"You do that," Luc said, clipping his words. He opened his laptop back up, turned away from Adam and hunched his shoulders.
Adam sighed. He really did hate the animosity between them, but it was obvious to him that it wasn't going to ebb any time soon.
Chapter Eleven
Luc
As he sat in the kitchen, Luc could hear music resonating from within the cellar. It thrummed against his bare feet. He longed to sneak downstairs to watch Adam dance. It had been years since he had. He had beautiful memories of Adam's dancing that he cherished.
"Morning," Ken said as he wandered into the kitchen. "Is that Adam downstairs?"
Luc nodded. "Who else?"
He watched as Ken started to make himself a sandwich for lunch. Luc's mum was out with some of her friends.
"Actually, Dad, I was wondering if I could talk to you."
Ken raised his eyebrows as he sat down and took a bite of his sandwich. "Shoot," he said around the mouthful of food.
"Adam put a lot of work into those lesson ideas—"
"I know."
"You are thinking about it seriously, aren't you?"
Ken nodded.
"I know you're not keen on the idea but opening the school up to toddlers will bring in money that you desperately need."
Ken scowled, dropping his sandwich onto the plate, allowing a dollop of mayonnaise to escape. "I'm well aware of how dire the money situation is, Luc."
Luc bit his tongue. He was also aware of how stubborn his dad could be and how he'd dig his heels in if he felt pressured.
"Have you considered offering a free trial lesson to anyone interested in joining the school?" he asked, jumping to another idea he knew Ken hadn't been a fan of.
"Your mum thinks we should," Ken said, retrieving his sandwich. "So that's what we'll do."
Luc smiled. "Great. I'll get the flyers finalised and printed. Once we've got them, I'll do some leafleting runs."
"I'm sure Adam will help."
Luc doubted that very much, but he nodded anyway. He stood. "I'd better go check your social media accounts. See if we've had any enquiries." He hoped they had, but it was still really early days. "When you see parents tonight, could you ask them all to like your Facebook page and share it with their friends?"
"Of course."
That would help.
"Shouldn't Adam be helping you?" Ken asked, as Luc headed towards the door.
"I don't want to disturb him. He can help later."
"He won't mind."
Luc didn't argue. He and Adam were supposed to be acting like nothing was wrong. Tiptoeing around Adam was doing the exact opposite.
He walked down the stairs to the cellar, careful not to make too much noise. He wanted to catch a glimpse of Adam dancing before his stepbrother realised he was there. The music was loud enough to vibrate through his body. It was a stirring classical piece, which made Luc's body vibrate with appreciation, even though he had no idea what it was called or who composed it. Adam was dancing around the small studio space, fluidly moving through steps and leaps. Once, Luc might have been able to name one or two of the ballet moves, but all the French words had fled from his memory; he hadn't danced since he was ten, which felt like a lifetime ago. Not that it stopped him appreciating the beauty of the steps, or how breathtaking Adam was.
Luc sat on the bottom step, not hiding, but not announcing his presence either. Adam turned towards him and caught his gaze but didn't stop or falter. Smiling, Luc leaned forward on his knees, glad that Adam felt comfortable enough to carry on dancing in front of him. Adam was wearing jogging pants and a loose-fitting T-shirt. Both garments obscured the strong curves of his body, but Luc could still see Adam's face. His expression was serene; his muscles were completely relaxed, smoothing his features. Sweat made his skin glisten under the glow of the bare lightbulb in the centre of the ceiling. Damn, he was gorgeous.
