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There were tears glittering in her eyes. He could see them, and it made his heart lurch in his chest.
“You think I’m beautiful?”
The question came out as a whisper, but he heard it as if she’d shouted it.
“More than you can ever possibly know. Shall we dance? I’ll let you pick the music.”
“I don’t remember the last time I danced. I don’t know if I remember how.”
“We’ll take it slow. I’m not that great, actually, so you’ll probably be better than me.”
He was sure she was going to leave him standing there looking like a fool. She was going to turn him down and then it would be awkward as hell. But then a smile began to bloom on her lovely face, and she reached out a shaky hand and placed it in his.
“Yes, let’s dance.”
* * *
It wasn’t even that big of a deal. Not really.
Grant was barely touching Mia, their hands simply brushing now and then to the beat of the music. He hadn’t tried to get close, respecting her need for space. In fact, there was nothing romantic or sexy about the entire thing. They were mostly being silly, giggling at their awkward antics and having fun. They were just two people acting like fools to a couple of songs from the eighties. Neither one of them were great dancers but they were laughing so hard it didn’t matter.
Yet, it was a revelation at the same time.
Mia realized that she hadn’t had fun with a man in years. Far too long. She’d been scared and on edge, walking on eggshells, that she’d forgotten how to be a goofball. For a few minutes, she’d forgotten all the skills she’d needed to simply survive.
Don’t make too much noise.
Don’t do anything to annoy Kevin.
Constantly watch Kevin’s expression to gauge his moods.
Don’t have an opinion. And definitely don’t express it.
Agree with Kevin.
Don’t make a big deal out of anything.
Don’t expect to enjoy anything or laugh.
If it was one thing that seemed to set off Kevin every single time, it was if Mia was happy. If she’d had fun with a friend or had been promoted. Maybe she’d even just had an easy commute home. It seemed to infuriate him. If she even planned to enjoy herself, he’d pout and complain for days. Eventually, she’d simply stopped having any plans at all. One by one, he’d managed to separate her from her friends.
Looking back, she could see that Kevin wanted to be the only source of joy, happiness, and contentment. In the beginning, it hadn’t been so bad. They did have a good time and went places. They’d laugh and joke. But over time things had changed. He didn’t want to her to have any fun. Period. It was okay for him to go out with his friends, but he hated all of hers. All of them. No exceptions.
And now here she was in the middle of a hurricane, running from Kevin, and stuck in a fancy resort suite…all the while dancing with the man who had probably kept her from dying a messy death. Not in a million years would she have guessed how the day would turn out.
It was good and it was bad. She’d needed to relax even for a brief time, but she couldn’t allow herself to get sloppy. She had to keep her wits about her. One slip up and she’d be dragged back.
She couldn’t allow that to happen. Constant vigilance was her only friend.
It was with that uppermost in her mind that had her taking a breather when the current song ended, reaching over for the bottle of water on the table. Grant took her cue and flipped off the radio before turning up the volume on the television. That poor reporter was still out in the elements getting beaten down by the storm.
“I think I need a break,” Mia said, falling back onto the couch. “I don’t remember the last time I danced.”
Maybe college? She hadn’t been much of a party animal, to be honest. She’d been more of a bookworm.
“My mom is always dancing around the house,” Grant chuckled, settling in on the other end of the sofa. “She was always listening to music and singing and dancing when we were growing up. She said it fed the soul and cleared the mind. I’ve always thought she was right. Even when I had a terrible day at school and nothing had gone right, just being home and dancing with my mom in the kitchen seemed to make everything okay.”
That sounded nice. Mia’s parents were good people but not the demonstrative type. They struggled to show much affection or emotion. Growing up rather distant from her mom and dad had put her in the perfect position for Kevin to insinuate himself between her and them. It hadn’t been all that difficult to convince her that her parents - and eventually her siblings - truly didn’t care about her and that only he did. Before she’d even known what was happening, she was estranged from her own relatives.
