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“We took pictures,” Heath said, handing her his phone and they chuckled as she flipped through the “before” pictures and winced at the original color scheme.
“Goodness.”
She handed the phone back to Heath and settled back in the couch, with Cody beside her on one side and Spencer and Heath in the opposite love seat.
Heath grunted and shook his head, and then got up and pushed the coffee table off to the side, clearing the space separating them. Spencer helped him pull the couch closer so they weren’t across the room from her but also weren’t crowding in on her from every side.
Her hair had become a little tousled from the high humidity and the wind that had kicked up while they were outside, and he wanted to stroke her silky curls some more. She still seemed a little on edge, and hoping to help her relax, he reached out to take one of her cowgirl boots off. At first she looked up at him and seemed unsure but when he tugged at it she smiled and allowed him to remove it and its mate.
He knew he’d done right when she sighed happily as she pulled off the socks, too, and tucked one calf underneath her. Spencer smiled when he saw that her toenails were painted blue and decorated with little daisies. His hands itched to hold and stroke her foot. She was adorable and he was her sap. He was in serious danger, here. He’d do just about anything she asked. As long as she didn’t ask him to let her go.
He let out a slow breath and said, “Baby, can I ask a question?”
She turned her gaze on him and whispered, “Sure.”
“The first time, well, actually the second time, I saw you, when we were at the coffee shop, you got my attention while you were standing in line.”
“I did?”
Spencer nodded. “I could tell you were enjoying the music but it seemed like you were fighting it, too. You’d move a little but then you’d stop yourself.” Her brows furrowed and she looked down at the floor as if she was remembering, and she looked up at him and nodded. “Why did you hide the part of yourself that loves to dance?”
She shrugged and smiled. “Dancing is just a hobby. It’s not something I can’t live without.” Her desolate expression told it all though. He thought maybe it was more important to her than she realized.
“You didn’t answer my question.”
She bit her lip and then said, “Belly dancing can be very erotic. If I came ‘out of the closet,’ the principal of the school I teach at, the school board, and probably the parents of my kindergarten students, would not be happy about it.”
“So that means what?” Heath asked. “You’re not allowed to be a woman? You’re not allowed to have an enjoyable, erotic pastime?”
Cody stroked a finger along her jawline drawing her attention. “You have a right to a private life, filled with whatever pursuits you choose. Not what they approve.”
Maizy smiled wistfully as she looked at all three of them. “In theory, yes.”
Spencer sighed and drew her gaze again. “What will you do if the four of us move forward and they find out about us?”
“Well, I’m not sure. I was hoping to…”
“Keep it a secret?” Heath asked in a grumbly voice. She didn’t respond but the misery showed on her face.
Cody frowned just a bit and it drew his arched eyebrows down over his dark eyes. “Did you want to keep us a secret until you knew how you felt about us? Kicking the tires?”
Maizy looked up at Cody, and Spencer’s heart gave a painful lurch at her torn expression. Their relationship wasn’t a done deal. Not by a long shot.
“I already know how I feel about you, but…have you seen or heard how Lucy, Beck, and Patrick have been treated? They’re all self-employed so they can chart their own courses and drum up more clients if they need to. But I’m subject to the whims of an entire school board, and a school district. It’s one thing for them to know that I belly dance. It’s an entirely different issue for them to find out that I’m involved in a ménage. They’d skewer me and not only would they not give me a good reference after they fired me, they’d probably make sure I never taught kindergarten ever again.”
