Page 15 of Dance All Night
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Nik walkedinto his brother’s house to find Natasha sitting at the kitchen counter, working on her laptop.
She looked up when Nik stopped in the arched doorway, blinking at him through red-framed glasses. “Hey. Were you out with Jess?”
“Yeah.” He’d already told Tash about the three dates thing. He pulled out a chair and sat across from her. “How well do you know her?” he asked, then quickly added, “Not that I’m digging for info or anything. Just curious.”
Natasha frowned at the ceiling. “Not super well, come to think of it. She’s newer to the cast, a bit younger. I haven’t really hung out with her outside of work or group settings. How was your date?”
“Good.” He shifted in the chair, trying to get comfortable. “I mean, I think it was good. She’s still on board for the second date, so I guess she had a nice time.”
He couldn’t figure Jess out. Sometimes it seemed like she really liked him, but then she’d switch on a dime, and he could tell she was holding back. Was it that she didn’t trust him? She’d warmed up as the night went on, and he hadn’t mistaken her genuine enjoyment when they’d danced. Swing dancing for a crowd of dozens of onlookers hadn’t been part of his plan, but dating, like dancing, sometimes required improvisation.
He hadn’t planned on telling her he’d stay, either, but with the snow and cocoa and everything, it had just slipped out. He meant it, but it was clear Jess didn’t believe that yet.
“Having never been on a date with you, I couldn’t say,” Natasha was saying. “But if you were your usual charming self, I don’t see how she could resist you.”
Dimitri walked in then. “What are you saying? I’m not charming?”
Tash grinned at him. “You can be, but I think we both know Nik has you beat in that department.”
“As long as it’s not in any other departments.” He took her hand and pulled her into his arms. “Besides, you don’t like charming guys.”
She let out an exaggerated sigh. “You’re right. I don’t. I like moody grouches.”
She was laughing when Dimitri lowered his head to kiss her.
Nik slipped out of the kitchen to give them some privacy and headed to his room. Or, rather, the guest room. Same space, different distinction.
This wasn’t his home anymore.
When he’d sold his car and moved all his stuff into storage earlier in the year, it was with the intention of being even more free and detached than he already was.
Now? He just felt unmoored, like a rowboat stuck in the middle of a lake.
He recalled the conversation he’d had with Jess nearly a year ago. At the time, the thought of being settled had scared him. As a performer, complacency felt like giving up, and their talk had likely contributed to his decision to move out of his brother’s house. But watching Mitya and Tash grow closer made Nik take a good, hard look at his own life, and his place in the Kovalenko family.
The role wasn’t always comfortable, but he’d been the little brother for a long time. Now, it looked like he’d be a brother-in-law soon. His cousin Alex’s baby would be born in a few months; maybe Tash and Mitya would have babies too. He hoped they did. He was looking forward to being an uncle and planned to spoil the heck out of his nieces and nephews.
But what did he want for himself? What new space did he want to claim within the family dynamic? He’d been very small when their family immigrated to America, and he’d had an easier time adapting than Dimitri had. Plus, he’d always had Mitya looking out for him. Part of his reason for taking touring gigs had been to break away from that, to carve out his own niche independent of his famous older brother.
And he’d done it. He’d performed on Broadway, at the West End, as a backup dancer for multi-platinum pop stars—hell, he’d even danced during a Super Bowl halftime show.
He’d made a name for himself in this industry. He’d seen the world. He’d spent years searching for an elusive sense of fulfillment and purpose, and come up empty-handed.
But when he’d seen Jess at that party, standing across the room in a cute Christmas shirt, it was like something shifted inside him, as if the missing piece he’d been looking for had magically appeared, right where it belonged.
What the hell did it all mean?
All he knew was he had a few local opportunities on the table—thanks to his kickass agent—no home to call his own, and a woman who didn’t believe he was willing to stay if she only gave him the word.
In other words…not much.
He was too worn out to contemplate such heavy thoughts any further. After changing into basketball shorts, he headed for Mitya’s home gym. Maybe sweating would help shut his brain off.
This endeavor with Jess had to work. It had to. If it didn’t…well, he’d cross that bridge when he came to it. For now, he had a second date to plan.
Chapter Four
