by Terry Odell
His voice was quiet, his tone even, but it said he was used to giving orders, and having them followed without question.
She felt Belle and Patti's eyes boring into her from opposite ends of the bar. The band segued into the opening strands of Take it to the Limit. She reached for Jack's hand. "Please. You've got to rescue me."
His back stiffened. "What?"
She took his hand. "I'll explain. Dance with me. Hurry. I won't bite." She tugged and he slithered out of the booth. Wriggling into the middle of the crowd, she turned and lifted her right hand.
Eyebrows raised, Jack assumed the dance stance, his hand at her back a feather touch, with a good six-inch gap between them. "Okay, lady. I'm here. Mind explaining why?"
He moved with the waltz rhythm.
"I'm avoiding one of the customers. My feet can't take another attack of his waltzing. He can handle two-two and four-four all right, but the man can't seem to count to three."
"And you assumed I could?" One corner of his mouth turned up.
Almost a smile. Another minute and she'd have Belle's five. "I figured I'd chance it. I'm very good at reading people, you know."
He drew her closer and she smelled soap and an underlying outdoors scent above the room's beer background. No cloying aftershave. Jack's graceful movements belied the way he'd stumbled into the bar as he led her around the floor. His hand at her back was warm through her thin blouse. The bet forgotten, she caught herself before she rested her cheek on his chest.
"What?" he said.
"I didn't say anything."
"You didn't have to. You're surprised I can dance. I'm not so bad at reading people myself."
Her face grew warm, and she gave thanks for the dim lighting. He couldn't have read all her thoughts, could he? How, despite her aching feet, she wanted the dance to go on longer? How she wanted to make the pain in his eyes go away?
"It's not that—really. I mean, most of the guys can handle a two-step, but they don't seem to do anything different when it's a waltz. Thank goodness the band doesn't play many. But you know what you're doing, and it's nice not to have to dodge feet and knees."
His eyes crinkled at the edges. "I'll take that as a compliment." As if teaching her not to jump to conclusions, he led her in a series of perfectly executed pivot turns.
When he settled into a basic waltz step, the gap between them was a lot less than six inches. A long-forgotten tingling surprised her. She licked her lips and swallowed. "So, where did you learn to dance?"
"Part of my job," he said, and his face clouded. The music stopped. He dropped her hand and disappeared from the dance floor.
"Thanks," she whispered after him. She adjusted her skirt and went back to the bar, her heart beating faster than a waltz warranted.
"He danced with you. Did he talk?" Belle asked. "Said more than, 'Jack'? That's all anyone here has ever heard him say." She fished a bill from her tips. "That's worth a five, even if he didn't smile."
"Sometimes people need a friendly face," Frankie said. She snatched her own five from under her mug, and tucked it along with Belle's into her apron pocket.
A throat-clearing sound from Mr. Stubbs squelched the rest of the conversation. "Someone's cell phone is ringing in the back room. Anyone here willing to risk her job to take a personal call at work?"
Frankie edged toward the storeroom until she made out the distinctive ring tone of "The Entertainer." Her pulse jumped. She reserved that tone for family.
Heart in her throat, she hastened to the door.
* * * * *
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About the author
Terry Odell began writing by mistake, when her son mentioned a television show and she thought she’d be a good mom and watch it so they’d have common ground for discussions.
Little did she know she would enter the world of writing, first via fanfiction, then through Internet groups, and finally with groups with real, live partners. Her first publications were short stories, but she found more freedom in longer works and began what she thought was a mystery. Her daughters told her it was a romance so she began learning more about the genre and craft. She belongs to both the Romance Writers of America and Mystery Writers of America.
Now a multi-published, award winning author, Terry resides with her husband in the mountains of Colorado. You can find her online at:
Her website - http://www.terryodell.com
Her blog - http://terryodell.blogspot.com
Facebook -http://www.facebook.com/terry.odell
Twitter - http://twitter.com/authorterryo