‘No,’ replied Connor, beginning to feel nervous at the prospect. ‘The closest I’ve ever got to salsa is some sauce with a bag of tortilla chips!’
Despite the weakness of his joke, the girls all laughed. But they stifled their amusement when an elegant elderly lady appeared and clapped her hands for their attention. Connor recognized the woman from the staff photo file as Miss Ashworth, a former professional ballroom dancer who had toured the world several times.
‘Class, we’ll continue with the Cuban-style salsa step from the previous lesson,’ she announced, her tone clipped and precise. ‘Alicia and Oliver, would you please demonstrate?’
Alicia joined a young blond boy in front of the theatre stage and Miss Ashworth pressed Play on a CD machine. A lively, percussion-filled, horn-heavy dance track filled the gym hall and Oliver led Alicia through a series of seemingly complex moves. Connor watched in growing awe as they danced energetically to the music. Alicia was a natural mover, her hips swaying, her arms flowing and her feet shimmying across the floor in a dazzling, twirling display. Her ability was matched only by her enthusiasm. She literally threw herself into the music and seemed to come alive under its influence.
Miss Ashworth paused the CD. ‘Not bad,’ she conceded. ‘Just be careful where you put the break step. Now, everyone, find a partner.’
Having seen what was expected, Connor stayed sitting where he was.
‘That includes you, young man,’ said Miss Ashworth, noting his presence.
Connor smiled politely. ‘I’ll just watch for the time being, if that’s OK.’
Miss Ashworth gave him a stern look. ‘No, it’s not OK. If you’re in my class, you dance. No exceptions.’
Seeing Connor’s trepidation, Alicia came over. ‘Don’t worry, I’ll partner you.’
‘It’s you who should be worried. I don’t have much experience at this,’ he admitted, not wanting to embarrass Alicia – or himself.
‘It’s all right, I’ll lead you,’ she assured him.
‘Well, on your feet be it!’ he said, throwing caution to the wind.
They stood opposite one another in line with the other students. Alicia instructed him to take her right hand in his left and place his right hand on her upper back, while she put hers on his shoulder.
‘Now look at me,’ she said. ‘It’s important we stay in eye contact during the dance … and you need to come much closer.’
Connor stared at her, feeling slightly awkward at being so close to his Principal.
‘Don’t look so nervous,’ she smiled. ‘It’s just a dance.’
To you it might be, thought Connor, wondering what Colonel Black would make of all this.
Miss Ashworth restarted the music and the Latin American track once more filled the hall. Alicia instinctively found the beat and began moving to the rhythm. Connor attempted to follow Alicia’s fluid steps, but quickly ended up looking like a malfunctioning puppet.
Alicia laughed good-naturedly. ‘No, like this,’ she said above the music, gently guiding him through the sequence. ‘You have to start on the third beat of the musical bar,’ she explained, clicking her fingers to the track. ‘One … two … now break forward with your left foot. Good! Rock back on your right. Step back left. Now shift your weight to that foot. Step back right. Rock forward on to your left. Step forward right. Then shift your weight on to your right foot – and repeat. It’s that simple.’
‘Simple!’ exclaimed Connor, his mind whirling with the multiple directions as he stared down at his clumsy feet.
‘No, look at me,’ encouraged Alicia. ‘Just let your body feel the music.’
Connor continued to shuffle round, willing his mind and feet to function as one. But he couldn’t quite get the two to meet. He stepped on Alicia’s toes and she cried out.
‘Sorry,’ he said, moving away. ‘I think I must have two left feet.’
‘No, you haven’t,’ chided Alicia kindly. ‘You just need a bit more practice, that’s all. Get the steps right, then everything else will follow.’
If only it was that easy, thought Connor, mentally repeating the moves over and over in his head.
As the other students whirled effortlessly round the gymnasium, Miss Ashworth noticed him struggling to master the steps and came over.
‘Stay light on your feet,’ she instructed.
Connor was struck by her words. Dan, his kickboxing instructor, had often drilled the same phrase into him during training in the ring. Connor decided to switch mindset. And as soon as he began to think of the salsa moves as a martial arts kata he quickly latched on to the combination and found the rhythm.
‘That’s more like it,’ said Alicia, stepping along with him to the music’s groove.
At last they began to really dance and Alicia’s face lit up with delight. ‘See, I told you. You’re actually not that bad.’
Connor smiled at her praise and was beginning to get into the swing of things when his eye caught movement on the stage. The theatre drapes were twitching. As he spun round with Alicia, he tried to focus on the gap in the curtains. There appeared to be someone peeking through … and Connor got the distinct feeling that he and Alicia were the ones being watched.
Suddenly Alicia switched direction in the dance. Distracted by the suspicious observer, Connor mistimed his step and his feet got mixed up with Alicia’s. They both stumbled and went crashing to the floor, landing entangled in each other’s arms. The whole class stopped and giggled in amusement. Miss Ashworth switched off the music.
‘Are you two all right?’ she asked.
‘Yes,’ wheezed Alicia, ‘but only just!’
‘I’m so sorry,’ said Connor, quickly getting up and helping her to her feet. ‘I hope I didn’t hurt you.’
‘No, not at all,’ she replied, brushing herself down and now laughing at their fall. ‘But you should come with a health warning!’
‘Young man, you need to concentrate more on what you’re doing,’ scolded Miss Ashworth, turning back to the CD player. ‘Now, let’s go from the top.’
As the music struck up again, Connor snatched a glance towards the stage. The curtains were now still. The mysterious watcher – if there ever was one – had gone.
The first week at Montarose School flew by. Following further advice from Charley, Connor had begun performing “dynamic” risk assessments – changing his level of alertness depending upon the situation. In class, he could allow himself to relax more, knowing they were in a controlled environment, overseen by a vetted teacher. During breaks and lesson changes, when the situation was more unpredictable, he heightened his awareness – staying in Alicia’s vicinity and scanning for potential threats. By doing this, he could better manage his concentration levels and wasn’t so exhausted by the end of a day.
In the evenings, he was allowed some downtime, since the White House was deemed a safe zone. Each night, after an hour of fitness and martial arts training in the gym, Connor delivered status updates to Bodyguard HQ. He called in even when there was nothing new to report, simply enjoying the chat with Charley and the chance to truly be himself. Afterwards, he would check his emails, dutifully replying to his mother, who reassured him that all was well with her and Gran back in England.
By the end of the week, Connor had become accustomed to the routine and was actually enjoying his protective role. He liked Alicia and felt he was becoming her friend. There had been no real incidents, he’d made no apparent mistakes and he began to wonder if the assignment was going to be easier than he’d first thought. With all the Secret Service protection in place, so far the greatest threat to Alicia at school was dying from boredom in a history lesson.
Having survived the Friday morning period, Alicia and her friends headed over to the edge of the school playing field to sunbathe away the lunch break.
‘You mean to say, you still haven’t said yes!’ gasped Paige.
‘Ethan hasn’t asked me properly … yet,’ replied Alicia.