Page 4 of Dancing Fools and All That Jazz
‘Monica, please. I will not mix work and pleasure. This is purely an investment and somewhere for me to stay midweek. Besides, can you really see me going to a dance show? No, I think not.’
‘Well, we can stay here if we go to the NEC or fly from the Midlands airport or…’
‘Monica, no. Now drop it.’
Fay’s loud irritated voice temporarily interrupts my thoughts.
‘Janine, you should really have given us each a full record of our payments…’
Payments. Credit card bills. It’s so obvious now. Vince’s oily voice reverberates, ‘Those are my work credit cards, Monica. For business expenses. Of course you don’t see them, they go straight to head office.’
I shake my head and picture the nicely furnished cityapartment. A fleeting glimpse of Vince, naked on top of me, flashes unbidden across my mind. I feel nauseous. You did this with all those other women? My chest compresses and I barely notice Asha has come up next to me and started talking.
‘Monica, can you possibly show me the moves of the tricky section in the Adele number, the bit after the cross through? I missed the class when Clarissa slowed down the sequence and I just cannot get the hang of it. The way you move your arms full circle before the chassé turn looks so elegant, I want to be able to do the same. I hope you do not mind me asking?’
I stare vacantly at Asha’s mouth and dazzlingly perfect teeth – the reason Ruby has given her the nickname Gnasher-Asha, well this and the fact she’s a dentist – before rewinding her words in my head.
‘Yes, sure. Can I show you next week, Asha? I’m in a bit of a rush tonight,’ I mumble.
She studies my face and gives me a concerned smile. ‘Sure. Thank you, Monica. I hope everything is OK with you?’ Her eyes beg an explanation as she stands her ground.
I feel a flush of emotion and shake my head before looking anxiously past Asha to see why there’s a hold-up with the payments.
An argument has broken out between Fay and Janine about how much money she owes. I can barely focus on what they’re saying. I just want to get out into the fresh air.
‘Come on,’ I mutter under my breath, but now Rubyhas gone and joined in.
‘Why are they charging us extra?’ Ruby asks.
‘I definitely paid more than that.’ Fay turns her back on Ruby to face Janine.
‘Fay, you were up to date, but now they’ve put up the cost of the airfares. Some sort of airport tax increase. It’s not my fault.’ Janine’s voice is quiet, and she doesn’t lift her eyes from her notebook.
I step impatiently from one foot to the other and realise Ingrida is now making a beeline for me, her face smiling and eager. I bow my head and look studiously at my watch, biting my lip. She takes the hint and returns to the back of the queue.
A dull buzz sounds from inside my handbag. I ignore it.
‘Is that your phone, Monica?’ Asha points to my bag.
I shrug, ignoring her and the persistent buzzing.
Buzz… buzz… No bloody wonder you never answered your phone when you were away. Well, two can play at that game. Come on, Ruby. I need to get out of here.
I march past Fay to interrupt the argument. ‘Look, it’s not Janine’s fault if the prices have increased, and it’s only fifteen pounds more. Janine, here’s mine. Ruby, are you coming?’
Fay firmly folds her arms, her glare turned on me.
Janine quietly reminds Ruby she still owes five pounds from the previous week.
Ruby rolls her eyes to heaven and pulls out the one and only note from her purse. She jokingly clutches itto her chest and strokes it lovingly before reluctantly peeling it away and handing it to Janine. ‘It’s all I have. But it’s yours. And as our numbers haven’t come up on the lottery – I’m assuming you’ve checked we don’t have that unclaimed winning ticket – I may just have to go and beg on Cheadle High Street or turn a few tricks to pay the extra next week.’ She turns and winks at Bonnie and Cath.
‘Oh, you are terrible, Ruby.’ Bonnie and Cath laugh.
Fay’s face twists into a sneer. She looks at Ruby as if she’s something unpleasant on the underside of her shoe.
‘Got a problem, Fay?’ Ruby flashes Fay one of her massive white toothy smiles.
‘My problem is not helped by continuous interruptions, Ruby.’ Fay lifts her chin and turns to Janine. ‘Now look here, Janine. Your records are most definitely wrong.’ Fay grabs the notebook from Janine’s hands to examine the entries.
