Page 128 of Lovers' Dance

His well-defined eyebrows shot up as he unbuckled his belt. “That’s quite vague, poppet. We’ll discuss it when I call you later. Remember, we’re dating now.”

A little chuckle left my lips before we both got out the SUV. Matt came around to the driver’s side. I was conscious of the movement by the gates. Were they taking pictures?

Matt obviously didn’t care because he kissed me in full view of anyone who cared to look, smacked me lightly on the ass and winked once.

“Make sure and take your house keys back from Dante today, poppet. Don’t think I’ve forgotten about that.”

I narrowed my eyes at him before saying goodbye and hurrying up to the doors of my building. I searched around in my bag and found the bunch of keys for the main doors, then opened up. Gloria didn’t come in until eight am. Policy was to keep the doors locked until our reception was staffed.

“Dante,” I yelled, locking the doors behind me and catching a glimpse of the Porsche driving away. “I’m here, D. Where are you?”

I quickened my steps through the reception area and met him coming down the hallway.

“Morning.” He greeted me with a grin. “You look good. Kincaid is going to appreciate your effort.”

“Shut up,” I grumbled. “I’ve told you a million times, he doesn’t see me like that. You’re a pervert. Geoffrey’s old enough to be my father.”

Dante laughed and took my bag off me, swinging an arm around my shoulders as we walked to our office.

“What time do the final set of dancers arrive?” I asked when Dante opened the office door.

“Around nine, Madi, and, once we have the final line up, we can start getting them ready for the show.”

I awkwardly shrugged off my jacket, the action causing me to reveal more flesh than I wanted, and Dante dropped my bag.

“Dude! I’ve got my cell in there,” I shrieked.

Dante wasn’t listening. He grabbed me by one shoulder, his other hand tugged my silk shirt partially to the side. “What the fuck? Is that a bite mark?”

I froze, shocked into stillness by his fingers gently touching the area above my boob. I had left the first few buttons undone, going for a stern but naughty look. It worked with the jacket on.

“Dante,” I said softly. My eyes were wide as saucers. I was used to Dante’s hands on me. For crying out loud, we were ballerinas, had danced together for as long as I remembered. He’d touched me in more than one intimate place. But that was different, that was the clinical touch of one dancer on another. This touch was different. It made me uncomfortable and excited at the same time.

Dante’s head snapped up so he could see my face, a fierce frown twisting his sensuous lips. “Did he do this? What the hell, Madi? That’s a serious bruise. Is he rough with you? I’m gonna kick his ass.”

“Dante,” I repeated, trying to pull away. His hand on my shoulder tightened as his gaze dropped lower once again.

“Cracker son of a bitch. Are there any more? What else did he do to you?”

Dante looked crazed, like he was going to strip my clothes off and check every inch of my body for bruises and bite marks. And there were a few. Matt and I had gotten buck wild. He was the owner of deep scratches and bite marks himself.

I smacked Dante’s hand away and fixed my top. “Calm down, D. What on earth is wrong with you?”

Dante folded his muscled arms across his chest and continued frowning at me. “What’s wrong with me? What’s wrong with you?”

I was frowning, too, angry at my best friend for making me feel the way I was feeling. It was understandable. I’d been crushing on Dante for years, and because of our line of work, my body’s reaction to him was understandable. Wrong, but understandable. His hands were usually on me most days. Before Matt and I got together, Dante’s hands holding or touching me was my secret bliss. Shit, it still felt good, but I had a boyfriend now. I needed to stop my childish daydreams and act right.

I had a boyfriend, I reminded myself sternly. But for how much longer?

“It’s nothing, Dante,” I murmured, bending down to pick up my bag before heading to the desk. “Things, uh, got a bit heated after you left, and stop scowling. I don’t mean in a violent way. Look, I’m not talking about this anymore. Have you heard back from that artistic director we spoke to last week?”

Dante, frowning, dropped his arms to his side and nodded. “Yeah, we got an email from him. He wants to meet up as soon as possible. We could probably have him stop by this afternoon.”

I nodded in agreement, shoving my unsettling feelings aside to focus on today’s work. “We need to sort out our final design for the tickets. I want it done today.”

“I’ll call our usual printers and get them to draft a few mock-ups, sweet cheeks. Once we have our lineup, Gloria’s going to have to handle everything else. We won’t have time to deal with anything but our choreography.”

“I know,” I answered with a sigh. “She deserves a raise, you know.”

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