They were only halfway through this first dress rehearsal and Shannon was acting as if the little girls were about to appear on Broadway for the first time.
Worried that she’d inadvertently tease her sister about putting stage moms to shame, Kimber elected to stay near the dressing room. She had lots of experience with changing clothes quickly and it was as far from Shannon as she could get.
“Kimber, I need that mouse now!”
It was not far enough. Looking at little Natalie, who was holding the Mouse King head while patiently waiting for Kimber to attach her tail, groaned. “Miss Shannon is sure mean tonight, Miss Kimber.”
“She doesn’t mean to be. She’s just excited,” Kimber said as she turned Natalie back around. “You don’t have anything to worry about now, though. Your tail is on.”
Natalie giggled. “Now all I’ve got to do is put this big head on.”
Kimber stood up and helped her pop it over her head. “Perfect.”
“Mouse King! Now!”
“Eek!” Natalie said before scampering to the stage.
When the music started again, Kimber glanced at her notes. “Sugar Plums, you girls ready?”
Shannon’s five Sugar Plums, who were the most experienced dancers, stood up and gracefully walked to the door in their toe shoes. Shannon and Gwen had sewn the most beautiful long white tulle tutus for them and the girls looked like willowy angels.
“You girls look perfect. Miss Shannon is going to be pleased. Now, has everyone checked the ribbons on your shoes?” Shannon had warned her that sometimes the girls would forget to secure the ribbons and they could loosen and cause the dancers to fall or injure themselves.
“Yep, we’re all set,” Bethany replied.
Kimber leaned close. “You look beautiful. I bet almost as pretty as you’re going to look tomorrow night at the dance.”
Bethany beamed. “Thanks.” After making sure that the other girls weren’t listening, she whispered. “Does Jeremy seem excited?”
“Gunnar told me they went shopping for new clothes. Since they’re guys, I’d say that’s a sure sign that Jeremy’s looking forward to it.”
Bethany giggled. “Good.”
“Sugar Plums?” Shannon called out.
“Break a leg,” Kimber said as they glided out in perfect unison.
As the music turned to the final round of the “Waltz of the Flowers,” Kimber leaned against one of the pillars off to the side and watched them perform their dance. They looked like true ballerinas and were moving in sync. Each of their steps looked flawless—well, as far as she could tell.
“You look a little wistful, sweetheart,” Gunnar said as he approached. “Are you wishing you were up there or remembering a dance recital of your own?”
“Neither,” she said with a smile. “I can’t help but feel proud of those girls though. They look lovely. And, guess what? Jeremy’s Bethany is dancing now.”
Peeking over at them, his expression softened. “They do look real pretty.” Leaning toward her, he pressed a quick kiss to her forehead. “Almost as pretty as you.”
She was dressed in black leggings, a light pink Dance With Me T-shirt, and scuffed black flats. Her hair was in a ponytail and she most likely had half her mascara sliding down her cheeks. “Thanks,” she said. He was helping to her to see that beauty had nothing to do with looks and everything to do with the happiness that shined out of a person.
“Thank you. When did you get here?”
“About an hour ago.”
“Really? I didn’t see you come in.”
“I wanted to talk to Dylan and Traci for a minute. Then me and Matt were upstairs trying to get some of the lights to work.”
Matt was Traci’s husband. He was an obstetrician. “Does he know much about electric work?”
“Nope, but it turns out his dad is pretty handy. He came too.”
“This really is a family affair.”
He grinned. “We’ve all been saying the same thing. It’s great.”
“I’m surprised Jeremy isn’t here.”
“He might want to see Bethany, but he’s a fifteen-year-old boy. He’s staying as far away as possible from all those girls.”
“I don’t blame him. Ah, do I want to know why you met with Traci and Dylan? Did something happen that I don’t know about?”
His open expression became more guarded. “Not at all. Just better to be on the safe side, right?”
She nodded but still felt compelled to add. “If something is going on I have the right to know about it . . .”
“Of course you do. But it’s just a precaution.”
It was hard for her not to argue but she’d promised herself to stop questioning everything. She nodded instead.
“Time for bows and curtsies. Where are the Russians?”
“I’ve got them!” Gwen called out from the other side of the stage. She and Traci had been in charge of the little ones, which was perfect since Officer Traci Lucky excelled at crowd control.
“Do you need to go out there and help?”
Kimber looked at the glob of children all either hopping around or waving to their parents, who were all taking about a million pictures with their smart phones. “No way. I’m on dressing room duty and that’s where I’m going to stay.”
“Kimber!”
“Yeah, I don’t think so,” Gunnar said just as she ran out to join the others.
As soon as Shannon flagged her over, Gunnar leaned his head back against the brick wall and pulled out his phone to check messages.
He hadn’t lied to Kimber, not exactly. But she had received another note. Traci had intercepted it when it arrived in today’s mail and opened it after taking it into the station. It had been just as threatening as the others. But it had also mentioned a Nutcracker Prince, which had given them enough alarm bells that they decided to attend both the dress rehearsals and the recital.
Traci had argued with Gunnar when he’d suggested they simply skirt Kimber away until the play was over. She’d stressed that Kimber needed to live her life, Shannon needed both of them, and furthermore . . . she didn’t want Kimber to know about the latest message.
Gunnar had argued, saying that Kimber wasn’t going to appreciate being left in the dark, but Traci had been too worried about Kimber’s state of mind to consider letting her know.
Gunnar supposed she had a point. Only now, two weeks after getting home, did Kimber look like herself. She hadn’t been sleeping and had been extremely jumpy.