Page 15 of Forbidden Dance
“I don’t know about that,” I say. “He leaves a swath of destruction wherever he goes.”
She looks at me with surprise, and I wish I hadn’t said anything. Everyone here is used to bright naive Livia, not the one who sounds jaded. “So I read in the grocery store tabloids,” I add.
She laughs a little more naturally. “I was definitely concerned about bringing him here,” she says. “But I owe Bennett a favor, more like a thousand, and for some reason he thinks this joker got a raw deal in the press.”
“Is this all about a Tweet?”
Danika shakes her head. “That was just the part that blew up,” she says. “He stands for everything we should hate. Cheap fame. Exploitation. Shock culture.”
“He’s a good dancer, though,” I say. Blitz is doing a free-form tap routine for the women now. They are clapping and cheering, even though we can’t hear what’s happening from outside the soundproofing.
“There are a thousand dancers just as good,” she says. “But he’s got some sort of magic charisma.” She leans against the window. “He’s charmed all these ladies. He’ll get his happy publicity to offset the bad stuff. This is gold.”
“How is anyone going to know he’s here?” I ask. I realize camera crews might come in and the academy could hit the news. It will be impossible to hide all this from my parents. It’s so close to home. They’ll notice with their own eyes if the media starts blocking the street. It’s less than a mile to my house.
“I’m not going to let him take over my academy,” she says. “But he’ll have some small promo videos done, only with dancers who sign a waiver.”
I wonder if Gwen will do that. I guess it doesn’t matter. Even if the wheelchair ballerina class gets visibility, nobody will know who Gabriella is.
“I can’t sign one,” I say.
She squeezes my arm. “I know. That’s fine. We’ll work around it.” She watches the grandmas take turns dancing with Blitz. “Did you talk to him?”
My face flames. “Only about the girls,” I say. “He wanted to know about their limitations.”
She nods. “I’m really throwing the works at him. He’s got the wheelchair class, these Tappin’ Grandmas, one toddler class, the boys’ hip-hop, and the advanced jazz girls, who I felt could really learn from him.”
“You think he’ll be okay with the babies?”
“I am hoping one of them spits up all over him.”
We laugh together as the lights blink twice in the hall, signaling the five-minute warning until the transition begins. A few mothers trickle in to stand outside the windows of the jazz class.
“Were you going to dance this morning?” Danika asks. “This isn’t your usual day.”
“I’m working toward my toe shoes.” My eyes dart back to Blitz.
“Ahh,” she says. “And to take another gander at wonder boy.”
I shrug and fiddle with my skirt.
She turns to me. “Please take care with someone like Benjamin,” she says. “If something were to happen to you, I’d be devastated.”
“What could happen?” I ask. “It’s just dance.”
Danika peers back through the window at the grandmas. One of them has tricked Blitz into getting close to her face. Suddenly she plants a kiss on his lips.
“That is what I’m talking about,” she says. “He makes women act crazy.”
Blitz sweeps the elderly woman up in his arms and turns in a circle. A silent whoop goes up, the women all gesturing wildly, mouths open. I can’t tell if the others are excited or jealous. One thing is for sure. His charm isn’t limited to any age.
Chapter 7
As the grandmas reluctantly file out, taking Danika with them, Blitz puts his shirt back on and strips off the bow tie. When he heads toward the door, I panic, flooded with shyness, and dash for Studio 3 to do a warm-up.
But he comes out before I can go in.
“Livia?” he asks.
