Chapter Seven

“So, do you enjoy your work?” Han asked as they relaxed on the loveseat on his flagstone patio, enjoying a glass of wine and the sunset as he’d promised.

She took a sip of expensive merlot, settled more deeply into the red cushions of the wicker loveseat, and contemplated his question. “For the most part. I enjoy playing with numbers, though some of it is boring and routine. Sniffing out the problem with your books was a treat I don’t get too often. Lately I’ve been thinking about working as a forensic accountant. It would be challenging and fun, but it’s a huge step from where I’m at right now, and I’m not quite ready to do it.”

He groaned. “My God, you just said accounting was fun. I’ve been around more than my share of women and not a single one would ever say math was fun. It intrigues me…” He cleared his throat. “For a while I knew I wanted to have my own dance studio, as well as work with underprivileged children, but it was several years before I was in a place where I was ready for the change.”

“Had you worked with children before you bought Let’s Dance?”

“Si. Occasionally. Volunteer work.”

“Is that what made you realize you want to do it?”

He went silent and for several moments the only sound was the surf. Which made the sudden squawk of a gull unnaturally loud.

He put his arm around her and pulled her to him, and it wasn’t until she rested her head on his shoulder that she realized the length of his thigh resting against hers and his arm across her shoulders didn’t freak her out. It felt natural and right. But rather than analyze it like the accountant side of her wanted to, she decided to merely enjoy the moment. Good God, had she ever done that before? No. No. Not analyzing anything.

“No, chica.”

He spoke softly but his tension was palpable. Why would talking about his volunteer work wind him up so tight? Her muscles tensed in response. Was he going to tell her? Should she ask? Did she even want to know? Suddenly it was personal, maybe too personal, and it made her uncomfortable. She didn’t do personal. Especially not with a man.

“I decided to do that when Marguerite died.”

She clenched her teeth, then let her breath out slowly when she realized what she was doing. “Marguerite?” She prayed there was nothing in her voice other than curiosity, because he sure as hell didn’t need to know a pang of jealousy shot through her.

“My—what was the phrase you used?—Sugar Mama.”

She groaned. “Just let that go, would you? I was totally stressed out that night.”

She desperately wanted to pull away from him, climb into her safe little personal-space bubble. Could he tell her heart was pounding? Did he feel her muscles sag with relief when he told her who Marguerite was? She did not need to care so much about the women in his past. It was the road to heartache. The man had been with more women than the amount of men she’d merely talked to. And most of her clients were men.

“Marguerite was probably the closest thing I ever had to a mother or a father.”

“Did she adopt you and your brother?”

His fingers tightened on her shoulder for a moment, and she was surprised at her reaction to the slightly aggressive action. She didn’t panic; she didn’t have the urge to get away from his hold. She merely felt uncomfortable at the momentary pain and relieved when he loosened his grip. And glad he didn’t remove his arm. Which was seriously stupid. A moment ago, she wanted to get away from him

She lifted her head off his shoulder and when she looked at his face, she could just make out his indecisive expression in the fading light. Softly she told him, “You don’t have to answer that if you don’t want.”

“Maybe you’re not the only one here who needs to learn some trust.”

“What do you mean?”

He gave a self-deprecating smile. “You have man issues; I have woman issues.”

“Your mother?” she guessed, because it can’t have been good to have a prostitute for a mother.

She felt his entire body go rock hard and realized he’d probably felt her sag with relief moments before. Damn it. Up close and personal was complicated. Avoiding it was a good thing in a lot of ways.

“Women are for dancing with, playing with, having fun with, having sex with. Not for baring my soul to.”

Well, now she knew where she stood. The dancing-with category. She was here as part of her dance tutoring. Though she didn’t get how what they were doing right now would help.

“My brother was killed for the small amount of money he had on him. Marguerite adopted only me.”

She went completely still as she waited for him to continue, hoped for his sake he would. If he was going to continue. How her heart hurt for that poor little boy, his mother and his brother.

A muscle twitched in his jaw. “I was ten and scared to death.”

Oh good lord, no kidding. She’d been on her own at eighteen and scared to death. And she had a home to go to and people to help her. He was ten and lost everything. She frantically blinked to get rid of the tears that filled her eyes. He was so tense she thought he might break if she so much as breathed. He wiggled the fingers on his bandaged hand, and she wondered if he itched to make a fist with them. When he started to speak again, some of the tension left him, though he kept his eyes on the darkening horizon.

“Marguerite was a retired professional dancer turned instructor and she owned a theater. She took me in, eventually adopted me and gave me everything I have. She taught me to dance professionally, educated me and left me all she owned when she died. If it wasn’t for her, I’d probably be dead myself.” He pulled a chain that hung around his neck out from under his t-shirt and a wedding ring dangled from it. “This is hers. Her husband died before I knew her, and she never took it off her finger until she gave it to me the day she died. She told me to give it to the woman I want to marry. Since I have no intention of ever getting married, I wear it around my neck as a tribute to her.”

Jade relaxed as her heart returned to a more normal rhythm, and she took a sip of her wine. “She had no family?”

“No.”

“So you both needed someone to love and to love you.”

He jumped to his feet with a derisive snort and walked a few paces away, his hands clasped behind him. His rigid back was towards her, and she felt like he’d done it deliberately.

“I don’t do love, chica.” He turned then. “I don’t do…” He waved his hand around. “This.”

She stood, not liking the way he towered over her, and set her wineglass on a nearby table. She narrowed her eyes for a moment, then raised her eyebrows. “This?”

He waved his hand around again. “This—how do you say?—sharing confidences? Lesson over. I have some things I need to take care of now.” He shoved his good hand in his pocket. “Normally I would have you practice what we’ve gone over at home and come back in a week. With your—situation—I think you need to come back in three days. Is that doable for you?”

She forced herself to act normal, to pretend she didn’t care the evening was over and he’d suddenly put a barrier between them, but mostly that she didn’t care it was all part of her lesson. He hadn’t shared his past for any other reason than to gain her trust. Although his reaction had her wondering if it had something to do with the ‘L’ word.

“I’m not sure. I have to check my calendar. I’ll text you and let you know what works for me.”

“The same time as today, possibly?”

She shrugged. She didn’t want to appear eager to schedule a time with him—or available whenever he wanted. So she was glad her life was busy and her reason for not complying to his demands true. “I’m not sure. Hopefully we can coordinate something on such short notice. I have a dress fitting with Lexi I need to work in as well.” She pulled her keys from her pocket and dangled the ring on her finger.

He stepped toward her and she stiffened, not wanting him to touch her when he was in this weird mood. He narrowed his eyes at the action, but he merely walked by her and held the door to the house open. “I’ll walk you to your car.”

She nodded and went inside, hoping she came across as unconcerned while she headed to the front door. Which was difficult with him following close enough for her to feel his heat. She barely kept from jumping when he spoke.

“Whatever time works for you, I will make sure works for me.”

Who was this guy, and what the heck happened to Han? “Did you tell me those things about yourself so I would trust you?”

His eyes went from hard topaz to fiery yellow momentarily before hardening again. He gave a slight nod. “Si. I think we made some progress today. I don’t want to slide backwards, so we will be spending more time together off the dance floor as well as on.”

****

In an effort to convince himself being with Jade didn’t make him think about things he shouldn’t be thinking about, or wanting things he knew he didn’t want, he stuffed the desire to slam the door behind him and closed it with soft deliberation instead. He knew what his issue was. He was so busy getting his dance studios going, it had been a while since he’d enjoyed the company of a woman. He’d call one of his lady friends to see if she was up for a good time tonight, let off some steam, and everything would be back to normal.

He was getting way too stuck in a track called Jade, but it was merely the challenge of her, that was all. And the fact she was so different from the women he usually enjoyed. And that she wasn’t trying to get his attention. And how sarcastic and spunky she was. And brave. He let out a string of colorful words in Spanish. Even when she wasn’t here, she was invading his life.

He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and scrolled through his contacts. Who would be fun to hang out with tonight?

Four hours later he let himself back in his house, and this time he slammed the door behind him. He ended up at party thrown by a friend he worked with on Celebrity Dance, believing it would be the perfect solution to his problem. Plenty of women, plenty of whatever might take his fancy, distractions galore. Unfortunately, the only difference between now and the time when Jade left was his blood alcohol level. Well, his bad mood had escalated too. He couldn’t decide who he was more ticked off at, himself or Jade. Because of her, his usual blow-off-steam, have-some-fun tactics didn’t work like they usually did. And he still needed a cold shower. None of the women vying for his attention held any appeal. Hadn’t even turned him on the way merely thinking about Jade did. He was so screwed. And so angry about it he wanted to break something.

He let out a growl of frustration and started tearing off his clothes as he headed across his bedroom to the en suite bathroom. He was desperate enough to see if a cold shower would solve the problem with his brain as well as his libido, and grateful he could afford to pay someone to pick up after him. The way he felt right now, those clothes could stay on the floor and rot. He had the same opinion about the splint on his arm, but that he put on the counter in the bathroom. He couldn’t afford to damage his arm any further. Thankfully only another week and he’d be done with that.

He turned on the shower, adjusted the temperature to as cold as he could stand and stepped under it, sucking in his breath when the cold stream hit him. After taking a moment to get acclimatized, he grabbed the soap and started cleaning off the last remnants of the evening.

And his mind went right back to Jade like a broken record. One measly dance lesson and she’d infected his brain. Why couldn’t he stop thinking about her? At first, it was only her gorgeous legs. De nada. She wasn’t the first woman to plant those sort of visions in his head. Though he had to admit, he’d be hard-pressed to remember anyone else with legs as riveting as hers…

It didn’t take long to go from thinking about the physical to thinking about the person. Long before she arrived for her first lesson, he missed matching wits with her. Had looked forward to what she’d dish out to him. Much less the opportunity to admire her legs—with his eyes and hands.

He knew things were going to get emotional for her. That there would be issues he needed to help her cope with. He’d been dealing with that aspect of his career since Marguerite had taken him in. He’d seen it; he’d helped others through it. Hell, he’d even done a little emotional exorcising of his own. He put his past behind him with no intention of thinking about it again. Buried so deep he was confident nothing could make it resurface. He never told anyone what his mother did for a living. The only ones who knew anything were Marguerite and Beck, and that was bare bones. He was perfectly content with that part of his life buried in the past. Thriving, actually. Until her.

Though his brain wasn’t frozen into compliance, other parts of him were, so he viciously turned off the water and stepped out of the shower. He jerked a towel off the rack and dried himself with it as he headed to the bedroom. When he threw himself on the bed, not bothering to pull back the covers, Flamenco gave a yowl of complaint and jumped off it, slinking away with a dirty look.

“Ah, gatito, I’m sorry to scare you away. You sense my mood and know it’s time to hide, don’t you?”

****

“I’m so sorry I’m late. It looks like you gave up and started without me.”

Jade nodded and tried to hide her irritation. Tardiness was a habit she hadn’t been able to break Lexi of. “The seamstress has a schedule to keep, and I didn’t want to put her behind. What do you think of the dress?”

“Hey, you don’t need to use your mom voice anymore; we’re both adults.” Lexi’s eyes narrowed as she looked Jade over. She walked around the circular platform where Jade stood to view the dress from all sides. She rubbed the lilac silk between her fingers and when she sighed, Jade’s stomach dropped. “Geez, I don’t know. It seemed so perfect the first time you tried it on.”

“You wouldn’t shut up about it. You don’t seriously think it’s no good now.”

“I’m just not feeling it today, Jay-Jay. Besides, when we picked it out, we weren’t planning on your dancing in it.”

The seamstress stopped fiddling with the dress and stepped back when Jade growled, “Lexi.”

“Don’t you start. You said you want me to have the perfect wedding.”

Jade bit back the words that rose in her throat. So they were going down this road today.

“I do, I really do. And I think this dress is perfect. It’s the color and style you want, and it’s comfortable and flattering, so I like it. What more do you need?”

“A fuller, shorter skirt and a color that doesn’t wash you out. That lilac shade is too pale.”

“Excuse me.” Jade and Lexi looked at the seamstress. “Would you like me to get a salesperson to help you find a different dress? She can also let you know how long it will take to order it.”

They spoke at the same time.

“No.”

“Yes.”

“Lexi, please. This dress is wonderful; the color is the exact one you picked for the wedding. Now, if it was your dress, I could see changing your mind because you’re the center of attention, but mine isn’t that important. Let’s stick with this one and save everyone’s time.”

“You want me to ask Han what he thinks about your dancing in this?”

Jade rubbed her temples; the classical music playing over the speakers of the shop suddenly seemed unbearably loud. “Lord no. Don’t involve Han in this.” She wasn’t prepared to deal with him yet. She was still emotionally reeling from her dance lesson’s unexpected turn.

Too late. Lexi had snapped a picture with her phone and texted him. “Done.”

What were the odds he didn’t have his phone with him? Lexi’s text alert went off. Looked like zero.

“He says you look lo…Geez, it’s in Spanish.” She walked over and showed her the text. “Do you know what that means?”

“Um…” Good enough to eat. No way in hell would she translate that for her little sister. Even if she was an adult on the verge of getting married.

Lexi laughed. “I bet it’s something sexy. If I wasn’t so in love with Beck, I’d probably melt at Han’s feet. For you, the blush is a good sign. Does he know you speak fluent Spanish?”

She lifted one shoulder and suppressed a twinge of guilt as she recalled his muttered prayer in the elevator. “I’m not sure. Doesn’t matter anyway. The rest of his text is in English and says, plain as day, it won’t work.”

“Told you. Time to go shopping.”

Jade groaned. How many dresses would she have to try on this time? She hated clothes shopping. “Needs must, I suppose.”

“I wonder if Han can help us pick something out.”

As much as she’d enjoy seeing Han—which she was loathe to admit, even to herself—the idea of him watching her try on dresses freaked her out. “You do that and I will not only quit the dance lessons, I’ll quit the wedding.”

Lexi laughed again. “Me thinks Han may be more than you can handle. And I have yet to see anything you can’t handle. If I didn’t think it would affect my wedding, I’d tell him to get over here and help us.” She shook her head. “Hurry up and get back in your own clothes so we can start looking.”

A customer squeaked some hangers along a rack and Jade cringed. The idea of looking through a bunch of dresses again was daunting. “Lexi, I’m no good at that kind of stuff. Can’t I just sit here and wait while you find some for me to try on?”

“I like having you with me to bounce ideas off. Plus, maybe you’ll learn something along the way that will help you pick better clothes for yourself.”

“I don’t care about that. Business clothes for the office and comfortable things for home. I’m all set.” She briefly closed her eyes. “I’m going to need a glass of champagne.”

Lexi chuckled. “I’ll let the proprietor know. I’m surprised you didn’t ask for one the minute you walked in here like you did last time when we picked out your dress.” She scowled. “Come with me, Jay-Jay, or I’m going to nominate you for that show…What’s it called again?”

Jade kept her mouth shut. She knew exactly which show that was. She’d been sucked into it for one season. It hadn’t helped her pick out clothes or given her a desire to do so.

Lexi snapped her fingers. “What Not to Wear.”

“It’s off the air, so your threat is no good.” Jade sighed and stepped off the platform. Another battle lost. Had she given in to her so often Lexi had her wrapped around her finger? Tears and slamming doors echoed through her mind. No, she’d just gotten tired of the fight by the time Lexi went to college. Plus, it was her wedding. She was allowed to change her mind as many times as she wanted. “You win. Back in a minute.”

Half an hour later, her glass of champagne was empty, and the changing room was filled with a dozen dresses for her to try on, a few in varying shades of purple. The rest fit the lesser colors Lexi chose for her wedding. Grabbing one at random, she put it on, not an easy task because of the cut of the dress, which was another reason she picked her clothes for comfort rather than style, and headed out of the dressing room to parade before Lexi and the saleswoman.

“This one looks good; how about we go with it?”

The dress fit well—meaning it didn’t hang like a sack. The full skirt hit just below the knees. With her height, they usually hit a lot higher up the thigh. Another reason she owned only one dress. The black one which Han hated. Used to own.

“Horrible! And before you waste any more time trying things on that won’t work, I want to have a look at the rest of the dresses you picked out.”

Han. She might kill her sister before the wedding even took place. She took in a deep breath, tried to relax her shoulders and prayed anger hadn’t turned her face red.

“I swear Jay-Jay, I didn’t ask him to come. He just showed up a few minutes ago.”

“Then how did he know where we were?”

Lexi bit her lip and looked down at her hands for a moment. “I may have told him.”

“So you did—”

“No. I didn’t.”

“Chicas, stop bickering. When I asked Lexi what bridal shop you were at, she didn’t know I intended to come. Now, can we get on with what we’re here to do?”

Lexi put a hand on his arm. “Han, you really didn’t have to come. I feel bad, taking up your time like this. You’ve already done enough with the dance lessons. I do know what I’m doing when it comes to fashion.”

“I don’t doubt that for a minute, Lexi, but there’s more involved here than picking out a bridesmaid’s dress.”

Jade ground her teeth. “Just because you’re in the wedding doesn’t mean you can dictate to Lexi what dress to choose. What makes you think it’s okay to come here uninvited and take over?”

She bit her lip. It was not her intention to make things worse for Lexi, but the thought of Han looking her over in each dress made her squirm. And something else she couldn’t put her finger on. Han’s hot gaze raked her face. Was it anger or passion? Jade wasn’t sure which one would be better, but she did know the tingling sensation it lit inside her was something she didn’t want.

He relaxed his stance and sighed. “Chica, it wasn’t my intent to upset Lexi, or you, but you need to remember that a celebrity is part of this wedding, which changes things more than you may realize. For myself, Han, I don’t care what dress you choose. Lexi, you have good judgment, and as long as Jade can dance comfortably, I’m good. For Alejandro Rivera, this is a different thing. People will only look at the celebrity, not the friend. Judgments will be made about what I am wearing, what my partner is wearing, and how well I was able to teach Jade to dance. The media will be there to take pictures and write up a story—”

“Oh hell, no! Lexi’s wedding is not going to be some publicity stunt for you. Is that why you offered the free dance lessons?”

Han swiped a hand down his face. “I’m guessing Lexi didn’t tell you.”

“Jade, it’s okay. Beck and I have already talked about this with Han, the day after he offered the lessons.” She placed a hand on Jade’s arm. “It will be an exclusive story, to one magazine, and they will only be at the reception to cover the dancing.”

Jade lifted an eyebrow, wishing her champagne glass wasn’t empty. “Well, that’s a relief…”

Lexi nodded and continued, “By offering the exclusive, the wedding won’t become a media event once the public knows Han is involved, and he’ll have some security there in addition to the security provided by Greystone Manor. It’s part of the territory with being a celebrity and we realized, when Beck decided to ask Han to be the best man, there would be some kind of media circus over it, before the dancing even became part of it.”

Jade looked up at the ceiling for a moment. She was not going to explode. She was not. If Lexi was okay with all the insanity surrounding Alejandro Rivera, she needed to be, too. Still, it would have been nice if someone had clued her in before now.

“So, that being the case, it’s my reputation on the line here. On top of which, I have experience with this kind of thing. I’ve picked out dance costumes since I was a teenager. Part of my job on Celebrity Dance is designing outfits for the dance numbers I choreograph.” He stopped, glanced around the nearly empty store, a look of relief on his face as he glanced at his watch. “Can we get back to what we’re here for?”

****

What started out as a simple, half-hour fitting turned into an afternoon marathon of trying on an endless parade of gowns, only to end up squirming beneath Han’s critical gaze. The color was too dark or too light. The sleeves were too puffy or too long. The skirt was too straight or too full. As far as Jade was concerned they were being too picky.

She saved the current number for last, mainly because it was strapless and she didn’t have the chest to hold it up. Other than that, once she put the dress on, she felt like it could be the one. It was the right colors for the wedding; the bright purple and celery-green chiffon made her eyes glow. The different colors of fabric crisscrossed around the bodice, then blended into a full, mid-calf skirt. Crystal rhinestones, laid out in a swirling floral pattern at the waist, were more bling than she’d ever wear, but they emphasized her small waist and highlighted curves she never realized she had. If only she filled out the top a little better…

Hand splayed across her chest to keep the dress from falling down or gaping open, she left the dressing room, praying Han hadn’t found something else for her to try on. The look in Han’s eyes when she came out of the dressing area sent sparks zinging down her spine. She lowered her lashes and couldn’t bring herself to look at him again.

“I hope this is the one, because I really need to get something to eat. It’s got to be dinner time by now.” Jade’s stomach growled. Even if it wasn’t dinner time, she needed food. “Although I’m not too sure about the dress staying up, ever, never mind while I’m dancing. Some kind of miracle will have to be performed.”

Lexi giggled. “Seamstresses can do all kinds of amazing things. I think the dress is perfect if the top can be fixed. What do you think, Han?”

He walked towards her and her stomach flipped. Several more times too by the time he reached her. He was going to touch her and she had to act normal. She still had no clue what that was with him. Taking her hand, he helped her step down off the platform and led her to one of the many mirrors in the room. After positioning her in front of it, he stepped behind her. It wasn’t a new sight. She’d seen reflections of them close together during their dance lessons. So why did it get her all flustered now?

“Hmmm…I do like it.”

Without warning, he took the back of the bodice in his good hand and pulled it tight across her chest. As his eyes perused the picture she made in the mirror, the look in them changed from critical to satisfied. He bent his head a fraction and whispered, “Si, chica. In this dress, you look good enough to eat for dinner and dessert. Tailored to the right size, it will show your figure in all its glory. It may even make Beck think he picked the wrong sister.”

In the mirror’s reflection, she saw the color rush to her cheeks and resisted the urge to cover them with her hands. The heat of his body enveloped her from behind; the merest touch of a knuckle against her bare skin made her go weak in the knees. She fought the desire to lean back against him. When he ran a finger down her hot cheek and rested the hand on her shoulder, she nearly sighed in ecstasy.

It didn’t bode well for the near future, and she didn’t like the physical power he had over her. How could he make her melt with the mere touch of his hands and his breath in her ear? Watching him in the mirror as he whispered in her ear had been a bad idea. It was the sexiest picture she’d ever seen. The fact she was part of that picture made it even more so.

“I doubt that. So, is this the one?” She forced her gaze from the reflection of her and Han to Lexi. “What do you think?”

“I think that I wish I’d been the one to pick out that dress. It’s perfect. Rather, once it’s tailored, it’ll be perfect. I’ll go get a seamstress to take your measurements and set up a time for another fitting.”

Jade nearly sagged with relief. If it hadn’t meant she’d end up leaning against Han, she would have. “Okay, I agree with both of you that this dress looks great.”

“Oh my God, I believe in miracles. Jade actually likes a dress. Han, I am seriously impressed with your skills.”

Jade held up a hand. “Whoa, there. Just because it looks like a dream doesn’t mean I’m happy with it. Can you guarantee the thing won’t fall down while I’m dancing in front of a room full of people and the media?”

Han nodded, and she felt his hair brush hers with the movement. He really was too close, but she couldn’t muster up the desire to make him move. Besides, he was holding up her dress.

“This I will promise,” he said, his voice deeper and his accent thicker than usual. “If the seamstress here can’t do it, then I will take it to the costume department at Celebrity Dance and have them take care of things.”

Jade’s shoulders relaxed. “Okay then. Thank God that’s over. Lexi, you’re treating me to dinner at our favorite Mexican place. I need food. It’s been a very taxing afternoon.”

Han raised his brows. “I hope it’s because of trying on all those dresses and not because of me.”

“No comment.”