A Fool's Gold Christmas (Fool's Gold #9.5)

Every part of her hurt. Her eyes were puffy, and she was pale. Falling in love was a bitch, she told herself but no one else’s problem. She had to pull it together for her girls and for the town. In less than a week, she would be done with all this and able to freak out as much as she wanted. She planned to spend the day after Christmas having an emotional meltdown. That would be the end of it. On the twenty-seventh, she would get her act together and move on with her life. What was that saying? She would fake it until she made it.

The rehearsal was due to start at two. By one forty-five all her dancers were there. Grace, the lithe, talented star of the school, had gathered the girls who had the most trouble with their steps and taken them through their section. The tap team was going through their routine, their stocking feet silent on the stage. The rest of the groups were practicing as well.

Short and tall, skinny and round. All working hard. Happy and determined, she thought.

Gideon walked up to the stage. “Hey,” he said. “I’m here to be the voice from beyond.”

She turned to him. “Aren’t they amazing?” she asked.

He glanced at the girls and nodded. “Beautiful and unique.”

“So speaks the Zen master.”

“Have you been practicing your breathing?”

“Sure. In my free time. I’m also working on a plan for peace in the Middle East.”

“Let me know how that goes.”

She waited until he’d climbed the steps up to the stage, then followed him back behind the side curtains. He would watch the show and do the narration from there. For the dress rehearsal and the actual show, he would be farther away from the action, so there wasn’t background noise. At that point, they would depend on musical cues to stay in sync.

“Thanks for doing this,” she said as she handed him the microphone. “I know it’s been a lot of time.”

He shrugged. “I got the music together and learned a script. No big deal.”

Her voice got a little tight. “It is to me. And the girls. Plus, you’re here. We can depend on you.”

Gideon’s dark eyes narrowed. “Uh-oh. What does that mean?”

“Nothing. Sorry. Personal stuff.”

He took a step back. “Are you okay?”

“No, but let’s not talk about it.”

“What happened?”

She drew in a breath. She was going to have to start telling people at some point. She could practice now. Get the first telling over with. After all, Gideon wasn’t a close friend or part of her family.

“Dante and I broke up. I guess it’s more accurate to say we’re not seeing each other anymore. Breaking up implies a relationship. We never had that.” She felt her eyes starting to burn and blinked away the tears. “It’s fine. Or it will be. I just wish I hadn’t fallen in love with him, you know.”

Gideon’s face took on the expression of a trapped animal. Despite the ache in her heart, she started to laugh.

“I’ll stop talking now,” she said. “You look like you’re going to faint.”

“I don’t like the emotional stuff.”

“But you’re all one with the universe.”

“That’s different. I can be in the moment.”

“As long as it’s not an emotional moment?”

“So the system is flawed.” He seemed to gather strength. “Are you all right? Can I, ah, help?”

“You’re sweet, but, no. I’m fine.” She grinned. “So the big tough guy thing is just an act?”

“Some people are afraid of spiders.”

“You’re afraid of emotions.”

He shuddered. “I avoid them. But I could storm a South American country and overthrow a dictator if that would help.”

“Not this week, but I do appreciate the offer.” She stared at him. “You’re really strange.”

“I get that a lot.” He picked up one of the two microphones and handed it to her. “I’m ready whenever you are.”

“I’ll get the girls.”

She walked to the center of the stage. Gideon was dangerous, she thought. The kind of man who knew things, had seen things, the rest of the world could only guess at. But in the end, Dante was more lethal. Gideon might be capable of overthrowing a government, but Dante had shattered her heart.

The really sad part was if he walked in the door this second and begged her to take him back, she would. In a second. Which meant a trip to the self-help section of the local bookstore was in order. She needed some serious healing.

But that, too, was for later.

She turned on the microphone and faced her dancers.

“Thank you all for coming,” she said. “I’m so excited about this show. Each of you has worked so hard. You should be proud of yourselves.” She paused and smiled. “All right. Let’s start from the top, shall we?”

Chapter Nineteen

“Hey, big guy,” Evie said as she walked into her townhouse. She’d just taken her dancers through a second day of rehearsing the entire show. “It went really well. I’m so proud of them.”

She paused in the living room, not sure where to find Alexander. The cat had only been living with her for a few days, and they didn’t have much of a routine yet. But as she shrugged out of her coat, she heard a soft “meow” from the stairs.

Alexander stood about halfway down, his green eyes wide, his expression expectant.