The ballerina smiles anxiously and tries to emulate what Calum says. He shakes his head. “No. No! Stop, everyone stop. Look at me.”
He shoos away the dancers standing next to the Latina, taking first position.
It’s the first time that I’ve ever considered whether or not Calum actually knew what he was talking about, if I’m honest. But he is pure grace and holds the perfect form when he plies, slowly going through the motions. His arm arches, his legs bend, his back is straight as a steel beam.
My jaw drops a little. I had no idea that Calum was so versatile; honestly, from the looks of him, you would think that he was an elegantly shaped football star, not a dancer.
What a way to prove me wrong. Calum finishes the pose and then steps away from the barre, eyeing everyone. “Just so there is no confusion, I can do pretty much anything I ask you to do. So when I say bend back further or hold the position longer, I know it is possible.”
Bas seems unimpressed. “Thank you, Calum. Now, if we may resume class? And one, two, three, four…”.
It’s hard to tear my eyes away from Calum. I’m focused on not fucking up something so simple as a plie in front of him, though.
He casts his gaze over me and frowns. “Straighten your back. Push out your tailbone.” Mortified, I immediately turn red and try to correct myself. Calum lifts a brow. “Are you kidding? Act like you’re been in a fucking dance studio before.”
Tears well up in my eyes. I look straight ahead, desperate not to cry in front of everyone. At the same time, the class keeps moving through the plies.
Everyone is perfectly at attention. Calum keeps his harsh gaze on me for a few seconds. “Not good, but better.”
Then he turns his head, scoping out another dancer, and moves on. The whole class moves on, through plies and arabesques and fouetté turns. The entire time, Calum struts around the room, unhappy with each and every silhouette that he sees.
I’m the only one that gets multiple nasty comments, though.
“Your feet are all wrong. You should move nimbly instead of looking like Frankenstein’s monster.”
“No, no, no. When I say execute a grand jeté, I mean really go for it. Don’t be fucking hesitant. The audience has no time for you to be timid.”
He stops me mid-class, staring at my feet. “Go get a new pair of shoes from the shoe room. This is the New York Ballet, not a dance recital put on by medieval peasants. I expect you to dress like you belong here.”
My eyes well up with tears. Nodding, I run out of the room, making it out of there before I burst into tears. I miss almost ten minutes of class because I have trouble finding a pair that are just the right size.
When I sneak back in, Calum shoots me a glare. I gulp and rejoin the rest of the class.
By the end of the afternoon, I’m barely keeping it together. To be fair, several dancers do start crying or get upset and leave in the middle of the class. But after my mini-breakdown, I stay resolute.
This is my shot at greatness. I’m not going to blow it for anyone, especially not Calum.
When class is finally over, Basil claps for the remaining dancers present.
“Very good! Tomorrow we start learning a new routine,” he announces. Sliding a look at Calum, he purses his lips. “And my colleague will probably go a little easier on you tomorrow. Right?”
Calum looks unimpressed, stalking away to where he set his water bottle down. I expel a long breath and look around for Ella.
She’s already shouldering her duffel bag. “I have to go. I have a doctor’s appointment that I’m almost definitely going to be late for.”
Nodding, I blot my eyes. “See you tomorrow.”
She flashes me a hard smile and hurries out the door.
I turn toward my bag and find Eric there, waiting patiently. “Hey.” I tuck a strand of my hair behind my ear.
My cheeks start glowing a hot pink when I think of Calum standing just on the other side of the studio, watching me.
Eric shoulders his bag, smiling at me tiredly. “I thought I would walk you out today.”
My blush spreads to my neck and my chest. I have a thing for Eric, but I also have made some promises to Calum. “Oh.” I glance back but Calum isn’t even in the room anymore. Letting out a sigh of relief, I nod. “Yeah. Let’s go.”
I snag my own bag and hurry out of the studio, licking my lips apprehensively. Sure enough, when I step out of the room, I see Calum. He’s leaning against the opposite wall, his arms crossed, his expression bordering on hateful.
And he’s glaring right at me. “Kaia? A word.”
My eyes widen. I glance helplessly at Eric, my heart beginning to pound. He shrugs.
“Want me to stay?” he asks quietly.
Do I want my crush to hear what my strip club patron has to say to me? Definitely not.
“No,” I say, forcing a smile. “Thanks anyway. I’ll catch you later.”
Calum stays put for a moment, watching Eric with a disapproving expression. The last stragglers from my class walk past me; soon we are alone in the echoing hallway.
Calum pushes himself off of the wall and strides over to me. I look up at him, losing my breath. He’s so much taller than I am and he still has well-defined arms and sculpted physique that one would expect of a dancer.
He stops when he’s a foot away. But I can practically feel the heat radiating off him like a torch.
He casts a glance down the hallway, where Eric went. “You can’t fuck him. You know that, right?”
My eyes widen at that. “Who said anything about that?”
His searingly blue eyes find my face and tighten on it. “I’m telling you right now. You won’t fuck him, not while you’re…” He pauses, looking around to be sure we are not overheard. “Under contract. I forbid it.”
I shake my head, rolling my eyes. “You can’t forbid me from anything.”
He clenches his water bottle so hard that it groans. “Don’t test my patience on this, beauty. You’ll see. I can do whatever I want, to whomever I want to do it to.”
I cross my arms and cock my hip. “Of that I have exactly zero doubts.”
He digs in his duffel bag and produces a note, wrapped around a hundred dollar bill. “Be at my home address tonight at seven. Don’t you dare be late.” His gaze drops down to my body, his lips twisting. “And wear something that turns me the fuck on.”
With only those instructions, Calum sends me a last little glare and starts walking down the hall.
“Tonight?” I call out after him.
But he doesn’t stop, doesn’t acknowledge that there was even a question asked.
I crumple the money and the note in my fist, infuriated.
14
Kaia
I clear my throat and adjust the belt on my secondhand trench coat as I step off the elevator on the top floor of the address that Calum gave me. Stepping into a eerie white space, I look around. The room is lit from a strip of lighting that blends in with the wall; the floors are black stone. Just twenty paces away is a door that’s ajar. But other than that, there are no clues for me to follow.
Definitely no sign of Calum.
My heart thrums in my chest as I move toward the doorway. The only sound is the click of my heels as I cross the dark granite floor.