Page 47 of Dance With Me
“I entered competitions when I was younger, right up until I was about 18. I was never quite good enough for the Royal Ballet in London but better than average, I suppose. Getting into a school like that is really hard. The pressure to do well is immense, and a lot of students end up with food disorders and just wear themselves out trying to be the best. I didn’t want to go that far but knew I wanted to do it for a living.”
“When did you meet Natalia?” Joe asked. He knew that he’d toured with her in the dance company.
“We met when we were quite young. I feel like I’ve known her forever.” Seb spoke fondly of his friend. “Her parents lived close by, and we just clicked at dance school. We used to do competitions together, and when we both got accepted to the dance company, we just stuck together.” Seb took a gulp of his wine.
“That’s where I met Daniel and she met Louis.” Seb looked down at his drink. “We were all great together. Then we came here, to Chester, and founded Nava Dance Studios. Natalia put up most of the money, I paid the rest, and here we are, four years later already.”
“Why did you call it Nava Dance Studios?” Joe was curious. It wasn’t a word he was familiar with.
“It means beauty in Hebrew, so it’s personal to both Natalia and me. She means a lot to my parents. They were there for her when her parents weren’t. We’re like brother and sister.” Seb smiled gently. It was clear to Joe that Natalia was important to him.
“When did Daniel leave?” Joe knew this was a sore point for Seb, but he was interested to see what had happened. He realised he might have been overstepping the mark, though. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”
“No, it’s fine. I can talk about him. He left three years ago, maybe six months after we started Nava Dance, and died another six months after that. It was hard, but I got through it with Natalia’s help. I met Dominic about twelve months ago, and we became good friends too. He really is just a good friend. He has been there for me when I needed him. I sometimes have days where it all comes back to me, so it’s good to have your friends around when that happens.”
Joe looked at Seb sheepishly. “I know Dom’s your friend, I do. I don’t know what got into me that night at the club. I know I’ve apologised already, but I truly am sorry about that.”
“It’s fine, Joe. I know. Now, let’s talk about something else.” Seb looked at him through hooded eyes, a crooked smile on his lips.
Joe asked more questions about Seb’s earlier life, his brother and sister, and carried on topping up both their glasses.
The talk moved to favourite television programmes and movies, and they both found that they enjoyed a good murder mystery and Marvel movies were a must-watch for both of them.
Eventually, they both sat in a companionable silence, the wine having mellowed the mood, music playing quietly in the background.
Joe looked at Seb. His eyes were closed, and a piece of hair had fallen over them. He reached out to brush it away but pulled back at the last moment.
“Hey,” he whispered. “It’s late. We should go to bed.”
Seb stirred, his eyes sleepy as he roused himself. “What time is it?”
“It’s just after midnight. I’ll get you something to sleep in. Will Rocco be OK down here, or does he sleep with you?”
“He’ll be OK down here for tonight. I’ll just let him out before we go up.”
“I’ll do it, then I can lock up. You go on up and get ready; you look shattered.”
Seb thanked him and made his way upstairs.
He opened the door and let Rocco out where he quickly sniffed around and did his business. He closed the door after him, and the dog settled back in the kitchen. Joe put some more water out for him and went upstairs.
After getting some clothes for Seb to sleep in, he went to knock on the guest room door that was ajar, but as he approached, he could see Seb inside, stripped down to his jeans. He’d removed his shirt and had just started to undo his pants.
Joe checked him out. His chest had a smattering of dark hair and an even more interesting trail of hair that led from his belly button down into his boxers. He had an incredible physique, his abs defined but not overly so. Dancing obviously kept him in shape.
He knocked gently on the door before he got caught ogling.
“Will these be OK? As I said, they might be a little big on you, but you’re welcome to borrow them.”
“Thanks, I’m feeling a little tipsy tonight. That was good wine you were serving.”
“Glad you liked it. If you need any painkillers, I can go and get some for you.”
“No, I’m good. I’m just going to crash and get out of your hair early tomorrow. I’m assuming Clare will be back then.”
“She won’t be back until later tomorrow evening. Her flight isn’t until six at night, so she’ll be home around eight or nine o’clock. No rush to leave; we could go for breakfast.”
Joe was eager to keep Seb around longer tomorrow. He still hadn’t told him about the wedding, and he didn’t want to put it off any longer. He’d sleep on it tonight though and tell him tomorrow.
