Page 48 of Forbidden Dance
She looks so pretty. As they twist her hair into an updo, I realize she closely resembles an image of me hanging in our hallway at home. Anyone who knew Gabriella would see that image and think it was her.
My heart hammers. I can’t imagine a scenario where Blitz or Janel or Danika would be in my house, but I have to make sure it never happens. I never did answer Blitz when he asked if Gabriella was my sister, but it hasn’t come up again. I’m sure he knows I would have mentioned it by now if she were. The truth might scare him. It isn’t time to reveal it.
I head up to the girls and hug them. “You all look so beautiful!” I say.
Janel hovers nearby, looking perturbed. “Did you sign a waiver?” she asks me.
I shake my head. “I can’t. My parents would never allow it.”
“You’re over eighteen,” she says. “You can do whatever you want.”
“Not worth it,” I say. “I have to live with them.”
Plus, Blitz will be in the video. God, I have to hope they never see it and realize he was here. This whole thing is so hard. I have to protect my dance.
A woman with a clipboard approaches me. “Are you Livia Mason?” she asks.
“Yes,” I say.
Janel slaps her hand on the clipboard. “She’s not signing, so back off.” She’s more forceful than I’m used to her being.
The woman takes a step back. “She can’t be in the video unless she signs.”
“I don’t want to be,” I say. “I’ll stay out of the way.”
The woman frowns. “We have the right to remove you from the room if you don’t sign.”
“Back off, shark attack, she assists the dancers,” Janel says. When the woman finally moves on, Janel turns to me. “They are super pushy. That’s why I was up in her face.”
“Thanks,” I say.
Danika spots us and heads over. “This is more than I bargained for,” she says. “I guess it always is.”
“You want some help clearing the foyer?” I ask.
“Good luck with that,” Danika says. “I already tried to herd them. We’ll just have to muscle through.” She glances at her watch. “I probably should have moved this to a quiet time, not the regular slot,” she says. “I thought it would be safe enough on a Tuesday morning without any school-aged kids.”
“It’s the homeschool day,” I remind her.
“Yes, it is. So a lot more kids and parents, all with open time.” Danika looks around. “We’ll get it done. The day’s probably a wash anyway.” She sees someone behind me and looks surprised. “What is Bennett doing here?” She excuses herself and heads toward the door.
A tall man in a perfectly fitting charcoal suit stands just inside, looking over the chaos. Danika approaches him and gives him a long, tight hug.
I’ve never seen Bennett Claremont before, but I know he’s important. He built Dreamcatcher Dance Academy for Danika. She’s his mother-in-law. He married her daughter Juliet, a professional ballerina who sometimes comes in between tours to give the girls a pep talk.
He’s the reason I can take ballet, I know, funding the academy so that it doesn’t have to turn a profit to stay open.
His handsome friendliness makes me think of Blitz. I’m not tall enough to see clearly through the crowd, but I don’t think he’s there. All the attention is on our ballerinas, and I suspect that if he was in the foyer, a lot of faces would be turned to him instead.
Surely he’ll be here, though. They can’t do the video without him. Maybe I can get a moment to ask Suze if she knows what happened to him Friday, and if he was here yesterday. I hate being unable to communicate with anybody. I had no idea today would be this crazy either.
Maybe I’ll volunteer a second day up at the church just to get more access to a phone.
Jacob comes up behind me and squeezes my arm. We’re officially in the transition now, and the foyer gets even more mobbed as dancers come out of the studios, joining the ones who were waiting for their class.
He leans in. “He’s already in Studio 3,” he whispers.
“Thanks,” I say. It’s nice to have an ally in this. I want to hug him.
