Page 33 of Forbidden Dance
My face snaps around to his. “Really?”
“Really. She asked why I acted like I was walking on a cloud.”
He shifts me onto his lap. I sit sideways on him, my head on his shoulder. It’s frighteningly intimate, closer than we’ve been before. My heart thuds wildly.
His fingers trail along the nape of my neck, my back, my shoulders. “I don’t think I’ve ever gotten so worked up over a kiss before,” he says. His breath tickles my jaw.
I turn my face to his and our lips meet. The kiss is tender, conciliatory, a reconnection. His hand moves to the back of my head. His mouth covers mine, increasing the urgency, his tongue seeking entrance.
I taste him, no mint gum today, but a hint of coffee and cream. My body is less hesitant, more eager to move in close, to feel his muscular body tight against mine.
I shift to face him, my legs straddling his waist. His dance tights are form fitting and sleek. I move against him, feeling our bodies connect. It’s slippery and smooth, so easy to shift into place.
His hands grasp my ribs. His thumb slides up, flirting with the underside of my breast.
I suck in a breath against his mouth. Fire licks through me. It’s way beyond what I felt in the storage room. It’s needy and unquenched. I break away, my breathing rapid.
“We should probably be careful,” Blitz says.
I nod and shift away from him. I don’t want to, but my brain is buzzing. So many reversals in the past few minutes. Hating him, feeling despair, then hope, and now fire.
“Why is Danika against us?” Blitz asks. “I mean, I know I have a horrible reputation, which I totally deserve.” He stands up and reaches for my hand to help me rise as well. “But she’s the owner, and you’re a student. Is she a close friend of your family?”
I shake my head no. I don’t want him to know my situation, how sheltered I’ve been, how abnormal.
“Then let’s see each other away from here,” Blitz says. “We can go anywhere. Will you do that?” His eyes implore mine, flashing in the dark. “Tonight? Tomorrow? I can’t wait any longer than that.”
I think about my time, how to get away, searching for possibilities. I could lie again, say I’m coming here, say Danika has a work session and lunch planned for the staff. I’ll make it work. I can always just walk away. Dad won’t be home. Mom can’t exactly lock me in my room.
“Yes,” I say. “Tomorrow. Away from here.” I think frantically. “I’ll meet you at the park on this street, a few blocks down. By the swings.”
“That’s adorable,” he says. “And a date. When?”
“When do you have a class here?” I ask.
“Ten. Done at eleven. Tappin’ Grandmas, remember?”
Right. “Okay, eleven-fifteen at the park.”
He pulls me to him fiercely. “It’s a date, Princess.”
We scurry off the stage and go separately out of the hall.
Class is long over, so I don’t talk to anyone, but just head outside and into the bright fall day. I’m halfway home when it hits me, and Igrand jetéon the sidewalk.
I have a date with Blitz!
Chapter 13
I dress carefully the next day in a loose T-shirt and baggy cropped sweatpants, like I’m going to be doing hard physical work. Beneath them, I have on my favorite red shirt, casual but with a little shine to it, and a simple black skirt. I’ve carefully folded it flat against my belly and hips so it won’t be too crumpled when I change out of the pants.
I sling a clearly almost-empty dance bag on my shoulder. I need it to put the old clothes in, but I couldn’t risk a change of nice things in there in case Mom checked. It only holds a pair of flats so I don’t have to wear my work sneakers with my skirt later. She should assume my ballet slippers are in there.
This has to work. If she says no, I have to walk out anyway. My heart is pounding fiercely in my chest. I’m going to lie. Big-time lie. I haven’t lied since the time before, when I got pregnant.
But I don’t feel guilty. This is too important. I’m nineteen. I should be allowed to date. I can’t live with my parents forever. I can’t be punished all my life.
Mom folds towels on the living room sofa. Andy is having recess time in the backyard. Good. I don’t want any witnesses, and Andy has an uncanny ability to notice when I’m trying to get away with something.
