Her Hometown Hero

by Margaret Daley

  “No way. Maybe Madame Zoe said something to someone who told him. You’ve said the business is small and close-knit.”

  “I’ll ask her when she comes tonight. We need to talk anyway. Lately I’ve put in my time at the Summer Dance Academy and left without saying much to her. With this performance tonight and the couple of extra classes I’m teaching, I haven’t had a lot of time. I’m not sure how she feels about me teaching the girls who didn’t get into her program. She may feel I’m infringing on her turf, but my methods are different from hers.”

  “And I appreciate it. Carrie gets so excited right before attending your class, and when she comes back, she’s still excited and happy. That hasn’t been that way for months with Madame Zoe.”

  Kit started to say she was only teaching the classes for a while longer, but another knock at the door cut her off before the first word was out. She peered at Beth. “Expecting anyone?”

  Her sister-in-law shook her head, moving toward the entrance. “I’ll get it. It might be Howard,” she said as she opened the door, her eyes growing round. “Who are you?”

  Kit covered the distance as quickly as she could. “This is Gordon Simms.” She hugged him. “First these beautiful roses and now you. What are you doing here?”

  Gordon, dressed in his usual attire of black pants and shirt, pulled back, clasping Kit’s upper arms and assessing her. “You’re looking great, and I’m here to see your production tonight and talk to you. Can’t a person come to support a friend?”

  “I know that look. There’s more going on here.”

  Beth breezed by Kit, waving Gordon into the cabin. “I’m Kit’s sister-in-law, Beth. Welcome to the Soaring S Ranch. I’ve got to go. So much to do. So little time.”

  “She’s a whirlwind,” Kit said with a laugh when Gordon was speechless as Beth scurried away.

  He combed his fingers through his wild mass of white hair. “I want her energy.” Scanning the living area, he moved farther into the room. “Cozy but not what I expected.”

  “What did you expect?”

  “A Western theme. This is more eclectic than I thought.”

  “That’s because it belonged to my grandparents, and they didn’t care what kind of furniture they had. If they loved it, they added it to their home.”

  “Were they hippies in the sixties?”

  The image of Granny and Papa as hippies formed in her mind, and she burst out laughing. “The very opposite.”

  “You had very simple furniture in your apartment in New York. This is so...” He gestured in a flourish.

  “Cluttered?”

  “Right.”

  Kit crossed her arms over her chest. “Okay, cut the small talk. Why are you really here?”

  Gordon’s lips puckered together. “I came to see your production.”

  “And?”

  “I wanted to wait until after the production to talk about this, but since you forced my hand, we’ll talk now.” Gordon strolled to the couch and sat, relaxing back.

  Kit shook her head and took the chair across from him. “All right. You’ve piqued my interest.” She narrowed her eyes on him. “But I think that was the object of the visit this morning.”

  He smiled. “You know me well, which is part of the reason I’m here to offer you a chance to choreograph a ballet for the company. There have been such rave reviews about the choreography in Wonderland...”

  Kit tuned out the rest of his spiel. She couldn’t get past his proposition.

  “Kit, are you listening to anything I’m saying?”

  He clapped his hands, and she totally focused on him. “Sorry. Did I hear you correctly? You want me to choreograph a ballet for the company?”

  “Yes, for the fall season. You’re the one who wanted us to do a ballet about Alice in Wonderland. You came up with half the dances in that ballet. You’re ready to do one by yourself. I’d like you to return to New York and help with others. Your creativity and knowledge of dance are what I’ve always admired about you.”

  “Not my dancing?”

  “Don’t get me wrong. You were a wonderful ballerina, or I would never have put you in a principal role.”

  Were. That word stood out, obliterating the rest of what he said. Again she was painfully reminded of the hard truth. It wasn’t going to change. Tonight would be her goodbye dance. “Let me think about it. When are you leaving?”

  “I’m staying through Monday because I promised Zoe I would be a guest teacher with a couple of her classes.”

  “I didn’t know you and Zoe were good friends.”

  Shifting on the couch, Gordon lowered his look. “We started out in the same company and kept up with each other through the years long-distance. She’s my date tonight to this Western Shindig.”

  Was something else going on? Why hadn’t Madame Zoe said anything to her about knowing Gordon Simms so well? Had she been instrumental in Kit getting a job with the company in the first place? Doubts began to nibble at her composure. “Let me think about it. I’ll tell you Monday after classes. It’ll be fun to see you with the girls,” she continued, shifting the topic so that Gordon couldn’t press her for an answer. “Madame Zoe had hinted to the older girls that someone would visit soon, but she wouldn’t tell them who. Or me.”

  “I asked her to keep it a surprise.”

  “Does she know you’re asking me to choreograph for the company?”

  “Yes. I didn’t want to whisk her star teacher away without saying something to her.”

  Again doubts and something much more insidious began to attack her. Did Madame Zoe want her out of the way because she’d been working with Carrie and her friends as well as Anna?

  Gordon rose and came to Kit. “I don’t want to keep you from doing all the last-minute things I know need to be handled right before a performance. I’ll see you tonight.” He bent over and kissed her cheek. “I’ll let myself out.”

  When the door clicked shut, the silence she’d craved when she first got here taunted her. She stared at the photograph hanging on the wall of her at another time in her life. Father, I don’t know what to do. Please help me.

  Would He answer this plea? He’d been so quiet while she’d been in New York in her apartment, wrestling with all she was going through.

  * * *

  During the intermission, Nate stood at the back double doors into the barn watching the sun starting to set. Streaks of rose, orange and purple layered the horizon and branched outward into the darkening blue. A light breeze cooled the air.

  Howard came up to Nate, pushing his cowboy hat up on his forehead. “Don’t tell my wife this or she’ll think I’m a sentimental guy, but I often come here at the end of the day to watch the sun go down. This is one of the best places to see it at the ranch. We do have beauties here in Oklahoma.”

  “Your secret is safe with me. And I agree with you. While working here in the evenings, I’ve paused to come out here and take a moment to appreciate God’s wonders.”

  “I can’t believe how many people showed up for this fund-raiser. Many aren’t even family or relatives of our kids, but then we had some great publicity. You and the youth group will be able to do a couple of mission trips.”

  “The publicity started with the television interview Kit had and got better and better. Look at the film crew. Kit’s interview went so well that they came back here for the follow-up.”

  Howard looked toward the stage. “I see Beth signaling me. Intermission is over.”

  Nate decided to stay in the back to watch the scenes from Oklahoma being performed. He knew how much this meant to Kit, and he prayed everything went smoothly. She’d put her heart into this production.

  The first group of teens came out onto the stage with the backdrop of the Oklahoma prairie and cattle grazing in the tall
grass. Nate’s heartbeat raced with anticipation and trepidation. What if... He shook the doubts away.

  After each dance and song, the audience cheered and applauded. Nate joined in, putting two fingers in his mouth and blowing a loud whistle. The final performance with each group participating in the song “Oklahoma” brought the people to their feet. The teens took a bow, and then Anna, the lead dancer, moved forward. The crowd slowly quieted and sat again at their round tables.

  “I am honored to introduce the last performance of the night. It’s not in your program so it could be a wonderful surprise. Kathleen Somers will dance in her final ballet of her career. Dance can be enjoyed by all, as you will see.” Anna swept her arm toward the side of the stage.

  Kit came out in a long flowing white skirt that hit her at midcalf. He sucked in a deep breath. With her chin lifted, she positioned herself in the center of the stage, the elegance of her long arms and graceful hands pulling his attention away from her legs. Until she moved. As she flowed across the floor, he slowly released the trapped air in his lungs, marveling at the beauty of her steps. He found himself enthralled by the poetry of her dance to Madame Butterfly’s “Un Bel Di Vedremo,” her heart in each movement, the thrill and joy on her face as the piece came to an end.

  His throat swelled. Through a shimmering blur, he watched her take her bow to a stunned audience. One second. Two. Then the clapping began and a thunderous standing ovation erupted.

  Transfixed, Nate sniffed and added his applause. Every time he saw her perform he was in awe of her ability. He understood now what she had gone through after the accident. Ballet was part of her. How do you give that up?

  As she accepted a bouquet of flowers from the teens, he closed his eyes, holding the sorrow and joy inside. For the first time he questioned God and why He allowed the ability to perform professionally to be taken away from Kit. He turned away from the stage and stared at the darkness beyond the back doors.

  * * *

  Surrounded by the teens, Kit finally started backstage to make way for the square dancing to begin. But not before she’d seen Nate turn away. Had her performance upset him? Disgusted him? She’d had to modify the steps and rely more on her arms than the choreography usually called for, but she wanted to convey the emotions of love and sadness the song from Madame Butterfly evoked.

  “Thank you all for doing such a great job tonight. I suggest you all change and go out and enjoy square dancing. It’s fun.” Kit swept her gaze around the group.

  “How about you?” Anna asked as the kids dispersed.

  “I’ve danced enough today. I’m going to enjoy watching you all.” Where is Nate?

  Anna turned to leave, stopped and swung back around. She gave Kit a hug. “You did great.”

  I’m not going to cry. I’ve done enough of that to last two lifetimes.

  Kit gulped. Quickly she headed for her makeshift dressing room, a stall, to change. She’d needed to prove to herself she could do one last dance on her terms. She had. But why had Nate looked away?

  She dressed in her jeans and a Western shirt with fringe, checked herself in the mirror, then parted the curtains to leave.

  Nate stood outside, his shoulder cushioned against the wall. His eyes skimmed over her, and he gave a wolf whistle. He came to her.

  She started to step away, still remembering his back to her as she skimmed the audience at the end. But she allowed him to grasp her hands and hold them up between them as he moved even closer. “What did you think?” Her lungs seized her next breath.

  “Granted I’m not a ballet expert, but that was the most beautiful dance I’ve ever seen. Watching the emotions behind your moves was stunning.” His voice heavy and thick, he swallowed hard.

  “So I didn’t make people uncomfortable?” I didn’t make you uncomfortable?

  “Were you in the same place I was? Did you hear the applause at the end?”

  His slow smile that reached deep into his eyes cloaked her in a sense of finality—ending one chapter in her life and beginning a new one. “Yes, but I wondered if they were just being kind.”

  “Not from what I saw on their faces and their enthusiastic response to your performance. They, like myself, knew they were viewing something extraordinary. It brought tears to my eyes. Good tears.” He inched even closer until nothing separated them. “That couldn’t have been easy for you.”

  “One of the hardest things I’ve ever done, but if I can’t perform, I can at least help others not give up on something they love because of a setback. These past weeks I’ve realized I can dance, even if I can’t perform. I don’t have to give up what I love totally. I’ll enjoy it differently.”

  Right before his mouth settled on hers, she glimpsed a look on his face that stole her breath. Their lips touching sent a wave of goose bumps down her length. She lost herself in his kiss, savoring his embrace, his scent, his taste.

  Someone coughed, the sound penetrating the haze of sensations engulfing Kit. She pulled back and looked around Nate to spy Madame Zoe. Heat seared Kit’s face.

  Nate turned, glanced from Madame Zoe to Kit. “I’ll leave you two. I promised Beth I would dance once with her for making her special brownies.”

  When he left, Madame Zoe closed the space between herself and Kit. “Gordon told me what he offered you this morning. Are you going to go back to New York?”

  Debra and Steven came around the corner, both grinning at Kit. She nodded toward them, then parted the curtain into the makeshift dressing room. “Let’s talk in here where we won’t be interrupted.”

  Madame Zoe swept into the converted stall as though she was entering a dressing room at the Metropolitan Opera. Kit entered behind her.

  “I haven’t decided what I’m going to do for sure. He only asked this morning.”

  Her mentor swung around, her head held high. “How can you pass up an opportunity like that? When he mentioned it to me, I thought it would be perfect for you, especially given what you did with this little fund-raiser and raw talent.”

  “Anna isn’t a newbie.”

  “She still has a lot to learn, as you did at her age.”

  “Have you ever told her what she’s doing right?” Remembering her own years with Madame Zoe, Kit doubted it, but she had always kept at it even without praise or encouragement. She had wanted to learn so badly, and Madame Zoe was the best available in the area.

  “If I don’t say something is wrong, then it’s right. If she doesn’t have to redo it, then it’s an acceptable step. That’s a given.”

  “But it’s nice to hear the words every once and a while.”

  “I’m not here to pamper kids. I’m here to teach them the correct way to dance.” Her mentor’s mouth slashed into a frown. “You never complained about my methods before.”

  “Because I didn’t know anything different. But since I left Cimarron City, I’ve had various teachers, some like you and some who tell a dancer both the good and bad. When I think back on all my experiences, I flourished under the ones who told me what I did right and what I needed to work on. Each has value in teaching a person.”

  One of Madame Zoe’s thin eyebrows arched. “And you know this after teaching for a month?”

  “You called Gordon about what was happening here. Are you upset because I’m working with some students on the side here at the ranch? These past several weeks you and I don’t talk like we used to. I didn’t offer to work with the kids to offend you. They wanted to continue their dancing during the summer, and there wasn’t a place for them in the dance academy.”

  She moved a couple of feet toward Kit. “I called Gordon because I think you should be in New York. You can become a top choreographer. I taught you all you need to know, and if you don’t take his offer, you’ll be blowing a great opportunity to keep yourself immersed in the ballet community. Isn’t t
hat what you want and love? You can’t get that in Cimarron City.”

  A suspicion nibbled at her thought. “Why is it so important to you what I choose?”

  Thunder descended over Madame Zoe’s features. “Because I spent years honing your skills. You wouldn’t be who you are if it wasn’t for me.”

  Kit straightened, her shoulders back. “I beg your pardon. I did the work. Hours and hours every day for years. Yes, I learned from you but also from others. What really happened to your own career?” She bit the inside of her mouth to keep any other words inside, but her own anger festered in the pit of her stomach.

  “I reached the soloist level and knew I wouldn’t go any further. I was thirty-six and younger girls than me were becoming principals in the company. My window of opportunity to excel had closed.”

  “I never thought of you as giving up” came out of Kit’s mouth before she could censure herself.

  Madame Zoe blinked several times. “I’m a realist.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with that. I’m a realist, too, so what I decide for myself will be what I think I should do realistically.”

  “All I ask is that you not be afraid to try something. If it doesn’t work out, then fine. No regrets.”

  “Regrets? You sound like you’re coming from experience. What kind have you had?”

  Madame Zoe’s expression softened into sadness. “There was a time I could have been a principal of a small relatively unknown ballet company, but I decided I wanted to stay in the bigger, more established one and try harder to become a principal dancer. Gordon urged me to take the role with the smaller company. I should have listened to him. You should listen to him now.”

  In that moment Kit realized Madame Zoe had dealt with her own heartache. Her anger dissolved. She didn’t see her mentor through rose-colored glasses now, but she acknowledged that her teacher had contributed to her success and wanted what was best for Kit.

  She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Madame Zoe. “Thank you for recognizing raw talent all those years ago and working with me. You and I might not agree on everything, but I do know I’m in your debt. I’ll let you know what my decision is when I make it.”