Page 4 of Take the Lead
“Stone Nielson.” He stuck out his hand, then froze when she opened her arms. She wanted a hug? Was this for the cameras? He was three times her size, sweaty and filthy, and he didn’t often hug people. But she was waiting, so he reached down and awkwardly embraced her. She gave him a peck on the cheek before pulling away, leaving behind the scent of tropical flowers and a tingling sensation where her lips had touched.
His eyebrows popped up in surprise, and she waved a hand dismissively. “I’m Puerto Rican. We kiss hello and goodbye.” Her gaze flicked over to the members of his camera crew, mixed in with hers. “So, I guess you’re filming a show here?”
Relief flooded through him. Good, she had no idea who he was. This whole thing was embarrassing enough without her having watched him on TV, playing out the silly storylines his father and the production team brainstormed in their weekly meetings.
Since he was shirtless and didn’t have a lav mic clipped to his waistband, Stone raised his voice so the boom mic could pick up his answer. “We’re filming the fourth season ofLiving Wild.My family and I live off the grid here on Nielson HQ, where we build our own homes, hunt, and live off the land.”
The premise was ridiculous and hokey even to him, and he could never explain it without sounding like a robot. How much worse would it sound to her? She probably thought they were all wacky forest folk.
But Gina only nodded as she surveyed the makeshift compound. “You’re like a wilderness expert or something?”
Stone shrugged. “Or something.”
She sent him a teasing wink. “Well, soon you’ll be a dance expert. Ready to learn a few moves?”
“I’m game,” he said, because it was expected of him. The absolute last thing he wanted to do was learn to dance. “You probably haven’t taught anyone to dance in the forest before.”
She cast another glance around, scanning the trees. “I haven’t, but there’s a first time for everything.”
“Nervous?”
“A little.” She ducked her head like she was embarrassed. “I’m more comfortable in big cities.”
“I bet.” She stood out like a palm tree in the middle of the tundra.
“Is there somewhere around here with level ground?”
“We can use the porch. It’s the closest thing we have to a dance floor.” Stone led the way, pointing to where Gina should watch her step, while the cameras circled them like planets in orbit around twin suns.
The clearing behind the house was a veritable obstacle course of outdoorsy shit, thanks to his brothers and their multitude of half-finished projects. The producers believed it made the set “visually interesting.” Stone just thought it looked like a mess.
Gina’s producer cupped his hands around his mouth and called out, “Tell her why you’re joining the show, Stone.”
Oh, right. What the hell was he supposed to say again? They’d told him not to mention the money, but it was the only reason he’d agreed to this. If his mother hadn’t owed an exorbitant amount in medical bills, he would have turned it down. His family made a good income fromLiving Wild,but his parents had already been in debt before his mother’s procedure. Stone would feel better if he could help them reach financial stability, and pay off his own student loans while he was at it.
“I’m joiningThe Dance Offfor my mom.” Stone cleared his throat and recited the lines his producers had crafted. “She hada hip replacement last year. It was scary for all of us, and it would make her happy to see me dancing and having an experience totally different from everything we know.”
He winced. The lines sounded unnatural. He just wasn’t any good at these canned responses.
But Gina pressed a hand to his arm. “I’m so sorry. Is she better now?”
Her concerned expression seemed genuine, but it was impossible to know for certain in the world of reality TV. Stone nodded, not sure how else to answer.
“That was great,” Gina’s producer shouted. “Keep going.”
God, this was weird. After four years, Stone should have been used to having normal human interactions dictated by committee, but he wasn’t. And he’d been out of the game so long, hiding away in this little corner of Alaska, he barely knew how to make small talk with a woman.
On the porch, Gina unzipped her coat and shrugged it off, revealing jeans and a fluffy gray sweater that accentuated her shape. She was curvier than he expected, with a strong, solid build. Maybe he wouldn’t break her after all.
The thought took his mind down another path that had nothing to do with dancing. Stone cut it off at the pass. Gina was his dance partner—nothing else. A woman from the land of smog, traffic, and fake people. They were from different worlds, and he had no business thinking about her as anything other than a means to an end. They would dance, he’d collect his paycheck, and then he’d return home to Alaska. End of story.
Gina shivered as she draped the coat over the porch railing. Stone guessed it would be easier for her to dance without it, but she didn’t look like the kind of woman who liked to be uncomfortable. “Aren’t you going to be cold?” he asked.
She rubbed her bare hands together to warm them. “I’ll manage.”
He hooked his thumbs through the loops on his jeans. If she’d put the coat back on, he could stop worrying about her. “It’s a bit colder here than in Los Angeles.”
“True, but I’m from New York, which has four seasons.”
