Page 71 of Kissing the Debutant
“What?” His eyes widened. “No, this is your day.”
She shook her head, her eyes imploring him to listen to her. Reaching one hand down, she repeated herself. “Dance with me.”
Not taking his eyes from hers, Jack did the only thing he could. He took her hand and climbed the steps until he was right in front of her. “Are you sure?”
She only smiled in answer before turning away from him and jogging to the side of the stage to speak to someone.
When she returned, she took up her beginning stance. Jack kicked off his shoes, leaving them at the side of the stage. He wore jeans and a t-shirt, not exactly a dancer’s apparel, but in that moment, he didn’t care.
The music started again, and Jack stepped up behind Lillian, resting his hands on her waist.
As they moved into the first steps, his body knew what to do like he’d been dancing with Lillian his entire life.
When they’d started dancing together, they hadn’t fit. Her classical roots weren’t a match for his modern style, but still, they’d created a dance where they could both thrive.
Lillian had been right. Theycouldcreate a world for themselves, one without the expectations thrust onto her or the limitations on him. Their dance was proof of that.
He lifted Lillian, and she smiled down at him. If the adrenaline didn’t have his heart pounding it his chest, it may have stopped altogether.
He’d once thought Lillian was a beautiful portrait, one to be admired but never touched. He was the janitor of the ballet studio she dominated, the place where she could have had anything.
And she’d wanted him.
He knew now beauty wasn’t something to watch, to admire without ever truly looking deep. It was a thing to be understood, cherished. Because most beauty went deeper than the surface people saw.
Some beauty could steal your heart.
When they’d recorded this dance for his video, Lillian represented hate, and Jack was love, two sides pulled apart by life.
Now, each move held a different meaning. Each time they fell apart in the dance, the steps put them back together. They were love, not hate, in all its messy parts. Breaking up. Making up. Holding each other together as the world told them they weren’t meant to be.
The music faded as Jack held Lillian, their breath mingling, and their chests heaving.
There was a beat of silence before the audience jumped to their feet with thunderous applause. Jack had never let most people see his dancing, hiding it from his peers, but standing up here felt right.
“Jack.” Lillian tugged on his hand. “Earth to Jack.” She grinned when he finally turned to her. “We have to get off the stage.”
He let her pull him off the stage to where a group of girls stood, knowing smiles on their faces.
“No boy troubles, huh?” One of them smirked.
“Sorry, talk to you guys later,” Lillian called as she pulled him past them. “There’s something I need to do.” She led him away from the others and past the contestants bustling backstage.
“What do you have to do?”
Lillian opened a door and pushed him inside. A small, dark storage room surrounded them. She shut the door, closing them off from all light.
“This,” she whispered, drawing him close. “I have to do this.” Her lips found his in the dark, and he responded immediately, pulling her closer.
He backed up until he hit a set of metal shelves. His hands settled on her hips as she took what she wanted from him.
And what did she want? He hadn’t known it until he saw Mia’s video in class, until Lillian confessed her feelings. This girl he never thought he’d deserve wanted everything, every part of him.
He emptied himself, letting it all flow into that kiss, that moment.
“I can’t believe we just did that,” she whispered against his lips. “That dance…”
He skimmed a hand over her cheek, her jaw. “Why did you change your dance last minute?”
