Page 36 of Wicked Dance
Chapter 11
We almost blow off Milan’s, but looking out on the city after our bit of aerial silks experimentation, we decide to go out anyway.
“I should get a blond wig,” I say. I head to the bathroom to let down my braids, which are fuzzy and wild after our tussle.
“The paparazzi are relentless,” Blitz says, coming behind me to play with my wavy post-braid hair. “And I like you just the way you are.”
I lean back against him. We’re both in white robes. He lifts the sleeves to inspect my wrists.
“No burn marks? No pain?” he asks.
I shake my head. “Nope. I’ve practiced.”
He leans against the sink. “You really want to go back to Jenica’s to work on this?”
I shrug back at the mirror, trying to fix my smudged lipstick. “We could look for someone else,” I say.
“No, I’ll call over there. Somebody was training that girl. And I’m not sure how many places do aerial work.”
He heads to the bedroom to get dressed and I fuss with my hair. I constantly appear in pictures now, and I don’t look anything close to as glamorous as those finalists. I frown at my reflection. I want to be more versatile. And I want to be me. There has to be some middle ground somewhere.
I scrub the lipstick off entirely and go back to a more subdued color. The mascara and liner are fine, bulletproof stuff given to me by the makeup artist in LA. The rest of the makeup suitcase he left behind is a mystery to me — foundations, concealers, blushers, eye shadows, color correctors. I have no idea why I would ever smear yellow on my eyes or green on my cheeks.
I close the case.
Blitz returns with a siren red dress. “We should probably play it down tonight, but I can’t help it. I love you in this so much.”
I take the dress from him. “It’s Valentine’s Day!” I say. “I’m happy to wear it.”
“Will you keep the bra with, you know, the hearts?” He makes random gestures toward his own chest.
“This dress is a halter, so no bra at all,” I say.
He falls back against the wall. “I love it even more now.”
“I can keep the white underwear, though,” I say.
He closes his eyes, his hands moving to swiftly button up his charcoal shirt. “I’ll think about it the whole time.”
“I could take them off under the table like in thatFifty Shades Darkermovie,” I say. “I saw the clip.”
Blitz claps his hands over his crotch. “Say no more or we will never make it to the restaurant.”
I laugh. “Now shoo. I have to get ready in case we are seen again.”
“Odds are high,” he says. “But we’ll do our best.”
I nod and go back to the mirror. This is just the way it is. We got caught unprepared at the dance store, but this time, I’ll be ready for it.
~*´`*~
Milan’s is an Italian restaurant downtown near the Riverwalk. Blitz calls for Ted so we won’t have to rely on the valet and can make a quick getaway if needed. He navigates the streets lined with happy couples holding hands and heading for the river.
“Good call not doing an actual Riverwalk restaurant,” Ted says. “We need a place we can pull up to, and most of those require a walk to get to the entrance.”
“I know,” Blitz says. “We’re pretty stuck for a while.”
“We really need a fourth person,” I say. “So Ted can stay behind the wheel and the other one can scout ahead.”
