Page 46 of Positively, Penelope

Her gaze shot to his, but she had to tilt her head back a little at his closeness. Surely he couldn’t object to Gene Kelly, regardless of his past heartbreak. After all, it was Gene Kelly! “You say that like it’s weird. Don’t you like Gene Kelly?”

“Of course—he’s one of the most creative and athletic classic dancers in history.”

“And he’s swoony.”

Matthias’s lips twitched. “I can’t say a man has ever made me swoon, but if I were ever tempted, I should think Gene Kelly would do the trick.”

Her laugh burst out and she squelched the urge to just reach over and hug him. It was so strange to keep feeling tempted in such a way. He had this cute humor and subtle teasing that spurred a hugging desire, as if her heart knew he really wanted one but his behavior shouted, “Whoa there, crazy southern American.” Even if he didn’t want to show it, she guessed he was a good hugger.

“You don’t strike me as a regular swooner, but at least if you did decide to swoon, you have great taste in the object of your swoon.”

“I can safely say I’ve never heard the wordswoonused so frequently in one sentence in my life.”

“Well,” she said, shrugging. “I bet you’ve never met anyone like me before either.”

His gaze softened with a whisper of a smile. “Without a doubt.”

Her attention held in his for a second longer before she turned back to her phone, her cheeks oddly warm. “Well, none of these songs are in three-quarter time, so—” Her head popped up. “Wait, my friend recently had a wedding where they danced to a more modern song.” She skimmed over the options, typing in the title. “But it’s from a princess movie.” She winked. “Do you think you can handle it?”

His eyes narrowed for the briefest moment. “I’ll do my best.”

Her grin split wide. “Don’t worry, it’s about an unconventional princess and an ogre.”

“‘Unconventional princess’?” His lips quirked just a teensy bit, with an added glint in his stormy eyes. “That seems fairly appropriate.”

“Maybe I should stop praying for your sense of humor so much.” She waved the phone at him before setting it on a nearby box. “If I’mthe princess, does that leave you as the ogre?” She shrugged a shoulder and offered a syrupy grin, attempting his accent. “Fairly appropriate.”

His chuckle took on more volume this time and her smile responded to the warm sound. “Very funny, MissEdgewood.”

“My sense of humor is one of my most undervalued qualities.” She pushed the song’s icon and the flute introduction started, followed quickly by a lovely violin addition.

She turned to face him, and he’d already taken position, poised with hand outstretched. A wonderful trill of anticipation trembled through her as she stepped forward. Oh, how long had it been since she’d waltzed? And with such a delightful friend as Matthias Gray!

Her body relaxed. Yes, he was becoming her friend, and perhaps he needed this waltz even more than he realized.

As she placed her left hand against his shoulder, his right palm slipped to her waist and then up to stop just beneath her left shoulder blade. He faced in the direction of what would have been her right shoulder, if she’d stood a few inches taller, but she refused to stare directly ahead... into his left shoulder. Instead, she tilted her chin up a bit higher and focused on the wave of hair swirling just over his left ear. What a fun little piece of knowledge about him! An unruly piece of hair to contradict his pristine persona! Kind of like the sneak peeks of his humor.

With a deep breath that raised his shoulders, he led in the first step.

It had been much too long since she’d danced. At least, since she’d danced with another person, and that must have been the reason it felt so right and magical and perfect. Dancing around the kitchen with a spatula in hand or with a pillow as a partner really didn’t compare to the rhythm and shared pleasure in dancing with someone else. Especially when the someone knew how to dance.

And he did. The ease and confidence as he led them into their first beat with a strong body swing, the rising on his toes during the second and third beats. The way his sway sizzled with conserved energy for the next “first beat.” It was practically perfect. Beautiful.

Oh, how she wished she’d worn a skirt. A skirt swishing and swaying with the changes in the waltz would have added a bit of earthly magic to it all.

And then she noticed it. Though Matthias glided with ease as the music swelled through the space, his neck and chin strained with tension. Why? Her heart squeezed. Was it because dancing brought back painful memories? Did he miss it? Oh dear, she wanted to hug him even more now. Perhaps a distraction would help?

“I’ve been thinking about another way to create visibility for the theater.”

His gaze lowered to hers. “Does your brain ever grow tired?”

“Well, I never have trouble falling asleep because I’m usually exhausted by the time I stop for the night.”

“No wonder.” His chin relaxed with his subtle smile. Distraction had been a good choice. “If I had half your energy, I could likely save the theater all by myself.”

“I’m glad you don’t then.” She squeezed his hand as a little reprimand. “Because I get to help, and I love helping. It’s a wonderful thing to know that our creativity and hard work and... TLC can bring something out of the shadows that never should have been in the shadows at all. The Darling House, your grandparents, and you deserve that chance. Don’t you think?”

His gaze held hers for a few seconds and then he nodded. “I like the way you think, MissEdgewood.”

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