Page 8 of Dancing for His Omega

“Oh, I heard that used to be a dance studio.”

My heart beat frantically.

“I think the owner and teacher moved away with their mate,” he went on. “I’m not sure about the person’s story, but it did used to be a dance studio. Come on. Let’s go look.”

Micah grabbed my hand, and we crossed the street. His skin was soft and a touch calloused. The contact had my bear reeling inside of me, begging me to do more than hold hands. Demanding beast.

He didn’t let go, even as we stood in front of the darkened building. The sun was setting, but we could see through the windows just fine. “It is a dance studio,” I whispered.

“Yeah. It would be great if someone could open it again.”

“I’m a dancer. I used to teach as well.”

Micah pulled back from the window. “You did?”

I nodded. “I did. I’ve been into it since I was a kid then, after a lot of hard work, became a principal dancer in a company inthe city. It was kind of my life. Well, that and my…boyfriend at the time.”

“That sounds incredible. May I ask what happened?”

I sucked in a breath. This was the moment I had anticipated. Someone was going to ask about what I did and where I came from. If there was anyone in this town, other than Shay, that I wanted to confess to, it was Micah.

If he was my mate, the least I could do was tell him the truth. “My dance partner and boyfriend. He cheated on me. Broke up with me and told the company he didn’t want to dance with me anymore. He moved to another company and was going to sell his home where I lived. Dancing didn’t feel right anymore and I needed to find another place to stay, so I decided on a fresh start.”

There it was. The truth. The gist of it anyway. I rubbed a fist on my chest as though I’d opened up a hole there I could never close again.

“That’s horrible, Edwin. I’m sorry you had to go through that. No one deserves that kind of treatment.”

“Yeah.”

Micah took a step closer. If he hugged me, I would fall apart, and the last thing I wanted to be in front of my omega was weak and fragile.

He deserved a strong, capable alpha.

“I…I have to go. I’m sorry about dinner. I…good night.”

And like a coward, I fled the scene, tucking my tail between my legs.

Chapter Eight

Micah

I wanted to follow him.

One moment, we were walking the town, and I was showing Edwin everything. All the restaurants, the shops. I’d been here long enough that I had anecdotes about most of the owners and their mates and, in many cases, their young. Oliver Creek’s business community was tight knit and we were all working together to help the town grow and thrive.

As we strolled, I was forced to recognize just how short a time most of the businesses had been open. Being part of the day-to-day workings, it seemed normal to me, but Edwin marveled at my explanations.

“And the farms and vineyards I passed on the way into town? They look like they’ve been here for decades.”

“I think some of them were, but most had lost their caretakers or fallen into disrepair,” I told him. “Oliver Creek was no different than many small communities in the nation. Young people were bored and unhappy with the lack of opportunities, so they left for the cities.”

“That’s so sad,” he said. “I’ve always lived in a city, but the country life sounded so nice. I just didn’t see how I could achieve my goals as a dancer in them.”

“See the problem? It was the same for most of them. There was nothing to draw in visitors and infuse the businesses with cash, so what had been a thriving town a half century ago was dying. There are still old-timers here who can tell you all about it, and they are very glad to do so.”

I met him at the park where he was watching the playground with an air of soft longing that made me wonder if he wanted a family as much as I did. I hoped so. If my wolf was right—andwhen wasn’t he as he often reminded me—then Edwin was our mate.

The evening was going really well, I believed. We were talking about Oliver Creek and some of the different events coming up. I’d never felt so comfortable yet so aware of anyone. His smile warmed me to my toes, and I wanted the evening to go on forever. His steps were so elegant, almost as if they didn’t really touch the ground.

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