Page 23 of The Dance Deception
‘Whoa!’ Shane stops abruptly and turns back to face me. ‘No one’s leaving the show.’
It takes a moment for this to sink in.
‘Off the record, you’ve done us a favour,’ he continues as we start walking again. ‘There’s a lot more interest in us now than there was a week ago. I’m getting calls left, right and centre. Advertising has rocketed. So no one’s leaving the show just yet.’
And even though that means I’m going to have to deal with whatever looks and comments are thrown my way from everyone who works here, a weight lifts from my shoulders.I’m still in the show! And when I leave, it will be because I’m not the best dancer and not because of Merle’s infidelity.
But then I realise that staying on the show will mean another week alone in the studio with Merle. How’s that likely to go? I can’t just forget he lied to me and ghosted me, but will I still find him irresistible when I see him in the flesh? In spite of everything, a tiny part of me doesn’t want to stop having sex with him. That’s the trouble when it’s so mind-blowingly good.
‘Here we are, in we go,’ Shane says, holding the door open for me.
I’m surprised to see Aleksis Lapsa, the Latvian dancer who’s partnered with Emilia, already in the room. What on earth is he doing here? What’s this got to do with him? He fixes me with an icy glare that almost stops me in my tracks. I don’t know what his problem is, but if looks could kill …
‘Take a seat,’ Shane says, pointing me towards a chair. ‘You know Aleksis, right? Aleksis, this, officially, is Kate Wareing.’
‘Um, hi.’ I give him an awkward little wave. Aleksis barely nods.
‘So,’ Shane says. ‘That was something of an opening weekend.Fire on the Dance Floorwas the most-watched show on catch-up yesterday. Our ratings predictions for next week have shot through the roof.’
He sounds delighted. It seems one girl’s scandal is another man’s lottery win. I glance over at Aleksis again, but he avoids my eye. Then Shane’s tone becomes more serious.
‘Now, I’m not going to lie to you, Kate; if I had my way, I’d be keeping you and Merle together as a pairing, because I think that’s what the viewers will really want to see. They’ll want to scrutinise your every move to try and work out if you’re still, you know,whatever. However, Merle is refusing to continue with the show if he has to dance with you. He thinks a change of partner might be the only way he can smooth things over with his wife.’
I don’t know why this news pains me, but I have to battle to keep my expression neutral. It’s not like I’ve spent the last twenty-four hours thinking Merle is going to realise it’s me he wanted all along and that we’ll live happily ever after. But it’s a biting reminder of being cast aside by Ed – and having to find out about that from someone else. I can’t believe Merle didn’t have the balls to be upfront with me, either.
‘Now I’m not usually one to be held to ransom,’ Shane continues, ‘but on this occasion, I’m going to go with it. There’s a lot of interest in the pair of you right now, so I want you both still in this show. And that means from today, Kate, you’re going be dancing with Aleksis here instead of Merle, and Merle will switch to dance with Emilia. We know it’s not ideal with the competition already underway, but we think it’s the best solution.’
My mind whirls as I scramble to process this new bombshell. Does it explain why Aleksis looks so pissed off? Because he used to be paired with the strongest contestant and now he’s got me? Although it was me who came first last week, not Emilia, so it surely can’t be just because of that.
‘We want to keep it to ourselves for the time being,’ Shane is saying, ‘so no putting anything out on social media – or telling anyone else who might put it out there. We don’t want to lose the viewers who’ll be tuning in just to see you and Merle, so let’s keep everyone guessing.’
He pauses to make sure this has sunk in.
‘In the meantime, we’ve found a new studio for the two of you to rehearse in – one where it will be easy for you to arrive and leave without attracting any attention. It’s in Brixton – I hope that’s not too inconvenient. It’s a bit run-down, but it was the best we could do at short notice. You can go there straight after we’re done here and get started on your next routine. And that’s about it, I think. Are there any questions?’
I look over at Aleksis again and notice his jaw clenching, which seems to confirm he’s not thrilled about this change of events, but he doesn’t say anything.
How do I feel about it? I know I should probably be relieved that I don’t have to confront Merle this morning, but instead I just have an irrational flare of jealousy that he’ll now be dancing with perfect Emilia. Even though he’s telling everyone he’s determined to repair his marriage, I can’t help wondering if he’ll seduce her, too. Which somehow hurts more than finding out he was married. I thought I’d met someone who really got me. Now I’m not sure he was into me at all.
‘Did Merle ask specifically to dance with Emilia?’ I hear myself asking.
‘That was his stipulation, yes,’ Shane confirms.
Which even gets me wondering if it might have beenMerle himself who set up and exposed those dressing room photos. Was it all part of some messed-up plan to get him partnered with Emilia? But that doesn’t make sense. No one would put their wife through that just to get a different dance partner, would they? I realise I’m being ridiculous.
‘Anything else?’ Shane asks.
I shake my head and Aleksis stands up to leave.
‘Thanks for coming in then, both of you. And for being so understanding,’ Shane says. ‘I hope you have a good week.’
Chapter 13
Aleksis stares out of the window in silence as our taxi whisks us off to Brixton. He must be able to tell I keep looking over at him, but he refuses to meet my eye. It makes it impossible to start up any kind of conversation.
It strikes me that he couldn’t be more different to Merle. Where Merle is dark-haired with a Mediterranean tan, Aleksis’s hair is so blond it’s almost white and his skin is as pale as a marble statue. He seems about as cold as one, too.
We eventually pull up outside a nondescript office block that looks ready for demolition and the driver tells us we’ve arrived. The second-floor studio inside is, as Shane warned, somewhat shabbier than the one I shared with Merle. The wooden floor is damaged in places and has been patched up with duct tape, and several sections of the mirrored wall have mottled with age. There’s a battered ballet barre along the back wall, and a crack in the door that lookslike it may have been made with an axe. I tell myself it’s got character.
