“We had a meeting with the committee from New York yesterday… and it was about you.”
The moment he’d said New York and “the committee,” I forgot all about my aching feet. I knew exactly who he meant… anyone connected to the ballet world did. And when he added that the meeting had been about me, I knew it couldn’t have gone well.
“Let me guess, they aren’t happy you hired me?” I asked and felt an anger welling within me. “You didn’t have to wine and dine me in some sort of effort… to what? Let me down easy? To fire me? I don’t know how many times I have to say this. I’m a big girl and know how this world works. I fucked up and, no matter how hard I try, I’ll never be forgiven. God damn it, I knew I should never had let you goad me into trying out—”
“Stop!”
It shouldn’t have, but the barked command had my mouth snapping closed.
“You done?” he asked in a quieter, but still firm tone.
Not truly trusting myself to either not say anything I’d regret or, more likely, burst out crying, I simply nodded.
“Good. You’re not completely wrong”—a hand went up when I started to stand—“and you’re not right. First of all, I don’t give a rat’s ass what they think about you joining our company. You didn’t seek us out — we sought you out, and both Yuri and I are glad we did. As for the committee, they’re just scared. They’re afraid the rumors about you will come back to haunt them. I don’t think they’re too bothered about the media stuff, because, of course, it will help bring in revenue. They’ve offered us the opportunity to put on a production, but they’ve told Yuri to keep a strict eye on you and axe you if you start to behave suspiciously.”
When he stopped speaking, I smiled and nodded calmly at him. “Okay.”
Evidently not quite trusting the total one-eighty I’d done, he lifted his brow. “Okay? You don’t have anything else to say?”
I nodded and brushed away a tear that slipped free and, maybe for the first time, truly understood how isolated I’d felt. It didn’t mean I was making less of Alek’s offer, but I knew that while Chicago had a fabulous theater district, and this was my home, it wasn’t New York.
“They’re giving me another chance.”
“They are,” Alek confirmed, “but only because Yuri basically told them they could go fuck themselves if they thought he was going to dump his best ballerina because they were too cowardly to stand up for what was right.”
“He did? Wow…”
“That doesn’t mean they won’t be watching for you to make even the smallest stumble, and if that happens, don’t think for a moment they won’t pull you.”
I nodded. “I understand, and I don’t blame them. If I were in their position, I would probably think the same thing. I hold no grudges.”
“That’s very mature of you,” Alek said.
I smiled and then stood. Putting every bit of sexiness I was capable of into the short walk between us, I sauntered to where he was seated and sank down onto his lap. “I’m assuming the business side of this conversation is over?”
Alek grinned and slid his hand behind my head. “You assume correctly,” he said a moment before he pulled my mouth down to his. “So, I think you should tell me some more about you,” Alek said after he’d made sure to end the meeting in the best way possible. “And I don’t mean anything about the ballet. I feel like you’re something of a closed book, but I know there’s more to you than the ballerina.”
It was a compliment I’d never truly heard before. Smiling, I nodded. “May I take my shoes off first? My feet are killing me.”
“Sure,” he said, and, before I had a chance, he’d reached down, deftly unbuckled the tiny straps, and slid first one and then the other of the heels off. He claimed a bit more of my heart when he then shifted me to rest against his chest and lifted my leg. The moment his strong fingers closed around my sole, I groaned.
“Keep that up. and this massage is going to be the fastest one in history,” he warned.
Sighing contentedly, I settled a bit closer. “Sorry, but if you had any idea how incredible that feels, you’d be groaning, too.” Wiggling my toes, I said, “Please, continue.”
He did as we went on to talk more about our lives… or at least, I did. Alek asked me a whole bunch of questions, and he seemed very interested in the answers. He wanted to know little things like my favorite foods, movies, and music. Everything was so casual, and I relaxed. I’d never been on a date like this one. By the time I’d begun to be escorted by men, I was somewhat of a trophy. What surprised me the most was that Alek had a way of making me feel more special with the way he actually listened to what I had to say, as he rubbed my bare feet, than I had with any man who’d fastened a diamond bracelet around my wrist before trotting me out like some sort of prize they’d won.