A Rehearsal for Love Read online

  “See what I mean! You’re already changing your schedule for it. Next thing I know, you’ll be quitting your job all together!”

  “Why do you keep jumping to all these unnecessary conclusions?! I went to dance class, I did the responsible thing of getting my shift switched, and now I’m gonna go to work. I got this, ma. I’m not some child.”

  She turned her nose up, crossing her arms over her chest as she bitterly tossed out, “Well your ass still being in my house sure says otherwise.”

  Bloody Tongue Part 2.

  This time I bit harder - longer - because if I hadn’t, something slick enough to get me slapped would’ve definitely came out.

  Still, I couldn’t hold back the sarcastic tone I used to tell her, “Well you know what? Maybe if you let me go get ready for work, I’ll be able to save up enough money to get out of here.”

  Moving out was obviously the ultimate goal. Hell, being back here for the past couple years since initially giving college a try was already much longer than I planned to be. But it was always something - setbacks with her health, unexpected bills, stupid ass community college classes - that extended my stay.

  Surprisingly enough, my answer met her usually impossible standards as she replied with a smirk, “Now we’re talking. Make sure you bring me back one of those combination platters. You know how much I love those, Malia.”

  No she didn’t just chew me out then ask me to bring her back some food from the restaurant…

  I took a deep, calming breath, knowing there was hardly any use in arguing with her about it. So instead I simply told her, “I’ll umm… I’ll see what I can do.”

  That satisfied her even more as she pranced her ass out of the kitchen. And I could only stand there annoyed by the fact that she had yet again managed to ruin my good mood.

  &

  “Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh… my… God!”

  I almost dropped my tray of drinks when my girl Cassidy got all on my back with excitement, having a usual Cassidy moment. The restaurant we worked at together was one of the most popular in town, so it wasn’t out of the norm for a celebrity or two to come through when they were trying to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. And of course, Cassidy managed to fangirl over whoever it was every single time.

  I tried not to sound as annoyed as I felt when I asked, “What, Cassidy? Who is it now?”

  She shrieked, “I don’t know! He’s just fine as hell and he looks important, so he’s gotta be somebody!”

  This girl…

  I peeked around the bar in the same direction that Cassidy was looking and immediately recognized who she was trippin’ over.

  Blaise Anthony.

  Now it was me saying, “Oh my God! And he’s in my section.”

  “It’s your lucky day, boo. You make sure you take good care of him. He looks like he tips well,” she said with a reassuring pat to my shoulder as she got back to work.

  I was sure she was right, but that was the least of my concerns as I stayed in hiding to get a better look at him. He looked… stiff, distinguished, a completely different air about him compared to this morning at the studio. He was sitting up perfectly straight - uncomfortably straight - in his side of the booth as he gave dull eyes to whoever was across from him.

  Oh shit.

  He’s on a date!

  Of course he was on a date on this perfectly romantic Saturday night. The sun had just gone down so it was nice and balmy out, the moon was casting a perfect glow off of the river right outside of the restaurant, and the dim lighting inside with candles on each table gave the most soothing ambiance.

  I sighed, pulling myself together before I delivered my tray of drinks and then headed Blaise’s way.

  I kept my eyes on my notepad as I gave my routine introduction. “Hi, my name is Malia and I’ll be your server. Can I start you guys off with something to drink?”

  Apparently I wasn’t the only one that had kept my eyes to myself as it took me saying my name for Blaise to recognize me.

  “Malia, hey! I didn’t know you worked here. Babe, this is the girl I was telling you about. The one I’ll be doing some one-on-one work with.”

  No lie, hearing him call another girl “babe” stung a little bit though I wasn’t sure why. I mean, Blaise was incredibly attractive - obviously - but I wasn’t interested in him on that level.

  So why is your heart pounding like you wanna beat the girl’s ass?

  I smiled politely at the woman who seemed to have all the right features, but packaged completely wrong as she smacked her teeth and said, “Oh, so you’re the one that’s got him wasting even more time down at that studio. If you weren’t such a young girl, I might be a little concerned.”

  Young girl?

  Sure I probably still looked young to most; fresh-faced, bright eyes, flawless skin. But there was certainly nothing young about me.

  But for the sake of not causing a scene and furthermore losing my job, I simply told her, “I promise I won’t be a waste of time, ma’am. I love to dance and with Blaise’s help, I hope to be able to make a career out of it someday.”

  “Well isn’t that just sweet? Bless your precious little dancing heart.”

  I couldn’t tell if she was being sarcastic or not. But when I flashed my eyes over to Blaise for the first time all night, his were already filled with sympathy.

  Damn, so she was trying to be funny…

  “So… how about that drink order? Or do you need a few more minutes?” I asked, forcing myself to stay focused on the real task at hand.

  “Actually, I think we’ll both just have water with lemon for now,” Blaise answered for the both of them.

  The woman smacked her teeth again, waving Blaise off as she said, “Nu uh. I need a real drink. Lemon drop martini for me, please. And don’t forget the twist. Thanks Maria.”

  “Malia,” I corrected her.

  “Right,” she said with another, more dismissive wave as she returned her eyes to the menu. It honestly took everything in me not to set her ass straight, but the last thing I wanted to do was get into it with Blaise’s girlfriend. So I bit my tongue, the same raw ass tongue from talking with my mama earlier, as I headed to put in her drink order at the bar.

  The restaurant was packed, so I tended to my other tables before I returned to the bar to pick up her drink and Blaise’s water. And once I made my way back to their table, I immediately noticed that Blaise was sitting alone.

  I avoided his eyes as I sat the drinks down then wiped my damp hands on my apron.

  “Were you guys ready to order or should we wait until your girlfriend makes it back so she can order for herself? I mean… last time didn’t go over so well for you,” I teased.

  He finally cracked a smile, stroking his beard as he said, “I’m so sorry about that, Malia. She’s been trippin’ lately.”

  “No need to apologize, Blaise. Trust me, I’ve heard much worse.” Hell, considering the blows I had taken from my mother earlier, the conversation with Blaise’s girlfriend was practically a cake walk.

  “People around here can get a little rough, huh?”

  I shrugged. “Sometimes. But you just gotta take it in the stride. Kinda like dancing. It’s okay if you don’t get it right every time as long as you look good doing it.”

  His smile was even fuller than before as he said, “Wise words. Must’ve been a genius who came up with that shit.”

  “Something like that,” I answered with a wink. And just as I was getting comfortable with our little conversation, his girlfriend made her way back to the table, still wearing the same stank ass attitude she had before.

  She slid into her side of the booth as she said, “Oh, you’re back already? I’ll just have the Caesar salad, dressing on the side, no croutons, no cheese.”

  “So you just want… lettuce?”

  Her eyes tightened as she answered, “No. I want what I just ordered.”

  Keep your cool, Malia.

  Keep… your…
“And for you?” I asked, turning to Blaise and giving him my full attention.

  His lips were in a tight line but his eyes were smiling with amusement as he said, “I’ll have the New York Strip, medium rare, with whatever seasonal veggies you guys have for the month.”

  “Perfect! I’ll go get this right in for you two,” I said as I took their menus from the table.

  Things around the restaurant had picked up pace as a new wave of the dinner crowd roared in. I kept myself busy checking on all of my existing tables, swinging by Blaise’s to tell them their food should be right out, and then getting orders in for my new tables. I honestly liked working the evening shift more than the morning because we were always so busy which made the time pass a lot faster. I hoped that I could eventually get a more permanent switch, especially since I wanted to continue attending the Saturday morning group sessions with Blaise.

  By the time I was doing my final check of their table, Blaise’s girlfriend was already standing up with her coat on.

  “So I’m guessing dessert’s not on the menu tonight?” I asked, trying to keep on my polite persona.

  But that became a lot harder once she spewed in reply, “Ugh, not with this slow ass service.” Then she turned to Blaise and told him, “I’ll be outside.” Before strutting off like she just owned the place. I was honestly giddy as I watched her walk away, grateful that she wasn’t the one picking up the check. I’d definitely be short a tip if it was left up to her.

  Blaise finally slid out from his side of the booth, standing up as he said, “I’m so sorry, Malia. Seriously. She’s not always so…”

  “Bitchy? Is that the word you were looking for?”

  He laughed, buttoning the single button of his blazer as he replied, “Yeah, that. I hope this doesn’t change our plans. I’m actually free Monday night if you wanna come down to the studio and get some work in.”

  Something about his invitation made my heart skip a beat as if it was trying to decode the simple message for more than what it was worth. But in my head, I knew it wasn’t worth anything more than an opportunity to get better at dancing; exactly what I needed.

  So I swept a stray hair behind my ear before I pushed out, “I’ll be there.” Sounding a lot more seductive than I intended.

  Thankfully instead of hitting me with a, “No thank you” side eye, he only smiled politely, bidding me a small nod before he followed in the footsteps of his... witch. I could still see him through the window as he tried to make amends with his girlfriend, wrapping an arm around her shoulder to which she instantly pulled away from. And I shook my head, laughing as I stacked their leftover plates then picked up the receipt with the written-in tip.

  $200?

  Blaise

  I was already stretching out when Malia finally showed up to the studio. I couldn’t say she was late since I hadn’t given her an exact time to be here, but it was definitely a lot later than I expected her to come.

  Still, I couldn’t complain. I would’ve much rather been spending my time waiting on her than spend it arguing on the phone with Charlotte about what time I was gonna be done, why I was volunteering my time, and a bunch of other shit that wasn’t even relevant. Her ass was getting more and more annoying with each day that passed, so much so that I was starting to wonder if she was doing the shit on purpose.

  But now that Malia had shown up, Char was the last thing on my mind.

  “Hey Blaise! Sorry I’m just now getting here. Had to help my mom with a few things around the apartment,” she rushed out as she sat down on the ground next to me, pulling her duffle bag off of her shoulder and pulling out her boots.

  I shrugged as I reached over to stretch out my hamstrings. “It’s cool. I wasn’t doing anything important.”

  “Oh yeah? Did you have a good day?”

  My eyebrow piqued as I thought about her question. It was simple, of course. But I honestly couldn’t remember the last time somebody had genuinely asked about my wellbeing. With Charlotte, it was all her needs, all the time. So to hear something regarding just me was… refreshing.

  “I did. How about you?”

  She yanked her boot on, playing around with the shoe strings as she answered, “It was alright. Stayed pretty busy at work. I picked up a few extra hours down at the restaurant so I can pay you for these sessions.”

  “Pay me? I don’t want your money, Malia. I’m just here to help.”

  Money actually hadn’t crossed my mind one time when she asked if I could work with her. Sure, opening the studio had cut into my pockets significantly. But with the number of people we already had signed up for different classes, I knew things would be back in the green in no time.

  “You’ve already helped me enough by agreeing to do it. The least I can do is compensate you for your time.”

  “Show up ready and eager, and that’s all the compensation I need,” I told her as I hopped up from the ground, dusting my hands off before I offered one to help her up. This time, instead of looking at it like it carried a disease, she actually took it.

  “Now what do you wanna accomplish today? Hip-Hop, R&B, Pop, something else?”

  “Hmm… let’s go R&B. I was actually just listening to this song on my way over that I thought we could try out.”

  She wiped her own hands off as she pulled her phone from her pocket, cueing up the song and then handing it to me to plug up to the sound system. I didn’t recognize the song from the first couple of beats, so I read the header on the phone to see that it was.

  Chill by Trey Songz.

  I vibed in the mirror to myself for a minute as I thought about a couple different skills I could teach her. The song had a slower tempo, but the bass was strong, giving perfect points to hit with each move.

  That was honestly Malia’s strong suit; hitting the heavy beats. So instead of starting off with my own suggestions, I simply told her, “How about you freestyle first? Then I’ll jump in, and we can take it from there.”

  She nodded, positioning herself in front of the mirror as I restarted the song. I watched as she did the same thing that I had done, vibing to herself for a few beats and then beginning to dance on what I would consider the second eight count.

  It was effortless - I could tell by the looseness in her face - as she popped, and grinded, and… damn.

  Before I could get too hypnotized by the mechanics of her movements, I jumped in, mimicking her moves from behind similar to the way we had done in the group session. But this time was different. This time, the song was sexier - she was sexier - and it was just us, free to be as sensual as we wanted to in the name of dance. So it wasn’t even a second thought when I put my hands on her waist and pulled her against my body, rolling my pelvis against her ass as she grinded even deeper into me.

  But then she pulled away and so did I, following her moves as she glided across the floor then ticked down to the ground with every thump of the beat. She used her hands to emphasize each motion, and well… so did I; shadowing her as I let my hands hover over hers. For a split second, I thought I was doing way too much. But then she touched me, pulling my hand against her chest and gliding it down her stomach before turning out of my hold.

  I was honestly stunned as I watched her take complete control of the dance, sliding down onto her knees and dancing alone. She fell onto her back and thrust her hips upward before turning over on all fours and poppin’ her ass as she glided across the floor back to me with a seductive smirk. I squatted down, putting a hand in her hair as my lips hovered right in front of hers.

  But then she laughed.

  And I…

  “That was dope! I wish we would’ve recorded it,” she said with a smile between breaths.

  I yanked my hand out of her hair like it had suddenly caught on fire, standing up as I agreed, “Yeah. That was good. Really good. Why do you need my help again?”

  She laughed again as she answered, “I’m good. Really good. But I wanna be great. I need you to get me over the hump.”
/>   Why did her saying the word “hump” make my dick jump like a damn call and response?

  I put a hand to the back of my neck to ease the tension though I really should’ve put it over my eyes as I watched Malia strip out of her t-shirt down to her sports bra. Then she pulled her now damp hair up into a bun, making her look especially… sexy.

  I turned away so that I could actually form a coherent sentence, though I could still see her in the mirror out of my peripheral. “So… it’s obvious you can dance your ass off. What do you think you’re missing?”

  She shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess I was… maybe hoping you could help me figure that out. I mean, I know I’m not good at picking up choreography fast. But other than that, I can pretty much keep up.”

  “So maybe I could… show you a few tricks on how to accelerate that process?”

  Most dancers thought it was all about practice and repetition with the body that allowed someone to pick up choreography faster, but it was really a mental game. If you were confident that you knew the steps, and you let your body do what it was already well aware of from watching a few times through, then you could get any routine down in no time.

  “I’d love that,” she replied with the brightest eyes.

  I had finally calmed down enough to turn back her way and tell her, “Cool. Well let’s get to it. New song this time. My choice.”

  If I got any closer to her, it was only a matter of time before I wouldn’t be able to control myself. And even if it wasn’t obvious to her, I knew this was the safest way to prevent myself from getting caught up in the moment again.

  Malia

  My panties were literally stuck to my crotch and it had nothing to do with the sweat I had worked up from dancing.

  It was all his fault - Blaise Anthony - the one that made me dance with such an edge, such a confidence, such a sexiness that I had managed to turn myself on in the process. It was just dance, something I had done for the greater part of my life. But something about doing it around Blaise - alone with Blaise - transformed it from “just dancing” to an act of… lust?