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“Yes, that’s it.” She nodded quickly. “The other two men are totally her type, so I doubt she’ll pick you.”
I stared down at my sister, taking in the same green eyes that I had. “What if by some odd chance she does pick me; what happens then?”
My sister chuckled. “Oh, don’t worry, she won’t, but if for some weird reason she did, then you’d have to learn another dance, and do it one more time.”
I glanced around the room, inhaling deeply with my hands on my hips. “Man, are you going to owe me for doing this. Do you have any idea how much the guys are going to get on my case for this?”
“You don’t have to tell them.” She winced. “Well, they might hear about it once it goes on television.”
I groaned and stared at the ceiling. “Fine, fine. I’ll do this, but damn it, Holly, you are going to owe me something fierce.”
She squealed and threw herself into my arms. “Thank you so much, Harvey. I knew I could count on you!” She pulled back, grabbing my arm. “Okay, let’s get you to makeup.”
“Makeup?”
“Yeah.” She glanced at me, her eyes drifting over my face. “Yeah, you don’t need much, just a bit to even out your tone and highlight your eyes.”
“Holly, if you tell any of the guys that I work with that you put makeup on me, I’m going to kill you.”
“Don’t worry, no one will know.”
“Famous last words,” I muttered to myself as I followed her into the next room.
As I sat in the chair, a woman with wild red hair turned my face left and then right, and another woman fiddled with my hair, while my sister and a third woman went through the paperwork with me. There was one disclaimer after another, and I signed my name a dozen times that I wouldn’t sue the production company, the dance company, any of the film crew, the city, or the female co-star for any reason.
It all seemed ridiculous to me, but I went through the motions for my sister. When we finished, and they said I was ready, I looked in the mirror and wanted to laugh. My face had never looked so even and smooth, and the eye makeup that they put on me did make the green stand out a little more.
I can’t believe I’m wearing freaking makeup. Holy shit! The only makeup I’d ever worn in my life was camouflage for operations.
Holly introduced me to a few more people, including the host, and then they explained what I would be doing. The host knew that I was standing in but told me to come up with a story on why I would want to do this. It was something that they asked every contestant, and I was at a loss. I guess I’d say the first thing that came to mind.
The filming began with me coming into the dance studio and meeting the choreographer and dancers. When Tarin, the host, asked me why I wanted to find love, I answered immediately.
“At my age, it’s hard to find someone who wants the same things that I do. I’m hoping that this might be my chance.”
Tarin seemed thrilled with my answer, and the ball kept rolling. We’d stop and start things over and over again during questions and explanations, but then we came to the point that it was time for me to start learning the dance.
“This is the song that you are going to dance to.” She pushed a button, and the song began to play.
I started to laugh. “Yeah, I know this one. It was popular when it came out.”
“Yes!Shut Up and Danceby Walk the Moon is perfect! So full of energy, and it will totally be able to bring you two close and see if the energy is there between you without being too intimate.”
“Alright, let’s do this,” I said, sounding way more excited than I felt. What was I doing here? This was the craziest thing I had ever done, and I was already trying to figure out what I could ask Holly to do in return—equally crazy.
They showed me the dance routine, and the temptation to turn and walk—no run—out of the room was filling me rapidly. When I glanced at Holly, she looked tense, as if she expected me to do just that.
Man, I did not want to do this, but I would—for her. I really would do anything for her; I was putty in her hands.
“Well, what do you think?” Tarin asked me with barely concealed excitement in her light-brown eyes as the dancers finished. I glanced around the room and tried not to let my panic show through.
“I think that we have a lot of work to do.” I swear I heard Holly release the air from her lungs. Yeah, I didn’t want to do this, but I gave her my word. Now I needed to bite the bullet and make it through the landmine with my masculinity in check.
Cal, the choreographer, stated with jubilance, “Let’s get started! Before the music begins, you’re going to walk up to the corner of the building, and this prop wall right here represents that. You’re going to lean back against it casually as if you don’t have a care in the world. Like you are just waiting for someone to come along and she will be on the other side. Then the music starts.”
He put me in position and had Clara, my female dancer, stand around the corner from me. “Put your foot up behind you, lean back, look relaxed. You’ll be wearing jeans in this, so maybe tuck your thumbs into your pockets.”
I chuckled to myself as I tried to do as they asked.
