by Alison Mello
A notification pops up as I’m about to close the app. It’s Jade. She just posted a picture to her story with the hashtag #I’m over it. She’s sporting a beautiful smile.
I feel like something more happened between them, but she’s not opening up, and I can’t force her to. I’ll leave it be for now. I shake off the thoughts and head to the shower. I have to be up in a few hours for work.
Chapter Three
Jade
There’s a party at Destiny’s tonight after class. I was hesitant about going, but I finally caved and said I would be there. Our crew is all going, plus there’s always a bunch of other people there. Some even crash at her house, but for now, we have the practice to get through.
It’s production night, so we’ve all gathered around on the main dance floor working through our routine. Micah is getting creative with some stunts, so we’re working on those for tonight. I love stunting, but I also get nervous. It was easier when Jackson was my partner. I was used to him picking me up and tossing me around. Bentley has been amazing, but the trust needed isn’t quite there yet, and it’s not because I don’t know him, or I don’t think he’s capable because I do. It’s hard to explain. It’s just different when you’re with a new partner.
“Okay, I need my couples. Breigh and Ky, you’re here. Jade and Bentley, you’re in the center but forward just a bit, and then Julie and Aaron, you’re on the end lined up with Breigh and Ky. Everyone else, you’re all off stage for this, but Destiny is going to show you how you’re coming back on stage and will work with you on a few other counts.”
Micah gathers the six of us to explain what it is he wants to do. He grabs me and asks me to help him demonstrate the first stunt. “We’re going to work on a few different moves. I want to see how they look, and we’ll probably work a few of them in.” He steps up behind me. “The first one we are going to work is the Split Over. This is an easier move. I’ll show you with Jade first, and then we’ll work it out.”
He wraps his arm around my waist and places his hand under my thigh. Before completing the lift, he stops to explain to everyone else the steps to doing the move successfully. “Lifters, you want your head at your partner's hip so that they have something to hold on to.” We both bend our knees. He lifts me up, so my back rests on his shoulder while I open my legs into a split while he spins once and then gracefully places me back on the floor. “We’ll show you one more time, and then we’ll work it one couple at a time. Once I see you each have it, I’ll have you practice it a few times on your own before moving on to the next stunt.”
We repeat the move, and when everyone agrees, they’re good. We break off to work with our partners. Bentley comes up behind me. “Ready?”
“I should ask you that. I’ve done this before, and you haven’t.”
He wraps his arm around my waist from behind me, and a shiver runs down my spine. He whispers in my ear, “Jade, I’ll never drop you.”
I glance up over my shoulder, taking in his intoxicating cinnamon musky scent. It takes me a moment to react, but I come to my senses, giving him a playful grin. “We’ll see about that.”
He shakes his head. Bending over, he places his head at my hip as instructed. With one arm around my waist and the other under my thigh, he asks me if I’m ready. When I agree, he lifts me in the air with ease and spins to complete the move with ease. He’s quite good at it. He’s graceful and gentle with me.
“How was that?” he asks to make sure I’m comfortable with the lift.
“Good, let’s do it again.” He did a great job, but it takes more than a few lifts to get comfortable with a new partner, especially when it comes to the tougher stunts. It’s not something that comes after one simple lift, and the fact that my lady bits are coming to life is making it hard to focus. I need to concentrate because if I know Micah, he’ll increase the difficulty as we go. He’s starting easy knowing that Julie and Aaron are new to the company, so he needs to see what they can handle, and I’m new with Bentley, so this is his way of giving us a chance to get comfortable with each other.
“Ready to go a little faster?” Bentley asks, sounding excited.
“Sure.” We go again, but this time Bentley doesn’t put me down. He playfully catches me and continues to spin me around, causing me to squeal.
“Okay, I get it.” I burst into laughter.
“Are you sure.” He pauses, looking me in the eye.
“Yes, you won’t drop me.” I shake my head with a huge smile on my face. I like playful Bentley.
“I’ve done stunts before Jade, just not with you.” He puts me down.
“Looking good, everyone. Let’s move on.” Micah claps as he approaches me. “This next one isn’t too difficult. Ladies, I want you facing on an angle, your leg comes up like in an arabesque.” I lift my leg and place one arm in front of me and the other over my head. “Ladies note she isn’t closed off facing the front in a typical arabesque, but she isn’t completely open either.” He points out the stance my body is in. “Men, you’re going to grab at your partners’ ribs and their thigh. Spin them around twice and then gently place them back down.”
Once again, we get to work. This stunt is pretty easy for me because I’ve done it, but Julie is struggling to get the angle right. We all stop to watch Micah work with her. Julie goes into the move but hits her partner Aaron in the face with her arm, almost causing him to drop her.
“Aaron, I’m so sorry.” Her voice laced with guilt.
“It’s all good. You didn’t hit me that hard.” He rubs his cheek. “You two keep working on that. I’m going to move on with the others.” Micah doesn’t look impressed with Julie. This is a pretty simple lift. She should get it.
We go onto another stunt while Julie and Aaron work on the simple one. After a few more times, Julie gets it and joins us to watch Bentley flip me over his shoulder. He manages to do it with perfection. This move can be tough on my armpits because of how I’m being grabbed, yet Bentley manages to do it without it bothering me. We do the move a few more times before Micah calls it quits for the night.
“Listen up, everyone.” We all gather around so he can give his announcements. “You know the upstairs is almost always open for practice. The room is huge and has plenty of room to be shared, so if you need a space to work, please use it.” He looks at the six of us. “You three couples need to continue to work on stunts because I plan on working some into both your couple’s routines and the production, and I’d like them to be a bit harder than we’re working today. It’s just a matter of which of them you will be doing. The harder the stunt, the higher the points.” There’s that word again, couples. I roll my eyes but keep my mouth shut.
Julie looks slightly defeated. She knows they’re the only ones struggling, so if she doesn’t pull it together, it won’t be them. I feel bad, but she has to be willing to work.
“It’s time to party.” Destiny shouts. “I’ll see you all at my place.”
“You heard her, bounce.” Micah laughs, pointing to the door.
I look up at Bentley. “Would you be okay with us helping Julie? I feel bad for her.”
He nods. “Of course.”
“Julie, Aaron,” I call out to them.
“Sup,” Aaron says, coming over to us.
“If you guys are down, Bentley and I are willing to help you two with your stunts. We can meet up on Monday evening and use the upstairs room.”
Julie’s eyes go wide. “Are you for real?” She sounds completely shocked.
I shrug. “Of course.” I’m not sure why she’s so blown away. We’re a team, that’s what we should be doing.
She chuckles. “You don’t understand. My last dance company was everyone for themselves. No one would ever offer to help someone else. It was like we were all in competition with each other. It’s one of the reasons I moved on.”
“Nah, it’s not like that here,” Bentley explains. “I was watching you. I honestly think it’s just a matter of you getting comfor
table and trusting Aaron. You look a little stiff.”
“I agree,” Aaron says. “When you stiffen up, it makes it hard for me to lift you.”
“I’m sorry,” Julie says, slightly embarrassed. “I’ve never done stunts like this.”
“It’s all good. We’ll spot you until you’re comfortable. Eventually, you’ll learn to trust Aaron.” I encourage her.
We start making our way toward the door. “Thanks, guys. I really appreciate it.” She smiles. “See you guys at the party?” She asks with a new level of excitement.
I smile. “Fo sho!” I laugh at my silliness.
She laughs. “Sweet, see you guys there.” She waves and heads to her car.
Bentley and I stop at the door. He looks down at me. “I’ll see you at Destiny’s tonight?” I say to Bentley when we get outside.
He nods. He looks like he wants to say more, but instead, he pushes the door open for me. “You will. How are you getting there?”
“I’ll probably take an Uber so I can have a drink and not stress about my car.”
“I can pick you up.” He offers a hopeful look on his handsome face.
It’s tempting. Part of me wants to take him up on it because we’re friends, and that would save me some money, but I’m not sure how I feel about showing up to a party with him. I know how people are, they’ll start talking shit, and I’m not ready to deal with that.
“Thanks, but I’m good.” I put one air pod in my ear and took off up the street. I can feel Bentley’s eyes on me as I walk away, and it sends a shiver up my spine. I’m tempted to turn back, but instead, I get lost in my music. Walk Me Home by Pink is playing. I chuckle, realizing how perfect this song is to walk home to as I evaluate how I feel right now. Bentley and I have always been friends, and now my body is responding to him in a very different way. I’m not sure that’s something I can handle, but God knows my lady bits want me to.
Chapter Four
Bentley
When I pull up to Destiny’s house, there is a line of cars already littering the driveway, but it’s quiet. There are some lights on the path that lead to the back of the house, but you’d never guess there’s a party going on behind her home. It’s a huge, beautiful beachfront getaway. Way bigger than you would need for one person, but it was her parents’ home. They left it to her with the intention of growing old in it when a nasty accident took their life far earlier than they expected. Now she lives in this huge house all by herself. I often wonder if she throws parties because she’s lonely, and it gives her something to do.
As I approach the back, I can hear the faint sound of music coming from the beach below, but I stop to admire the amazing view she has. The waves crash upon the shore, and a slight breeze comes off the water. This right here is my dream home. Maybe not this big, but right off the water like this would be perfect.
I scan the beach for Jade as I follow the beat down to the sand, where I find the huge crowd lining the beach, chilling on the chairs and blankets. “Sup, Bentley.” Aaron shakes my hand as I get the bottom of the stairs.
“Sup, bro.” He pulls me in for a man hug.
“Hey, seriously, thanks for the offer to work with us. Julie was feeling defeated. She’s a great dancer but just needs a little work.” He takes a sip of his beer.
“No problem, dude. You know how we do.” I get what Julie was saying earlier. The dance world can be incredibly competitive. Everyone wants the spotlight. They want to be labeled the best of the best, but Micah has always encouraged us to help one another. We’re a team, and if you want to be singled out, you work harder than everyone else on your own time.
He nods. “I know. I’ve worked hard to earn this spot in the company, and now that I finally have it, I need my partner to trust me.” Micah has a lot of students, but you have to work your way up in the company. Those who work hard get positions on the dance company’s competition team when spots open.
It’s hard to earn a partner’s trust, but it’s important. If he can’t earn Julie’s trust, they can both end up out of the duet competition. These lifts are not only a big part of our production choreography, but it’s rare that a duet doesn’t have at least one lift in it. Micah expects this to be a two-way street. He won’t just blame Julie. He’ll say Aaron isn’t doing his part to earn her trust.
“We got you.” I shake my head. “Don’t stress too much. If you do, it will only make Julie freeze up more.” He nods his agreement. “I’m gonna go grab a beer.” I point toward the coolers.
“I’ll come with you.” He follows me over. There’s a crowd of guys standing around the coolers, some I know and some I don’t.
“Listen, Jade’s birthday is coming up, and I’d like to get the crew together to do something special. What do you think?” I grab a beer.
“I think it’s a great idea.” He grabs one as well.
Three huge fire pits line the beach—each with a little fire going to light it up. People are spread out around all of them dancing to the music she has playing over wireless speakers. The houses over here are spread so far apart we can get away with a party like this. Destiny said that her parents used to love to entertain down here. They had the entertainment system put in when they first got the house.
My eyes are drawn to Jade when she throws her head back in laughter. It’s a beautiful sight. She’s dancing with her best friend Missy, around one of the fire pits to Jason Derulo’s Talk Dirty to Me. She’s wearing an off the shoulder sleeveless shirt that shows off her sexy flat stomach. The shorts she’s wearing sit low on her hips but are modest enough to show off her nice round ass without her cheeks hanging out. Her sexy hips swing to the beat of the music. Just watching her causes my dick to stir. I’m so lost in watching her move that I don’t even realize that Aaron is still talking to me.
“Dude.” He hits me on the chest.
“You really have it for her, don’t you?”
I chuckle. “I do, too bad the feeling isn’t mutual.”
“I wouldn’t say it’s not mutual. I think she’s just still feeling the sting of Jackson.” I nod my agreement but say nothing as I watch her swing her hips to the beat of the music. “I see how she looks at you when her guard is down.”
I look at him like he’s crazy. “You’re insane.”
He shakes his head. “I’m telling you.” He laughs. “Plus, I heard her and Missy talking. Give her some time.”
Ky comes over, joining us. “Sup, guys.”
“How’s it going, man?” I ask, trying to focus on something other than Jade.
“Good.” He replies. I inform him of my plans to do something for Jade’s birthday, trying to focus on something other than her sexy moves, but I lose the battle. My eyes go right back to her.
When our eyes connect, I totally ignore the guys and move toward her. I hear Ky asking Aaron what’s wrong with me as I walk away.
She is so sexy, the way she sways her hips. As I approach her Candy Shop by 50 Cent plays over the speakers. “How’s it going, ladies?” I start moving to the beat, slowly making my way between the girls.
“Bentley.” Missy’s greeting is clipped, but there’s a look of amusement on her face.
“Missy.” I nod, acknowledging her. “We’re getting together for Jade’s birthday. Are you down?” I say to her, still looking into Jade’s eyes.
“Of course, I am. I can’t miss celebrating my bestie. What are we doing?”
I shrug. “We’ll start with dinner and go from there.”
“Sounds good to me.” There’s amusement in her voice.
I take Jade’s hand and hook it over my shoulder as I start grinding with her to the beat of the music. She starts to back away, but I take her hand, spin her away from me, and then pull her back. “Are you trying to ignore me?” I ask her.
She shakes her head. “Not at all.” She smiles. “Glad you came. I have fun dancing with you.”
“Feeling is very mutual.” I can’t help but smile.
When I turn,
Missy is dancing with this guy BJ. They both dance at our dance company, but they didn’t make it for this season’s competition team. Missy is having an off-year because of some shit she’s going through. I like BJ, but I’m not sure he is committed enough for the dance team. I honestly think he dances because he enjoys it, and it’s good exercise. Micah has a ton of students like that.
“What were you and the guys talking about?”
Ah, so she was watching me. I wonder what is going through that pretty little head of hers. “Nothing much. Aaron was thanking us for offering to work with him and Julie. He’s nervous. If we can’t help them loosen up, he’ll lose his seat on the team.”
“He’ll be fine.” She brushes it off.
“I agree, and that’s what I told him.” We continue to move to the music, but our movements are a bit off as we get lost in our conversation.
“What were you girls talking about?” I stare into her eyes, hoping to get a glimpse of that interest Aaron was referring to.
She laughs. “You.” She pokes me in the chest.
“Me?” That surprised me but thrills me at the same time.
She nods. “You.” She spins around.
“Dare I ask what about?”
She stops dancing and fans her face. “I’m hot, wanna get a drink?” I guess I’m not going to hear what she was talking about.
“Sure.” We walk back toward the house together to grab something to drink. Destiny stocks the coolers with tons of liquor options. She has mini bottles of wine, wine coolers, beer, hard tea, and so on. We’ve all tried to kick in for the parties, but she never allows us too. She hasn’t come out and said it but has hinted that her parents left her very well off.
“I’ll grab us drinks. You grab us some seats.” She offers.
I walk over to a quieter area and grab us two empty chairs. I’m really hoping to get her to open up. Jade and I have known each other a while, but Jade is not one to talk freely with anyone anymore.