I push down my tingling excitement. “Show me what you’ve got.”
He steps away, still holding on to one of my hands. He does some fancy move where we pass each other in oppositedirections. There’s a brief moment where our hands break apart as he switches which hand is holding mine. Anyone watching wouldn’t be able to tell, but I noticed. It’s impossible not to notice a moment where I lose Jax’s touch, no matter how brief.
When our hands reconnect, he spins me around with a wide grin on his face. Then we’re back to where we started, chest to chest.
The whole move lasts less than five seconds, but when we stop, we’re both breathing heavily. Our gazes lock, and the smile on his face brings one to mine as well. Our fingers remain laced together, and I don’t want to pull them apart. This feels so natural.
I want to spend the rest of the day and all of forever with his hand in mine. I don’t care if they get clammy. I wouldn’t even care if someone told me right now that I had to choose between holding hands with Jax or eating an ice cream sundae. My hand is meant to fit in Jax’s.
Something in his soft eyes makes it clear that the flicker of excitement I’m feeling isn’t just in my head. He’s feeling it too. I open my mouth, but Betsy’s mic squeals in the speakers as she makes her way back to the front of the dance floor and begins instructing again.
She demonstrates the next move in the sequence with the help of a volunteer. As Jax and I reset, my fingertips vibrate.
Throughout the rest of the lesson, the seconds pass in slow motion so that I can feel Jax’s presence on every inch of my skin, but the minutes fly by.
We finish the last of the sequence just as Betsy claps her hands together, announcing, “That’s it for today. Great work everyone! Don’t forget to practice. It truly does make perfect. I hope to see y’all again soon.”
We clear the dance floor, and I follow Jax back to the bar where I figure I’ll reconvene with my friends.
Jorge greets us at the bar, a look of defeat on his face. “I should’ve been the one out there. I need to up my game so I can have a chance with the ladies for once.” He crouches below the bar then quickly pops back up. “Do we have more paper towels, or do I need to make a trip to the store tomorrow?”
Jax rolls his eyes, plowing past him to conduct his own search.
Heather, one of the other bartenders, steps in. “Your lack of dance skills isn’t the reason you don’t get the ladies, Jorge. Besides, from what I hear, Jax has been out of the game for a few months.” She shifts her gaze to me, a smirk on her lips. “Now I see why. I heard y’all were at the diner together the other night too.”
“Oh, that was nothing.” I swat the rumor away.
Heather mixes a drink with her lips pressed together. “Sure.” Lowering her voice, she says, “I’ve seen the way he looks at you. It’s not like the other women he’s picked up.”
“Jax and I are just bonded because of Charlie,” I explain as Jax comes back, tossing a roll of paper towels to Jorge.
Callie, Olivia, and Rhett come up behind me, Callie slapping a hand on my shoulder. “What’d you think of your first swing dance lesson? Was it everything you hoped it’d be?”
“And more,” I tease.
“I bet,” she mutters under her breath.
I narrow my eyes at her and turn away, not willing to have this conversation, especially not with so many nosey people around.
“Should we head out?” Rhett asks, pulling his keys from his pocket.
“Yeah, I just need to pee real quick.” I spin on my heel toward the bathrooms.
“Do you want company?” Olivia asks.
“Don’t be ridiculous. I’ll be fine.”
I cross the bar, use the restroom, and am barreling out of the women’s room when I bump into Jax’s chest.
“Oh, sorry.” Out of habit, I throw my hands up to Jax’s firm chest. When I look up at him, my breath catches, and I find myself rooted to the ground. “I guess I’m a bit of a klutz today.”
His chest vibrates against my hands as he chuckles. His smile fades, and he grabs my arm, pulling me to the side of the hallway and even closer to him as Ms. Sanchez comes down the hall behind me.
Once she’s in the restroom, Jax turns to me. “I saw what happened with your other partner. The lesson wasn’t the right time to talk about it, but I’m proud of you for sticking up for yourself.”
“Thank you.” My voice is small.He’s proud of me?I lost my temper! It doesn’t matter if he’s a jerk or if he reminded me of my ex. He’s still a human being. I should’ve shoved my feelings aside and helped get him some ice.
“Hopefully today showed you that you don’t need to fix everyone else all the time. Not everything is on you. You can let things be imperfect.”
