I whipped around quickly and planted a finger over his lips to stop him. His eyes went wide with surprise.
“No more of that,” I said with a fierce scowl that I hoped rivaled his. “I don’t want to hear the d-word cross those lips any more, got it?”
His brows arched up but my finger was still covering his lips so he stayed quiet.
I let my finger drop and reached for his hand so I was holding both of his in mine. “You keep talking about what I deserve, but what I deserve is you—a great guy. The best guy I know. The man I…” I swallowed down a wave of fear. “The man I love.”
His eyes grew wide again and for a second I thought I went too far, that I pushed too hard, but he surprised me by scooping me into his arms again with a groan. “Oh, Eve, I love you so much.”
And then he was kissing me again, right there in the hallway where anyone could see.
Where everyone did see.
“I’d say it was a success, kids,” Nora called out from the rec room doorway.
Applause broke out, along with some catcalls.
Cooper and I broke apart with a laugh.
“I guess it’s time to rejoin the dance now,” he said.
I nodded, already turning and tugging him toward the room where music was spilling out of the doorway. “I guess so. But you know what? That’s okay.”
“Yeah?” He wrapped an arm around my shoulders as we went to join our friends.
“Yeah, because this…?” I paused to go up on tiptoe to plant a kiss on his cheek, my hand coming up to cover his heart. My heart. “This is just the beginning.”
Epilogue
Cora
Dad had a weird way of singing when he drove. I wasn’t sure if it was because he had a nervous tic or the fact that both of my parents seemed to be on edge as they drove into Oakwood. They’d been nervous when they told me that they were moving me my senior year. They’d been nervous the entire time we packed up.
And now, when we were five minutes from the place I would now call home, they were nervous again.
Mom peeked over her shoulder and gave me a weary smile. “You okay, Cora?” she asked for about the millionth time today. I sighed as I kept my expression neutral and moved to stare out the window.
No matter how they sliced it, they were screwing me over. My whole life was packed up in the truck behind us. In a matter of weeks, my life as I knew it had been upended.
Sure, Mom tried to sugarcoat the move with the ballet academy. Apparently, they had a girl who had to drop out so I got the spot, but it didn’t change the fact that I knew no one here. That I’d left my friends and life in Dallas. That I was now going to be the school pariah. Everyone had their friends and their clique. They wouldn’t be interested in getting to know me.
I was going to be alone for the foreseeable future.
Yay, me.
“Nora wants to see us,” Dad whispered as he leaned closer to Mom.
Mom turned her attention over to Dad and nodded. “Really? Right now?”
I sighed as I glanced over at my parents. I knew that they were tiptoeing around me, and it was annoying. “I’m cool with seeing Grams. She’s the only reason I actually got in the car.” I stretched back and rested my head against the back of my seat.
Mom peeked back at me and then nodded. “Good idea. Mom will be excited to see us.” She proceeded to text the moving truck to let them know that we were taking a short detour.
The drive to Hazelcrest was short. It was just a few minutes into town. After Dad parked the car, I climbed out and sucked in my breath as the cold wind whipped at my face.
Winter. I was pretty sure I was never going to get used to the temperature.
I pulled my jacket closer to my body and dipped down as I hurried inside. Warmth surrounded me as I walked through the open doors. I took a moment to adjust my windblown red curls and glanced around.
Music was blaring from the open doors down the hall and I furrowed my brow as I attempted to see what was going on. The lights were dimmed and it looked as if a disco ball was spinning from the spattering of light coming from inside.
What had I just walked into?
Curiosity won over so I tiptoed toward the room. My gaze was focused on the doors and catching a glimpse inside. I was too distracted and suddenly, I rammed into what felt like a brick wall.
Except brick walls didn’t speak and they didn’t wrap their hands around your arms.
“Whoa,” the brick wall said in a deep, slightly mocking tone.
My entire body flushed with embarrassment as I wiggled away from him and straightened.
I glanced up to see a pair of dark green eyes peering down at me. He looked about my age. He had on a pair of dress slacks and a white button down shirt that was unbuttoned at the top and he had his sleeves rolled up.
His dark hair fell over his forehead in a way that made my fingers itch to swipe it away.
Whoa. Get a grip, Cora.
His charm wore off slightly and I was able to get my grip back on reality. I cleared my throat and nodded toward the rec room. “What’s going on?”
The mystery boy smiled as he followed my gesture with his gaze. “A dance.”
“A dance?”
This night was getting weirder and weirder.
The mystery boy rested one shoulder against the wall. “Yep. Do they not have dances at the local old folks home where you come from?” His lips tipped up into a half smile, causing my heart to beat a bit too fast.
“Where I come from?”
“You’re new, right?”
Great. Did I have, like, a new car scent?
I cleared my throat. “Well, um, yes.”
He straightened and leaned closer to me. His lips were inches from my ear. My entire body froze as I stood there.
“Word of advice? Get out of this town while you still can,” he said and then pulled away. He gave me a quick wink and headed down the hall and disappeared around the corner.
I stood there, rooted to the spot. What did that mean?
Mom and Dad walked through the front doors, talking and shaking off their coats. They saw me and started making their way over. “What’s going on here?” Dad asked as he peeked inside. “A dance?”
My gaze was still trained on where the mystery boy had disappeared and I was having a hard time processing anything.
“Cora,” Mom said, snapping me from my thoughts.
I startled and turned to look at her. “Yeah?”
“Your grandmother,” she said waving into the rec room where Grams was busting a move in the middle of the room.
This was a strange place. This was a strange town. And my thoughts, no matter how I tried, wouldn’t stop returning to the strange guy.
Throughout the introductions and hugs from Grams, I made a decision. And that decision was to find this guy and ask him what he meant.
I didn’t have friends, a job, or a place to belong. But I had a quest. And right now, that was what I was going to focus on.
Right now, that was all I had.
***
We hope you enjoyed Eve and Cooper’s story! We had a blast writing it and can’t wait to share Cora and Dylan’s story next.
Head on over to Amazon and grab your copy TODAY!
The Kicker and the New Girl
Book 4 of the Ballet Academy Series