“What is that Crown said?” She paused. “Yeah, you are a legend in your own mind and a hero in your own time.”
Bobby smiled. “Yeah, works for me. Britney, you know what they say it is going get that way. Either we are going to bond or separate from them completely at one point. What are you going to do?”
She kissed him. “Make love to you and all my problems disappear.”
Bobby laughed. “Including me. Ashley is pregnant with my child. Gloria brought her home with us the night we found out they retired. I think she was trying to make up for sleeping with Clarence.”
“Bet you had fun.”
“That night, yes. The next morning was better; we had sex, just the two of us. Waking up looking into someone’s eyes seeing that they are in love with you, knowing they are in love with you, but can’t have you—that was something very different. It changed the way I feel about her. And the way I look at her.” Bobby’s voice sounded distant.
Britney was getting into the conversation with a deeper interest. “You’re not in love with her, are you?”
Bobby shook his head. “No, but she is more of a woman to me now. I don’t know it’s strange.”
“I take it she has told Wendell, or is she making him think it is his?”
“I talked to him, explained that we didn’t know. He took it okay. He said ‘child support, buddy.’”
Britney laughed. “They do look happy together.”
“Is everything okay between you and JD?” Bobby said curiously.
“Yeah, why do you ask?”
“Something different since you came back from California. Did visiting his grave make you miss him more or something?”
Britney paused for a moment, with a hint of sadness in her voice. “I saw Stanley while I was there, Bobby. I actually saw him. I had just told him I was going to use the rest of his sperm to have another child. He was smiling, and he blew us a kiss. I picked up the baby to point him out and he was gone. A feeling came over me unlike anything I had ever felt. Something inside me called out to him. I can’t explain it. I didn’t tell Gloria, so keep it to yourself. She is dealing with enough right now. Somethings frightens me when I think about the day he died. I often wonder what my life would be like if he would have lived.”
Bobby sighed inward. “This would definitely be different. JD would still be JD. We wouldn’t know Ashley, Dumas, and Crown. I wouldn’t be living on the old home place. Don’t know about the dancing. Stanley was big on education, so we would likely be in college right now. Living the dream, I guess. Delana would be named something else. She wouldn’t know JD.”
Britney sighed. “Now that is something that does make me sad. She loves him, and he loves her. He treats her just like she is his.”
Bobby nodded. “Now that I would have to say would be something sad if we knew how close they would be.”
Britney said more to herself than Bobby, “I wonder who I love more, him or JD?“
“Dangerous ground there. Then I would have to take you away from both of them so you could have peace of mind.”
Britney laughed. “So now you are super lover, huh.”
Bobby chuckled. “Make a woman’s heart beat like a speeding bullet. Able to remove bras with a single hand. Make a woman hotter than a steam locomotive.”
She shoved him over and gave him a kiss. “Rape him. Got me all wet now.”
Bobby’s voice got soft. “You are so crazy at times, you know that? We haven’t done this in a long time. What is on your mind, Britney?”
“Something stupid.”
Bobby grinned. “Stupid, now that is something I do excel at. Let’s hear it.”
“If we could go back to fifteen again when it all started, and we knew everything that has happened. What would you do different?” Britney said with a confused voice.
Bobby’s eyes narrowed. “Hmm… I think I will use JD’s language and say I would tap that shit and say to hell with the rest.”
She smiled. “I am being serious.”
He touched her face. “So am I.” The tone in his voice and the look in his eye said he was.
“Why would you say that? I know it can’t be because of your feelings for me. Hell, you could have done that long before fifteen.”
“Because too many good things have happened. Some of them from bad things. If I took the question seriously like I am. Then I would look at all the facts. Meeting Gloria led to learning to dance. Learning to dance led to Nicole. My relationship with Nicole led to this curse. That was part of the reason why Stanley was shot. Stanley getting shot united my family in many ways. It led to some wonderful friends that wouldn’t be in my life if any of that would have happened. Tapping that shit would have gotten you pregnant, something I have discovered I am good at. Getting women pregnant.” Britney’s eyes opened slightly wider and she nodded, agreeing with him. He continued speaking. “We would have settled down and there wouldn’t be a choice over who I love or what I can do. I wouldn’t be betraying any of them. Because they all know and knew I loved you. That you loved me. Britney, you want me to say that I love Gloria most of all. But the truth is I love them all the same. Nicole, Ashley, and Gloria. In depth of feeling, that is.
“I am in love with Gloria. Sometimes I think that about Nicole. Ashley, I love with a tenderness of compassion. I have never thought I was in love with her. But I think it would be easy to fall in love with her. We all face our feelings inside. But one thing has never been complicated in my life. That is you, just like now. I could make love to you. You could make love to me. We could do anything we wanted to each other right now. Neither of us would have regret about it. I have touched your body many times and you have felt mine next to yours just like now.
“The feeling I have is the greatest. I don’t need to come up with some good romantic line or work at it. Neither do you and we know that. You want to know the truth? We have completed our curse and you are everything I need. You are the way I want you in my life. Britney, Ivan is a good man. He is a good dancer. If he believed, he would be a very good dance mate. But I do not think he will ever believe in this curse. If he doesn’t start believing it, then you need to walk away from him completely. Because when it comes to all of them, no one is above you.
“But the things that you are asking are only what could have been or maybe even what should have been. The truth of the matter is what we could, should, or would have done doesn’t matter anymore. The only thing that matters now is what we will do. What was done is done and there’s no going back. If Stanley hadn’t gotten shot or if he would have lived, this is what we would have lost.
“Sad to say this, very sad to say this. But I don’t want to lose what we have. One death united a family and led to several lives that would have ended without it. The saddest part about all of that is if that death didn’t take place, I would have not had any of this. If Gloria would have died or little Bobby, I don’t know what I would have done. Your turn now. What would you do if you woke up and all of this was a dream? One that you knew could come true.”
Britney blew out a deep breath. “I like your idea. This shit would be tapping you.”
He laughed slightly. “Lying like this without the clothes sounds interesting.”
Britney smiled. “Say to hell with men altogether and run off with Gloria. Yes, I will take pictures just for you.” She laughed slightly and said, “Marry Stanley, have an affair with JD. Sounds good, I admit. But in reality, if I was to be faced with that, I think I would go to Paris, find Isabella, and say here I am and bite the bullet. She would have her revenge partly. JD would look after you. No one would ever know what I did in the hospital. A death would be taken and everyone I love would be safe.
“I think that is what I would truly do. If I woke and knew this was a dream that could come true. But that is something that we will never face.” She slid down and laid he
r head on his chest and said, “Hold me.”
Bobby placed his arms around her and she lay there. “The one thing I truly would have done is not lied to him about what I did. I would have made love to him that night,” Britney said with a hint of regret in her voice. There was a long moment of silence. Britney thought of the things she had said.
JD walked into the room and took her from her memory. He looked at her. “You can’t sleep.”
“Just thinking about stupid things. I was wondering something. What would your life be like without me?”
“Not planning on killing yourself, are you?” JD said in a tone that was deadpanned.
“Oh no, my goal is to torture you for the rest of your life,” she said with a grin.
“That is what my life would be like without you,” he said with a smile.
JD walked over and sat down beside her. She laid her head on his shoulder and said, “I think about things like that sometimes. Just curious.”
“I try not to think about things like that,” he admitted softly.
“Why? Sometimes thoughts like that make you appreciate what you have more.”
“Don’t need thoughts like that to remind me of what I have. Because I know what I had. You know this was the very first time in years that no one in the family looked at me with terror in their eyes. I don’t lie down at night and wonder who they want me to kill next. Or wonder who I have got to kill to get to my target. Or what information do they want me to acquire. I thought the simple life was too boring when I was younger. Now I think I like it and love the woman I am with.”
She smiled. “You don’t say those words that much. I love you too. Just for shits and giggles, what would you do? If you woke up tomorrow and all of this was a dream that you could make come true. What would you do?”
He paused to consider for a moment. “That is simple. Make sure Stanley died. Go with you every year, place flowers on his grave, and say thank you silently.”
Britney’s tone was that of surprise. “No you wouldn’t.”
JD gave her a grin. “If you were going to answer the question for me, then why ask?”
Britney smiled. “To see if you would be honest.” She lay down, placed her head in his lap, and looked up at him. “You failed.” Then she leaned up and kissed him.
JD sat for a moment. “What would I do in this little premonition of ours? Since I lied about what I would do. Now remember all of this was a dream and we woke up. Let’s see how honest you are. Good starting point. Stanley didn’t die.”
Britney lay back down. “Okay, wow, you picked a hard time. Using events that took place without him dying. Was he shot or not?”
JD paused for a moment to consider. “Shot but lived.”
Britney shook her head slightly and sighed. “Talk about hard. Hmm… Waking up, this dream, all of it could come true. The very first thing I think I would do is call you to make sure France was still in one piece. I would tell you not to kill Stanley and fight for my love. Then I would go be with Bobby and problems all solved.”
JD laughed. “Coward.”
She kissed him. “Proud of it.”
Her voice got soft and sincere. “I love you.”
He smiled. “I know.”
“I would make you be safe, JD, even if it meant leaving him,” she said with a voice that was soft and honest. “I would be terrified of you like I was at the start of our relationship. I would keep you safe. You would be a part of Delana’s life. But I think I would run. But that will never happen. This is reality and that is just what ifs or would have been.”
JD nodded. “Yeah, maybe things like that are good for you. But the reality is you loved him. I would never hear from you.”
She looked at him. “You think so.”
JD gave a serious look. “No, Britney, I don’t think so. I know so.”
Britney smiled. “I promise if I wake up and this is only a dream, I will call you and say hi.”
JD laughed. “Now you got me frightened to go to sleep.”
She shoved him over. “Good, I am succeeding in terrifying you.” She kissed him.
Two days later, Britney got a call informing her that the dance would be held in Paris, France because of technical issues. All her arrangements had been transferred to Paris compliments of the dance committee.
Britney called JD and told him about the changes. “I am going to take the baby to Mom’s and we can leave tomorrow and have a couple days in Paris, the city of love.”
Gloria and Bobby got the same call. Gloria told Sam about the changes. The next day, Britney and JD went to Paris. Bobby made arrangements for his mother to keep the babies.
Gloria sat in the studio, her body covered with sweat. ‘Maybe I was too hard on Bobby when I caught them together before they bonded. It is so hard to tell myself I don’t love Clarence, I don’t want him. When every inch of my being, even down to my soul, cries for me to take him. I am such a fool. Everything I wanted has blown up in my face. I started out…”
“Your first mistake, my dear, was to let others influence you by telling you what you wanted,” Gloria heard, bringing her from her thoughts.
Gloria looked up and saw him. “How did you get in here?” she spat as she jumped to her feet.
He smirked. “I have my ways,” he said in an arrogant tone.
“You’re not real; you are just a figment of imagination. No one can sense your magic. None can scent you, not even a were-animal. You are not real.”
He walked over to her and she eyed him cautiously. “When everyone is your enemy, you learn not to trust anyone, and most of all learn how not to be detected. I must admit everything about you intrigues me. You do realize everything you feel and think now could’ve been avoided. But instead of trusting yourself, you questioned yourself. Instead of doing what you feel you should do, you compromised, allowing others to influence you. Thinking you could control something that is above you. From here on out, before you do anything, stop, look, and think. When you come to a decision of what you are going to do, do just the opposite.”
She laughed. “What will that bring about?”
His hand touched her cheek. “Many times, the most obvious of choices are the safest and easiest. That is Fate tempting you to go a certain path. Not taking that is you taking our own fate into your own hands. The fact remains, will the choice be a risk? Yes. Will the risk be worth the reward? Only you can answer that question. Many of people have taken risks and it worked out very well for them. The same can be said in reverse as well. If life was easy, then humanity wouldn’t be facing the struggles it faces now. The same could be said for dancers. The choice is yours, Gloriana. Will you face the fear you fight inside or will you succumb to them?” With that, he turned and walked away. She waited until he was out of the room and ran to the door. It was locked. The chime never buzzed, indicating the door had been opened. She ran to a viewer and rewound the footage and no one was on the viewer but her. She saw everything she did, but the man never appeared. She walked fast to the locker room and got in the shower. She rushed and walked out the building.
That night, Gloria packed up and left for Paris.
Chapter 27
The Championship
Cody and Catrina arrived in Paris the same day as Gloria and Bobby. They took the Chandler jet with Frances and Logan along with several members of Frances’s family.
That afternoon, Cody and Catrina went out. Frances and Logan went to a studio to work on their routine for the show. New Year’s Eve that morning, the women picked out their dresses for the show and everything else they needed for the shows. They turned in the dances for Dancer’s Choice and got the list of judges’ choices, along with music selection of the songs that would be played, the interview schedules. They got ready. Just before the contest, a man walked up to Gloria and said, “Sorry, Miss Parker.”
“That was my name, but I got married. I am now Mrs. Coleman,” Gloria said in a friendly tone.
“Sorry, ma’am. But we didn’t know you were going to be here tonight. We would like to do an interview with you if this convenient for you. We would like to give you the interview before the semifinal round,” the reporter asked kindly.
She smiled. “I would be honored.” She looked around at some of the dancers warming up and thought, ‘This is going to be hard. A lot talent here.’ The curtain was drawn; she walked out on the stage. The workers were doing sound and light checks. She smiled and reached out her hand as if she was taking the hand of a partner. She took her stance, she closed her eyes, and started to dance. Sam stood looking at her. She moved across the floor with such grace and beauty, her every move perfect and with precision. Britney ran up to Bobby she said as she grabbed him by the hand, pulling him. “You have got to see this.”
Some camera crews started filming her. Sam had tears in his eyes as he watched. Bobby said, “Wow, that is beautiful.”
Sam walked out on the stage as she went back. When she came up, his hand went into hers. She smiled.
Britney’s eyes went wide and her mouth opened slightly. “Oh my god, would you look at them,” she gasped. “What is that dance called they are doing?” “Forgotten Love,” Cody said with a sad tone. “It has several parts. That one is to honor the dead. It’s a dance of the Dannarr, one of the very few that if they make a mistake won’t end with their deaths. They are not making any mistakes. At least not yet. But the hardest part is yet to come. Twelve spins the same as one movement. It is said if they do that, the dead will dance with them. It is to remind them of the love that they could never have. Mostly used by dancers that lost a mate.
“Sam is very good nearly as good as Aunt Gloria. That is saying a lot for his age. The one thing that she and Dad never did on the stage was go full out. The night she danced with Bobby at Dad’s last dance, she almost did. That was the first time I had ever seen her set out to prove they were the best, and she did.
“Aunt Gloria is by far the best female dancer in the world. Even now, she is holding back. It was said that even when they bonded, they never went full out. Something that I don’t know anyone can say that they didn’t do. She is close to bonding with Clarence.”
Love and Beyond Part 3 Page 29