The music changed to a traditional salsa dance, and she felt a tap on her shoulder. Fran wordlessly jabbed her finger at Cora and then pointed to Eli, who stood a few steps away from them. He shrugged, as if powerless about the obvious next step, and offered his hand to her.
“Now?” She looked at Fran, who nodded solemnly. Fran pushed her toward Eli, and he caught her as she stumbled over a chair leg.
“I’ll keep the steps simple, don’t worry,” he said into her ear as they walked to the dance floor. He led her to a small open area directly in front of the stage and right below where Santiago was banging away on his congas. Cora stopped in her tracks with a look of horror on her face at the marquee spot and was quickly trampled by two couples too engrossed in the moment to avoid her. Eli pulled her close, then put his hand on her lower back. She grasped his hand and placed her other hand on his shoulder, surprised by how solid he felt.
He looked in her eyes. “Okay, ready?”
She hoped he couldn’t feel her trembling. She nodded.
He held her confidently, stepped toward her with an exaggerated hip roll and nodded to signify that she should step backward with the same hip roll. Cora trampled his foot. It was a disastrous start, but he smiled and nodded at her. “It’s okay!”
Eli was a strong leader, using his hands to alternately push and pull Cora’s body through the steps. Even though he left a respectable distance between them—far more than what he’d given Maggie—their hips occasionally grazed when she missed the beat. She’d never touched Eli before, except for their first handshake, but here she was in his embrace, with his hand on her back and his pelvis accidentally bumping hers.
Cora stared at her feet to try to stay on rhythm. Eli squeezed her hand to get her attention and leaned in close. She caught a hint of his woodsy cologne again. “Don’t look at your feet. Watch the other dancers, that’ll help you get the beat, too.” He held her gaze for a moment. “Or you can look at me. Just don’t look down.”
Cora nodded nervously and glanced at the other dancers surrounding them, taking note of the way that the pairs seemed to communicate the moves telepathically. She didn’t realize that as she watched the other dancers her own moves were evening out. Her lack of confidence was no match for Eli’s strong lead coupled with the pounding drumline, and soon the two of them were dancing in smooth unison. Eli grinned broadly at Cora, and his joy made her smile back and try harder. She switched her hips like the other women and felt her skirt bounce up, probably exposing her underwear, but she didn’t care. In his arms, she was transformed, as graceful as the rest of the dancers.
The song ended, and Eli surprised Cora by twirling her into a dip. She felt her skirt swirl up around her hips. The inertia of the move nearly pulled her to the ground, but Eli held her in a rock solid grip. She laughed as he helped her up, giddy from their success. Cora leaned in for an impromptu hug, pressing her body tightly against his.
Eli patted her back and pulled away. “You did great! I knew there was a dancer in there somewhere.”
“It helps when you have a good leader,” Cora replied. “Thank you for that, I loved it.”
Maggie and Juan walked over to them, holding hands and laughing.
“I saw you out there, girl!” Maggie said. “You two looked amazing!”
“Give him all the credit,” Cora replied, nodding to Eli. The congas kicked back up and she glanced at him hopefully. “Let’s do it again. Want to dance with me, Eli?”
Eli looked up from his phone. “Oh, maybe in a bit? I’ve got to grab someone who just got here so I’ll be back in a few.” He walked away quickly, and Cora felt her dancer’s high fade.
Juan held his hand out to Cora. “You want to dance? You promised...”
She glanced at Maggie questioningly.
“Oh my God,pleasego dance with that animal! I’m exhausted,” Maggie said, fanning herself.
Cora took Juan’s hand and followed him to the dance floor, weaving through the tightly packed couples. He was a few inches shorter than she was, but it didn’t seem to deter him. He arranged her in his arms and started moving.
Cora glanced across the room and spotted Eli walking toward the dance floor with someone, a pretty someone, trailing behind him. She craned her neck and saw the woman reach ahead and grab his arm. He smiled and swept her up in a dancer’s embrace, pausing for a moment to find the beat. They started moving together as if they had done it many times, their comfort level with each other more than just that of two excellent dancers.
She brought her attention back to Juan, who had given up on trying any complicated moves, and seemed resigned to ride out the remainder of the song in a predictable side-to-side holding pattern. Cora looked back at Eli and studied his partner.
She was just a few inches shorter than Eli, with a long curtain of blond hair. From a distance she looked model pretty. Cora wondered what else the woman had to offer besides good looks and the ability to follow his capable lead.
“Are you with him?” Juan asked, nodding across the floor to Eli. “Do you want to make him jealous?” He shifted his shoulder back and forth to signify that he was ready to add some flavor to their moves.
Cora was embarrassed that her stalking was so obvious. “Oh, no, not at all! He’s a friend. I was trying to see if I know who he’s dancing with.”
“Ohhhh, okay.” He gave her an exaggerated wink.
The song ended, and Cora dropped Juan’s hands and smoothed down her skirt. “Gracias for the dance,” Juan said to Cora as he simultaneously scanned the crowd. “Now I’ve got to get back to that Maggie.”
“Yeah, she can do your moves justice. I told you I was a bad dancer.”
Juan focused on Cora. “What you don’t have in steps you have inanimo. Don’t stop dancing, okay? I saw the passion when you were dancing with your friend, so just keep practicing.”
“Okay,” Cora said. He kissed the top of her hand and disappeared into the crowd, leaving her alone at the edge of the dance floor.
