Page 34 of Havoc for the Holidays

“She's been doing good. The new meds and the lack of work stress are helping with the migraines. She has a couple of the older girls from the studio coming to help, too.”

“Are you nervous?” Ollie's fingers snuck over the table to tangle with mine.

“A little. If tonight goes well, they want to negotiate something as a part of a weekly stay package. Latin ballroom lessons on site, followed by a cocktail hour, dinner and dancing. Honestly, it could be huge for the studio.”

He pointed his fork at me with a surprisingly stern expression. “I want to read over any contracts before you sign them.”

“Mr. Branson…” I pantomimed fanning myself. “I like this bossy stern version.”

“Oh…” He flushed a delicious shade of crimson and bit his lower lip to hide his smile. “Mn.”

“Sorry. Can't help myself.” I winked and returned to my breakfast with ten thousand more comments on the tip of my tongue. Alas, there were little ears present. I didn't need to make it any worse for my sensitive Ollie.

We cleaned up the kitchen together in effortless synchronicity, something that left me with warm fuzzy feelings in my chest and a smile on my face. With time to kill, we ended up on my couch with Bluey on the television. I swear, my mind was addledbecause I found myself imagining dance choreography for my young students based entirely on the damn theme song.

We lost track of time and jumped in our seats when the front door opened and my mother arrived. I checked the time on my phone and gasped. Somehow, it was nearly three and I still had so much left to do.

“Hello, you three. I've come to see if Becs wants to come with me to set up for the party?” My mother held up a plastic bag that contained all manner of pink decorations.

“Heck yeah!” Her little body tumbled off the couch with her eagerness. She was gone and back so fast, my head spun as she hoisted her massive backpack onto her shoulders with a grin. “I got my sleepover stuff and the tiaras.”

I watched as Ollie crouched down to give his daughter a hug and kiss with even more warm fuzzy feelings in my chest. Those feelings expanded too big to be contained by my body as she came running over to also exchange hugs and kisses with me. Hell, the fact that she'd so easily accepted me into the tight-knit unit of her family was enough to have me swallowing as emotion clogged my throat. Love between partners was such a powerful thing, but the love of a child was something even more special. I was blessed to have both.

Ollie left shortly after Becs and my mother, promising to meet me at the inn. He’d volunteered himself as my dance partner and assistant for the dance lessons, but I was most looking forward to the party afterward. As much as I hated to see him leave, I had more than enough to occupy myself with in the sparse time remaining before the show.

As expected, the hour disappeared faster than I would have liked, but once I was set up in the inn’s banquet space, the nerves melted away. Dancing in any capacity always managed to ground my soul and inspire my mind. There was no room fornerves on the floor. Not when the joy of movement was there to take their place.

I was distracted going through my clipboard when the sudden appearance of music startled me. As soon as my eyes landed on Oliver, my jaw went slack. The sneaky man who’d stolen my heart stood at the sound system with a grin that spelled mischief in all capital letters. His outfit was enough to make me want to cancel the event entirely and drag him to the nearest hideaway. Snug black breeches, trim black dance shoes, and a fire engine red satin shirt unbuttoned so low, I could see the entire span of his lean, pale chest. His hair was tamed back with gel and my God, I was in trouble.

“Holy shit,” I whispered, dropping the clipboard to the floor with a gasp. “Who are you and what have you done with my boyfriend?”

“May I have this dance, Ezechiel?” He strode partway across the room and held out his hand.

“You absolutely may.” I crossed the distance and let him pull me into the dancer’s hold. “Who would have thought you were such a natural at Latin ballroom?”

He maneuvered us through a few simple salsa steps, his once sultry grin turning pure and shy. “I blame club dancing.”

“Well, I'll take it.” I switched our hold to take the lead and guide him through a slightly more complicated set of movements. The chemistry between us extended well beyond the bedroom and this was a perfect example of how effortlessly we could give and take control without even speaking a word.

“Tonight is going to be perfect.” He rested his cheek against mine and let his body move with mine.

“It already is, my love.”

“God. I love you, Ez.”

“I love you, my Ollie.”

We danced through the remainder of the song, as well as the next, completely unaware of everything outside of us as we let the seductive melody of the music guide us in an effortless rhythm of two people moving as one. As the final note faded, raucous applause erupted and had us springing apart with a unisonous gasp.

Numerous guests had arrived during our private dance and judging by the intensity of their cheers, they were quite happy with what they witnessed. I glanced to the side to check on how my partner was handling the sudden scrutiny, but I had nothing to be worried about. He was completely ignoring them and solely focused on me. The wattage of his smile could rival the sun. Yeah, we were going to be just fine. So long as we had one another, none of the rest mattered.

“Ready to put on a show, Mr. Branson?”

“As ready as I'll ever be, Mr. Billings.”

And ready he was. We danced through the evening and well into the night. We danced through the countdown and even as we kissed, right there in the middle of a room full of people and I knew in my heart, right then and there, that this was exactly where I was meant to be—with him.

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