Total pages in book: 61
Estimated words: 56831 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 284(@200wpm)___ 227(@250wpm)___ 189(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 56831 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 284(@200wpm)___ 227(@250wpm)___ 189(@300wpm)
But what followed wasn’t strip club-style entertainment. Not by a long shot. Instead, Dare performed like a cross between a ballet dancer and an Olympic gymnast. It was an amazing combination of grace and athleticism, and wow was I intimidated. We obviously weren’t supposed to compare ourselves to the expert, but I knew I’d never be that good, not even if I practiced every day for the rest of my life.
Then the class got underway. Dare was joined by two assistants, and we were broken into three sections. Timothy and I were at one end with the beginners, and surprisingly, Nana and her friends were down at the other end with the more experienced students.
The next hour could best be described as humbling. This was only Timothy’s second class, but he picked up everything right away. Meanwhile, I flailed, perspired, fell on my ass a few times, and generally made a mess of the whole thing.
To make matters worse, when the class ended, I heard applause from the back of the room. I looked around and sighed when I spotted Adriano and Jack standing with Adriano’s half-brother, Dante Dombruso. “I’m thrilled I had an audience for that,” I muttered, as I wiped my forehead with the back of my hand.
As I made my way across the studio, I couldn’t help but notice the similarities between my brother and Dante. While Adriano and I looked nothing alike, those two were unmistakably brothers. They were both huge guys with dark hair, slightly prominent noses, and strong jawlines, and they were currently sporting matching short beards and very similar black suits.
Adriano had only met Dante and the rest of his dad’s family three months ago, but they’d grown close in that short time. I was still processing the fact that he had a bunch of new family members in his life, including four half-brothers. Even though I wasn’t related to them at all, the Dombrusos had been trying their best to make me feel included. Meanwhile, I was trying my best not to be completely intimidated by them, especially Dante.
When I reached them, I asked, “What’re you doing here?”
“Nana texted us.” Adriano pulled his phone from his pocket and held it up so he could read the screen. “And I quote, ‘Get your asses down to my dance class pronto! Your cute brother is here, and we all need to go out to lunch after this because I’m ducking hungry.’ That text was followed by four more. The first three said ‘ducking,’ and the last one said ‘what the duck!’ Autocorrect is clearly winning.”
That was hilarious, but I had to remind myself to smile. Since I was supposed to meet Marcus, I tried to think of a good excuse to get out of lunch. The best I could do was, “I’m sweaty and gross, and I’m dressed in ratty workout clothes. I can’t go out to eat like this.”
Nana joined us just then and exclaimed, “You shouldn’t care what people think! If somebody says they don’t like the way you’re dressed, tell them to kiss your ass! But if you’re worried about it, we’ll go have lunch at my house instead. I’ll call and order up a nice deli platter, and I’ll send one of my boys to go get it for us.” She pulled a phone out of her bra and started stabbing it with a fingertip and squinting at it, until Jack offered to send the text for her.
There was no graceful way to bow out of this, so I agreed to go before telling them I needed five minutes to clean up a bit. I grabbed my things, and as soon as I was alone in the men’s room, I sent a text to Marcus. It said: I’m so sorry, but I have to cancel seeing you today. I’ve gotten roped into a family thing and can’t get out of it. Can we please try again tomorrow, same place and time? His reply was sweet and understanding, but I knew he had to be disappointed, just like I was.
Timothy burst into the restroom just then, and I jumped and dropped my phone. Fortunately, it didn’t break when it hit the floor. As I picked it up and shoved it in my pocket, he grinned and said, “You’re up to something.”
“No, I’m not.” The fact that my cheeks were burning and probably bright red told a different story.
“You are. Who were you messaging, your ex-boyfriend? I heard a little more of the story last night after you left. Jack didn’t go into detail, but I could tell your family really hates this guy.”
“Um…”
“That’s a yes. So, is he even an ex, or have you secretly been seeing him this whole time behind their backs?”
“It’s complicated. Please don’t tell anyone, okay?”
“I won’t say a word, I promise.”