Page 74 of The Wedding Wrecker

It’s just the fucking dance, James. It’s where his hand is supposed to be…

Dick's abandoned partner ended up with me, while Dick himself somehow managed to snag her sister, Claudia. The music started again, and I tried to focus on the steps while keeping Emma in my peripheral vision.

"Your girl's quite talented," Richard said, loud enough for me to hear. "So much potential. It would be a shame to see it go to waste."

Emma's spine stiffened. "I'm not sure what you mean."

"Just that someone in your position should be careful about their... associations. The wrong partner can drag you down, you know."

I nearly missed a step, my hands tightening on my partner. What the hell was he getting at?

"Change partners!" Madame Beaumont called.

This time I ended up with Lily, while Emma got paired with Theo. At least he kept a respectful distance, unlike Richard.

"You okay?" Lily asked as we moved through the steps. "You look like you're plotting murder."

"Just trying not to step on your feet."

She smiled knowingly. "You know, Emma's different with you. Happier."

"She doesn't seem very happy right now."

"That's because she's scared. Our mom..." Lily hesitated. "Let's just say relationships in our family have a complicated history. Emma takes longer to trust people because of it."

I thought about my own trust issues, about how letting someone in felt like handing them a loaded gun and hoping they wouldn't pull the trigger.

"What if I'm not good enough for her?" The words slipped out before I could stop them.

Lily's expression softened. "The fact that you're worried about that is exactly why you are."

"Partners, switch!" Madame Beaumont called.

This time I got Charity, who immediately pressed herself against me in a way that had nothing to do with proper dance form.

"You know," she purred, "if you ever get tired of slumming it..."

I carefully pushed her body off of mine, eyes darting to Emma in hopes she wasn’t watching this. "Emma is amazing,” I said firmly. “As far as I’m concerned, ‘slumming it’ would be taking you up on your offer.”

She laughed. "Please. That little mouse? I've seen how she looks at you—like she's terrified you'll break her heart. Is that really what you want? Someone so... fragile?"

I was saved from getting angry enough to make a scene by another partner change. Finally, Emma was back in my arms where she belonged.

"You okay?" I asked quietly. "What did Richard say to you?"

"Nothing important." But she wouldn't meet my eyes. “What was Charity saying?”

“Nothing important,” I echoed. “But I told her she could get lost, because I was already happy with you.”

“James…”

The music swelled, and I pulled her closer despite her resistance. "I miss you," I whispered against her hair.

She trembled slightly. "Don't."

"Why not?"

"Because... because I can't think straight when you're this close."

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