The second woman nodded. “I haven’t been dancing long. I love to learn new routines.”
“Excellent,” Julia said crisply. “We might as well start now.”
She strode up onto the stage and stood in front of a pole. “Start the music please, Christina.”
“Wait for us,” Maggie said, coming running. Susan followed swiftly behind and they took their places in front of a pole. Christina started the music and joined them. Julia took them through a grueling training session, starting with the basics just as her mother had shown her.
Finally, she took them through a cool-down and strode over to stop the music.
“Next time I’m bringing my workout gear,” Maggie said. “That was harder than the gym sessions Connor designed for me.”
“You’ll need a pair of heels too. Black if possible, so you get used to dancing in shoes rather than flats,” Julia said. “Guys love a woman’s legs in heels.”
“I’ll vouch for that,” Ryan said.
Julia blew out a breath. “I didn’t realize you were still here.”
“Wouldn’t have missed it,” he said. “Great job. You girls are quick learners.”
“We have a way to go yet.” Julia turned to speak to her new employees. She didn’t seem to have put them off. “Can you both make it here around two tomorrow afternoon?”
They assured her they could and left.
“I won’t be able to move tomorrow,” Susan said. “My muscles are seizing up.”
“Take a hot bath when you get home,” Julia said. “I want you fighting fit tomorrow at nine.”
Her friends left for the day, leaving her alone with Ryan.
“What do you think?” she asked. “Is this fixable?” Although she’d hated working here and living above the club as a child, this time seemed different. The club was part of her family history, and she was the last of the Maxwell line. She owed it to her mother and the other family members who had worked to keep the place alive, despite the obstacles.
“As long as you can get the right staff,” Ryan said.
She nodded, glad he wasn’t offering platitudes. “That will be the hardest part. None of those dancers were up to the standards Mum set when I worked here.”
“We’ll do it.”
“I thought you needed to work on your music. You did stuff for me all day.”
“I wrote a lot of music during the tour. While the others partied, I spent hours writing new material.”
“What about the photos on the Internet?”
“I attended some of the after concert parties, the ones I couldn’t get out of. You must know how the paparazzi operate. They pay women to drape themselves around us, and try to take off the masks we use when we do publicity. I try to discourage the touchy-feely stuff, but it doesn’t always work.”
A flash of the last photo she’d seen blasted to the forefront of her mind. The lip lock. Ryan’s hands gripping the woman’s shoulders and drawing her closer. A shudder ran through her, and she tried to force the image away. It refused to shift, hovering like the smell of a putrid egg.
It wasn’t Ryan’s fault he’d come last in the line of rotten bad-boys. It wasn’t fair to cast him in the same group as the others who’d kicked her down when it suited them. Cheated, lied and given her an STD.Her mind froze at the last thought, jagged pain hacking at her psyche.
“We always attend those parties in full disguise, using our masks instead of our stage makeup. How do you know it was me?”
She puffed out a hard breath, struggled to regain her equilibrium. “Please. You think I can’t recognize my husband when I see him?”
A little of the devil shone in his eyes again. “Good to hear.”
“Besides, you all have your initials on the masks. I saw the D.”
“Oh.” The teasing left him, a trace of frustration coming to the surface. “The photo might have been manipulated or taken out of context. Some of the women test our boundaries.”
“You think?” Oh, he was quick. She turned away, unable to watch his expression. He said he hadn’t done it on purpose while she’d decided the suggestive photo was a sign he wanted out of their marriage.
He said nothing of an accusatory nature, yet her lack of trust must have cut deep. An apology—it wouldn’t be enough. “I’m sorry. It was hard to hold onto trust when you were incommunicado. When you’re alone your mind twists everything.”
“Don’t. Don’t, sweetheart.” He marched to her, pulling her into the circle of his arms. She pressed her cheek against his chest, the ache in her chest so painful she wanted to cry out. She’d gone into her marriage with the intention of forever. But this—this showed her how little she’d invested in their marriage, how easily she’d given up on her husband.
“It’s all right,” Ryan murmured.
She lifted her head to stare at him. “How can it be?”
“We have a second chance,” he said. “Most people don’t get this opportunity, and we shouldn’t waste it.”
