Easy Rumba

by Edwards, Anna

  It doesn’t appear, though. Instead, an even darker side of him emerges.

  Simon leans his head back before slamming it forward into my face, head-butting me with so much force I go tumbling backward and land on the floor. My head spins, and I feel sick.

  “Look what you made me do.” Simon looms over me his fists clenched. He reaches down and grabs hold of the fabric of the silk dress I’m wearing and pulls me up to my feet. The fabric rips, exposing my small breasts. “You’ve destroyed me and my career. You’ve made me a laughingstock in Hollywood. Why? What did I ever do to you?”

  “I’m sorry,” the words fly from my mouth before I even register what I’m saying. I’m in shock. I don’t understand what’s happening. This man loves me, but he’s hurting me, and I’m afraid it might not stop here. “Please, Simon, I’m sorry. I won’t do it again. Tell me what to do to make it better, and I’ll do it. I love you.” I can hear how weak and feeble my words sound. I don’t understand what I’m saying sorry for, but I love him. He’s my world, and I just want to make everything better.

  Simon’s nostrils flare as he stares at me, taking in what I’m saying and digesting it. His eyes are dark as if the devil has taken him over.

  “There is only one way for you to make it up to me, and to show the world how much you love me. I want us to have a child, a baby. We’ll prove to all those people who judge our relationship that there’s nothing wrong. They’ll see we’re a loving couple, and you’re not just a whore trying to wreck my career.”

  “Anything. Yes, let’s have a child together.” I cling to his strong forearms, trying to keep myself upright when all I want to do is curl into a little ball and cry. “I promise you I’m not trying to destroy your career. I love you, Simon, please…let’s go make a baby together.”

  I sit bolt upright in the bed, sweat glistening over my body from the nightmare. I haven’t dreamed about Simon attacking me in a long while. He took me that night. It wasn’t loving—it was painful and forceful, but I consented because I wanted to have my old husband back. The man who worshiped me. I never got him, though. In fact, things got a lot worse when Izzy was born nine months later.

  Inhaling deeply, I try to erase the vision of him smacking his head into mine. My face was badly bruised the following day, and I didn’t leave the house for a week just in case anyone saw what had happened to me. Phantom pains throb at my temples, and I softly massage over them in circles, hoping to dispel an impending migraine. It doesn’t work, and I slide from my bed and wrap my dressing gown around my thin nightdress. It was warm and humid when I went to bed, but now in the early hours of the morning, it’s a little chilly.

  I stumble into the bathroom, and finding some painkillers, I pop a couple into my mouth and swallow them down with a glass of water poured from the sink. Hopefully, they’ll work. I catch sight of my reflection in the mirror. Gone is the youthful girl who once dreamed about making it big in Hollywood. She got her wish but has been left jaded. I’ve not slept properly in a few nights, and there are dark rings under my eyes. I’m restless and bored. My life has become a constant routine of taking Izzy to school and worrying endlessly about her. I love my daughter with all my heart, but it’s not good for either of us.

  I need to break the cycle.

  Do something with my life again.

  Stop being a victim.

  Gabby’s right. Why should I hide away when I’ve done nothing wrong? That’s the most important part I need to recognize. I’m not the one responsible. I didn’t embarrass Simon in front of his friends. I never did anything to make my husband hurt me.

  Leaning forward, I run the faucet and splash cold water over my face. My head still throbs, but it’s not as bad as before, and when I look back in the mirror, I see the face of a determined woman with renewed hope.

  I leave the bathroom and look up at the picture on my bedroom wall. I put it there to remind me of the fact I was not the one at fault. It’s the picture of the little girl playing on the beach. I requested a copy from the artist when I moved here, and they were more than happy to oblige. I smile at it and make my way silently from my bedroom so as not to wake Izzy, who’s still sleeping in the room next to mine.

  I make my way down the hallway, my bare feet padding lightly on the wooden floor, and into the lounge. My handbag rests on the table where I left it earlier after collecting Izzy from school. I’m not a slob. I like to keep my place tidy, but not putting everything away is part of my rebellion against Simon’s rules. Reaching inside my handbag, I retrieve the letter from the producers of the dance show. I scan the page for details of how to respond to them. There’s a contact number. The clock sitting on my mantelpiece is showing three am, so it will be one am in Los Angeles, which is where the letter was sent from. It’s far too early to call.

  Screw it!

  I pick up the house phone and dial the number.

  “Hello, Leah Winters,” a groggy, sleep-filled voice answers.

  “Hello, Ms. Winters, this is Elise Landry.”

  “Elise Landry,” Ms. Winters muses, trying to place my name in the foggy haze of her sleep befuddled mind. “Ah, Elise!” she exclaims, finally recognizing who’s calling. “How are you, Miss Landry?”

  “I’m very well, thank you,” I reply and feel myself smiling widely. “I received your letter inviting me to participate in the show. I’m sorry I’ve sat on it for so long, but if there is still a place available for me, I would love to be a contestant.”

  “You would? Oh, my God, thank you. I loved you in the ‘Dreamer’s Daughter’. You should have gotten the Oscar for that role. You were robbed of it.”

  All evidence of the sleepy show executive has now gone. I let her enthusiasm seep into my soul, replacing my doubts with her praise and strengthening my self-confidence, which is practically non-existent.

  “Thank you. You don’t know how much it means to hear you say that.”

  “I’m sure you hear it all the time.” Ms. Winters yawns. “Oh, I’m sorry.”

  “No, no it’s me who should apologize. I’m being rude calling you at such an ungodly hour. You have my number now. Why don’t you call me back when you’re in the office, and we can finalize all the details then?”

  “I will. Thank you, Miss Landry. This is amazing news.”

  “Goodnight, Ms. Winters.”

  “Goodnight.”

  I hang up the phone and let out a long satisfied breath before speaking to nobody in particular.

  “I won’t be a victim any longer.”

  Chapter 4

  Leo

  “Hurry up, Leo,” Angelique sticks her head around the door of my dressing room and shouts at me. She didn’t knock as usual, so she’s lucky I’m already dressed, or she’d have seen more of me than she cared to. “The celebrities will be here soon, and the crew is calling us for the big reveal interviews.”

  Dear God, please let me get someone who can dance.

  I send a silent prayer up to the ceiling and beyond before joining Angelique in the corridor. We’re all dressed casually today. It’s only the reveal and doesn’t need the glitz and glamour of the live shows, thank God. I yearn for the day when I don’t have to wear make-up anymore.

  “I’m so nervous,” Angelique says as she takes my hand. “What if they’ve only got people who can’t dance? It will be a nightmare and so hard to do anything with them. I don’t think I can breathe. It’s going to be awful.”

  “Don’t worry, you’re an amazing teacher. You’ll work wonders no matter who you get. Besides you and I’ll be dancing together as a professional couple on the show, so we can create some magic there instead.”

  She tuts.

  “You mean I’ll have to teach two people to dance.”

  Grabbing her, I start to tickle her under her ribs, knowing she’ll erupt into fits of giggles because she’s so sensitive there.

  “Teach two people! I’ll have you know I’m a world champion Latin dancer.”

  “I wondered
when the bragging would start.” Alexis comes up behind me and thumps me hard on my back.

  “Fuck the both of you,” I retort playfully and then release Angelique when a stern faced producer appears from the room we’re heading to.

  “Language, Mr. Westwood, we don’t want you shocking the celebrities with profanity before they’ve even met you.”

  “Sorry, Leah.” I bow my head in a halfhearted demonstration of shame.

  “Apology accepted. Now, if you could all line up on the right side of the curtain, we’ll bring the celebrities in and put them on the left. When the cameras are ready, we’ll drop the curtain and record all the reactions. You’ll then have half an hour to talk with them and get to know them better before lunch break. After lunch, we’ll pair you up randomly and begin some basic technique training.”

  Leah steps aside, and we all file into the room. Angelique takes my hand nervously when we hear the voices of the celebrities on the other side of the curtain. I put my arm around her shoulders and press a kiss to the top of her head. She’s like a little sister to me, and I hate it when she’s anything but happy. I know as soon as the curtain falls, though, my friend’s mood will change.

  “Are you ready?” Leah shouts, and a bevy of positive affirmations come from both sides of the curtain.

  My palms feel a little sweaty. Joining a show like this was never a path I thought my career would take, but now I’m here, I’m definitely excited.

  Three,

  Two,

  One.

  Everyone counts down, and the curtain falls. My eyes scan the assembled celebrities but stop dead when they land on her…the woman I’ve not seen since I left school. The only woman I’ve ever said I could love, Elise Landry. She sees me, and her mouth falls open, forming a shocked ‘o’. She’s not changed at all. She’s still stunning with her brown hair flowing in waves down her back. The tight gym attire she’s wearing shows off her curvy figure. I’ve seen her a few times in movies, but the silver screen never managed to capture the allure of the woman in real life.

  The professionals and other celebrities around us cheer and partner up to talk while Elise and I are drawn immediately to each other. We’re moving closer, but it doesn’t feel like we are. One moment my legs feel rooted to the spot, and the next I’m standing directly in front of her. How the hell did that happen?

  “H-Hi,” I stammer nervously.

  “Hi,” she replies much more assuredly.

  “I-It’s been a long time.” My cocky nature leaves me, and I sound like a schoolboy with his first crush.

  “It really has.” Elise nibbles at the edge of her plump, rosy lips, and I can feel my dick stirring in my workout pants. I surreptitiously place my hands over my groin to hide it.

  “You look amazing, Elise.”

  “I can say the same about you. You’ve certainly muscled up.”

  Her chest is rising and falling rapidly, and I can see she’s as affected by our unexpected meeting as I am.

  “All part of being a dancer. I need to be able to swing my partners around.”

  “I bet you’re good at that.” Her face flushes crimson. “I mean…”

  “Don’t worry. I know what you mean.”

  I wink at her, and she smiles back. It’s one of those smiles that warms your heart and stirs your loins even more.

  “Next,” Leah, the producer, shouts, and I’m ushered away from Elise before we have a chance to say anything further. Turning around, I see her watching me as I leave. Alexis approaches her, but it’s only at the last minute she takes her eyes off me. The show just got interesting…fascinating, in fact.

  It seems to take forever to speak to all the celebrities in the room. There are rock stars, soap stars, politicians, some person who was famous for writing a letter to the president, and then there’s Elise. She’s by far the classiest of the contestants and the most famous. She’s Hollywood royalty. Why would she agree to appear on this show? You’d think it would be beneath her, but then I did read last year she’d taken a break from acting. Maybe this was the only way for her to make a comeback.

  Reluctantly I follow the other professional dancers into the canteen for lunch. It’s the usual affair of pasta and vegetables. I’m sure the show’s nutritionists think that’s all we eat. When you’re a man of six foot two, dancing fourteen hours a day, you need a lot of calories in your intake because you burn thousands. I take two helpings of pasta and three of the vegetables before looking around for somewhere to sit. Elise is already sitting alone at a table, pushing a few vegetables around her plate. I make my way over to her, despite her aura telling everyone she needs some time to herself—I’ve never been one to listen to that kind of crap.

  “This seat taken? No, good. I’ll sit here then.” I pull the canteen style chair out and park my toned buttocks on it before she even has a chance to say no. Her mouth opens as if to tell me she’d rather be alone but shuts again shortly afterward without having said a word. “I still can’t believe you’re one of the celebrities. Do you think there is any way we can rig it so we can dance together?”

  I shovel a spoonful of pasta and vegetables into my mouth after I speak.

  “You’d be better off with someone else. I’ll probably have two left feet.”

  “I seem to remember you were an excellent dancer in high school. Do you remember the prom? We did that dance together and wowed the entire school.”

  Elise smiles—it reaches the dimples on the sides of her cheeks.

  “And you’ve been wowing your audiences ever since, if I’ve heard right.”

  “You’ve followed my career?” I’m shocked to hear she knows what I’ve been doing.

  “I’m sorry to say, no. My life took a different turn after you and I lost touch. They gave us information sheets on your backgrounds, following the meet and greet.” She points to her bag on the floor, which has paperwork hanging out of it. “To be honest, I know very little about the show or the professional dancers.”

  “Nice to know you’ve done some research.”

  “I only signed up a few days ago. Everything has been a bit of a whirlwind since then. I’m sorry.”

  “Have you at least watched the show before?” I tease playfully, but it falls flat and backfires when Elise pushes her plate away, having barely eaten anything.

  “Not really.”

  “Why choose to be on it then? You’re a Hollywood star, and a household name.”

  During the majority of our conversation, she’s been looking directly at me, but now she lowers her head and gazes at the table.

  “I’m not the name I once was. I made a decision that changed that, and I need the show to give me my confidence back. I need to know I did the right thing.”

  “Right thing?”

  Placing my spoon down, I reach out to take her hand, but she pulls it away from me.

  “Elise, talk to me.”

  I watch as she takes in a deep breath and then looks up at me smiling. It’s not a natural expression—it’s false, and I don’t like it one bit.

  “How’s your mamá?” she asks, abruptly changing the subject of the conversation.

  “She’s fine. Living in Spain”

  “You’re father?”

  “He’s fine. Living in San Francisco. Elise, what’s going on?”

  “My mama’s still in New Orleans. It’s why I chose to move back here. She needs a bit of help these days. As you know, she didn’t cope too well after my daddy died. I tried to get her to move to Los Angeles, but she didn’t want to come.”

  My heart sinks at the mention of her father. I was there with her when she was told of his death in a car accident. I’ll never forget her screams of grief and denial.

  “Time,” Leah calls out, and I turn my head to look at the producer as she gives her orders. “If everyone can get back to the studio, please, we’ll do some initial dance steps and see how it goes. After that, we’ll look at how we’ll partner you for the live shows. You’ll have two we
eks to rehearse before the first one.”

  When I turn back to Elise, she isn’t there anymore. I look around the room and see Alexis escorting her back into the dance studio. My nostrils flair with anger. There’s no way she’s going to be partnered with him. Something isn’t right. She’s not the happy-go-lucky woman I knew. There’s something dark inside her, eating away at her. She says she needs to get her confidence back. What was the decision she made? Was it to leave Hollywood to look after her mama? Did something happen to her there? No, all is not right with Elise Landry. I allowed her to walk out of my life once before. I won’t make that mistake again—not when I can tell she’s hurting.

  Chapter 5

  Elise

  I don’t think I’ve worked so hard in a long time. Every muscle in my body aches, but it feels damn good to have learned so many basic steps in an afternoon. It’s not been as easy for all the celebrities as I’ve found it. Some like me are stretching out and wanting to continue practicing, but most of them are now lying flat on the floor moaning about what a terrible mistake they’ve made.

  Several of the professional dancers are rehearsing a routine for the first show, and I can’t help watching Leo as he moves around the room gracefully. His partner, Angelique, is adorable. She’s funny and stern simultaneously. Whoever is partnered with her will have a blast on the show. A part of me really hopes I’m partnered with Leo. We’ve been working together for a bit this afternoon, and I’d forgotten how charismatic he is. Not to mention patient when I couldn’t get a basic step correctly mastered straight away.

  I can’t believe he’s here. It’s been so long since I last saw him. The inevitable drifting away from each other happened when he traveled to Europe, and I moved to Hollywood. Our lives took different paths, and although there were several times I wondered what he was doing, I didn’t think about him much. I feel guilty for that now, standing watching him.