I said, cradling the blocks against my body.
Kelly laughed. “I’m acting fine. You’re the one who looks like you’re about to pass out.”
I glared at her. “Ugh, nobody asked you anyway. Will you just go away?” When she didn’t move, I nudged her by shoving the blocks into her arms. “You can take these. Now go.”
“Maddie absolutely loves coming to dance class,” Miles said when he was close enough for me to hear him. I spun around, smiling too wide to be natural.
“Oh, hey,” I said like I hadn’t been anticipating this moment since he walked in the door. “We really love having her in class. She’s so sweet.”
Miles looked back to where Maddie spun in small circles by one of the benches and smiled.
Then he looked back at me, and his smile changed with the slow once over he gave me.
I felt his eyes drag along every curve of my body while he did.
“So are you,” he said, and my cheeks betrayed me with their warmth.
I knew I was blushing when his eyebrow twitched.
“When you blush like that, I can’t help but shoot my shot again. Let me take you out.”
“I’m really not the dating type.” I shook my head, unable to come up with another excuse.
“What if I don’t want a real date?” He winked, stepping close enough that he could lower his voice. “What if I just want to take you to get something to eat and make you scream my name again after? As friends.”
I gasped. “Oh my god, will you please be quiet? This is my job! You are the father of one of my students!” I whisper-yelled.
“What’s wrong?” The mischievous look on his face told me he wasn’t going to be changing his volume. “You don’t want the moms to know that you loved getting fucked by the guy next door?”
“What happened to dinner as friends?” The stubbornness I was born with started to take over.
He put his hands up in mock surrender. “I promise, just as friends.”
“If I agree to dinner, will you leave? You’re causing a scene.” Was I serious? When his face lit up, I realized what I had done. Miles nodded.
“Deal. I’ll pick you up tomorrow at six.” He took a smooth step backward followed by another.
I couldn’t believe I had agreed to this. Even more so, I couldn’t believe the butterflies in my stomach were getting so excited. “You know where I live.”
When he winked, the butterflies raced toward my throat. “That I do.”