Love Ever After: Eleven All-New Romances!

by Nina Lane

  Was it just me or did his voice sound strained? Probably just me. Anyway, I couldn’t very well tell him that natural—to me—would be wrapping my hands around his lean, muscled body, so I simply nodded.

  “Slowly draw your left leg back in and then I’m going to spin you around. When we stop, bring your right leg up so that your knee is resting on my side, above my waist.”

  He spun me like he said he would and I lifted my leg, but it must not have been as high as he’d wanted because he pulled it up even higher and tighter to his body, forcing my core to push into him. I sucked in a sharp breath. He must have noticed because his eyes flared for a moment before he spoke in a low, guttural voice. “Now bring your other leg up and around my waist so you’re straddled around me.”

  I did as he instructed and he held me there for a moment, unblinking and not saying a word. The rest of the room fell away, and for the briefest of seconds, it was only the two of us.

  Little Mac cursed from the other side of the room, breaking the spell.

  Eduardo blinked several times before bringing his hand to one of my legs and pushing it down. I loosened my grip on his waist as he lowered me until I stood on shaky legs.

  Little Mac cursed again and Eduardo’s gaze slipped behind me, his jaw tensing at whatever he saw there.

  “Let’s try it again,” he said in a clipped tone, with a cool veneer in place I hadn’t yet seen from him.

  I positioned myself as I had been when we started, and by forcing myself to think of how I was going to have to perform this routine with Little Mac, I was able to ease the throbbing below my waist until it was only a mild discomfort. Getting all hot and bothered over my choreographer was not going to help keep me from making an ass out of myself on national TV. I had a job to do, and daydreaming about all the other things I’d like to see Eduardo use his body for was not one of them.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Jasmine

  “So how was your first day?” my friend Ellie asked over my car speakers. When I left the studio, I saw she’d called so I’d decided that returning her call would be as good a distraction as any from my aching muscles.

  “My body is sore all over, and by tomorrow morning, I’m sure I’m gonna feel like I need to be in traction. But beyond that, it went great,” I said brightly.

  Ellie chuckled on the other end of the line. “Glad to hear it went so well. What type of dance are you doing? Who’s your choreographer? Anyone I would recognize?”

  I paused for a moment, not sure if I should tell her about Little Mac first or not. I was a chicken shit, so I opted for not. “The choreographer is Eduardo Flores.”

  Ellie screeched through the phone. “I know him! He’s that babe on the dancing show that has all the celebrities competing against one another.”

  “Oh, I didn’t know that.” I tried to sound as blasé as possible. Checking my mirror, I switched lanes, narrowly avoiding some idiot going too fast in a sports car.

  “He’s hot, don’t you think?” She sounded curious. Too curious.

  I shrugged as I merged onto the highway. “I guess,” I replied, with as much nonchalance as I could muster while doing my best not to think of Eduardo’s muscled body or his pelvic thrusts.

  “Uh-huh. I think it’s more like you know.” Ellie must have caught on to something in my voice.

  “Would Mason want to hear his woman swooning over another man like this?” I teased.

  Ellie laughed. “Oh, please. He knows how much I love him. I show him at least once a day.”

  “La-la-la-la. If I weren’t driving right now, I’d cover my ears. TMI, woman.” That only made Ellie roar with laughter even more. “How is he anyway?”

  When she was able to stop laughing, she answered. “He’s good. Out of town right now to do a few shows, but he’ll be back this weekend.”

  I couldn’t delay the inevitable any longer. As much as it would probably upset Ellie, she and Mason needed to know who I’d be dancing with. “I met my partner for the routine.”

  “I totally forgot to ask, with all the talk of the hot Latino you’re working with. Who is it?”

  I inhaled a deep breath and turned my head to check my blind spot before changing lanes. “Little Mac.”

  Silence for a moment. “You’re not serious.”

  “I am. I’m sorry. If I’d had any idea, I never would have agreed to do the dance.” I held my breath as I waited for her to respond.

  “Wow.” Gone was her jovial mood from earlier. “Well, you know better than anyone that you’re going to need to watch yourself with him.”

  “Don’t I know it. He’s still a complete jackass. I don’t know how I’m going to be able to tolerate spending the next three weeks with him.” Noticing that my exit was approaching, I eased the car into the right-hand lane. “Do you think Mason will be mad?” I bit my lip.

  “Does it matter? It is what it is. Just watch out for yourself and kick some ass with your routine.”

  “It matters to me. You two are my friends.”

  “Exactly, and that’s why I’m only concerned about you watching out for yourself. You can’t trust that guy.” There was an undercurrent of determination in her voice.

  “I’ll be okay.” We moved on to lighter topics, and by the time I pulled up in my driveway, we’d finished our conversation.

  I killed the engine and stepped out of the car. My muscles were already protesting as I made my way to the front door. What I needed was a hot Epsom salt bath, a glass of wine, and to put all thoughts of Eduardo and Little Mac to rest for the night. Day one of teach-Jasmine-how-to-dance and both men had left me rattled…but for entirely different reasons.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Jasmine

  The following morning, I almost couldn’t roll out of bed when my alarm went off. Every muscle in my body ached, even ones I’d never known I had, and they seemed to shred to pieces with even the slightest movement. A long, hot shower had done wonders, but I was still stiff and sore as I trudged into the studio.

  “Morning,” Marina said brightly as I dropped my bag in the corner of the room. She sat on the floor, legs stretched in front of her with her chest to her knees and her hands holding her feet. She must be part Gumby or something.

  “Morning,” I mumbled.

  I stood and watched, willing the Starbucks I’d drained on my ride over to kick in. I should’ve just wished for Eduardo to arrive, because he sailed through the door a moment later and my heart rate shifted into overdrive, my entire body now alert.

  “Hey, Marina,” he said, sauntering over to me with barely a glance at her.

  It struck me as odd. I knew that if he were my boyfriend, I’d be taking every opportunity available to have his lips on mine. I wouldn’t even care if he hadn’t brushed his teeth in the morning.

  “Hey,” she responded and hopped up off the ground like she weighed no more than the tiny sports bra she wore. “I’m going for a smoke before Mac gets here.”

  She walked out the door, and I was left staring at Eduardo in front of me. His dark eyes bored into me and his expression was drawn. “Didn’t I ask you to start your stretches immediately when you got here?”

  “Yes,” I managed to squeak out.

  “That’s what I thought. Get at it.” He nodded over to the middle of the studio.

  Ignoring my aching muscles, I hastened over there as fast as possible, feeling like a chastised child.

  I began going through all the exercises he’d shown me the day before, thankful that at least I’d remembered that much. When I had my legs spread, bending down to reach for my ankle, his voice came from behind me. “I’m sorry.” He sounded so close that I sprang up to look in the mirror.

  “Pardon?”

  “I’m sorry I snapped at you a second ago. You didn’t deserve it.” He pushed a hand through his dark, wavy locks and let out a sigh, momentarily distracting me from the conversation.

  “Is everything alright?” I asked, still watching him in the mirror
.

  “It’s your partner. He lacks any kind of work ethic or drive to do well with this. I’ve taught enough people to know that it’s going to be a shit show when the two of you go out there and perform live.”

  My shoulders sagged. “Way to inspire confidence,” I muttered.

  “That’s part of what makes me so angry.” He pointed at me in the mirror. “You have the potential to do really well if you had a good partner. When I held you in my arms yesterday and we were dancing…you were a natural.”

  I met his eyes in the mirror and held his gaze. He took a step forward so that he stood only a foot or so behind me. The air felt thick and it pressed down on me. I wanted to melt into a puddle on the floor with the way he was looking at me. “If I’m honest, I wasn’t exactly jazzed when I saw that he was going to be my partner,” I said to break the spell.

  He grinned. “Nice play on words.”

  “Glad you like it.” I grinned back. “What’s the other part?”

  He raised a brow. “Sorry?”

  “You said part of what bothered you so much was that I had potential…what was the other part?”

  His jaw tightened. “He makes me look bad. I have a reputation to uphold in this industry, one that allows me to work with some gifted dancers. The last thing I want is that joker on my résumé.”

  I shrugged. “Well, what are we going to do?”

  “Our best. That’s all we can do.”

  I nodded and went back to my stretching. Little Mac may be dragging me down, but I’d be damned if I didn’t go down fighting.

  Practice that day and the two after that went pretty much the same—I worked my ass off while Little Mac complained the entire time and made excuses about why he couldn’t do one thing or another. A couple of times he threw temper tantrums the likes of which would put the most pampered pop starlet to shame, and then he’d bolted. Marina had run after him and placated him by feeding his ego until he returned.

  By Friday afternoon, Eduardo had decided to send Marina and Little Mac to the studio across the hall to practice since the rapper’s frequent outbursts were so distracting. We’d arranged to meet back up in a couple of hours so Mac and I could rehearse together. Eduardo seemed determined not to let Little Mac’s attitude drag me down.

  I was starting to feel confidence seep into my movements. I’d learned the steps, for the most part, so the next two weeks could be spent perfecting my technique and stage presence.

  When we’d finally run through the entire routine for the first time—although it was rough—I began clapping and jumping and down on the spot like I was a kid who was just told I was going to Disneyland.

  “Yay, we did it!”

  Eduardo chuckled. I’d learned over the past week that that was as good as I was going to get from him. A full belly laugh seemed to be out of his comfort zone. The man was too intense for his own good.

  He reached forward and squeezed my shoulder. “We did.”

  The way he looked at me, like he saw straight through me and knew all the things I’d been thinking about him, was unnerving—especially because his girlfriend was in the next room. I wanted nothing more than to stay in our little bubble, just the two of us, for as long as possible.

  “How long have you and Marina been together?” I blurted out, feeling like I should remind him of his girlfriend in that moment. One of us had to. He stared at me without blinking for so long that I wasn’t sure he’d heard me. “Eduardo?” I whispered.

  He shook his head, seeming to come out of a trance, causing his long locks to brush against his cheek. “We’re not a couple, Jasmine. I’m single.” I didn’t know if it was the way my name rolled off his tongue or the fact that he’d just declared himself available to me, but a feeling of warmth began in the pit of my stomach and unfurled to consume my entire body.

  “Oh,” was my super-intelligent response.

  He cocked his head to the side. “Why would you think she was my girlfriend?”

  I hadn’t expected him to ask me that. Since I didn’t have an answer prepared, the truth came bumbling out of my mouth. “When you danced together, it was so…you seemed really into each other.”

  Although there was less than half a foot of space between us, he moved a step forward, then reached out and brushed a stray hair off my face. “That’s called a performance. The tango should be carnal, sexual, and leave you and the audience wanting.”

  My breaths came heavier and I inhaled deeply to get enough air into my lungs. I held his dark gaze with my own, unable to look away even if I wanted to. Which I didn’t.

  He dipped his head, leaned into me and tentatively put his lips on mine, as if testing the waters to see how I’d react. It only endeared me to him further. Every display I’d seen from this man so far had been full of confidence—except this.

  I closed my eyes and immersed myself in the warm sensation of his lips on mine. That must have been his cue because his lips became firmer and more demanding, his tongue flicking across my mouth until I parted my lips. His strong arms surrounded me, one hand pushing my ass into him, the other resting on the base of my neck.

  I gave myself over to his demands, my blood at a near boil, my heart rate spiking and refusing to come down. Eduardo moaned. That, coupled with the hard planes of his body pushing into mine, just about undid me.

  I slid my hands into his thick hair, completely forgetting our surroundings and ready to take more from him. Ready to give him more.

  I never got the chance. He pulled away from me, standing far enough back that we were no longer touching. His chest heaved up and down, and his face wore a slight frown. Eduardo opened his mouth to say something just as the studio door swung open announcing Marina and Little Mac’s entrance.

  “You guys must have really been practicing hard. Looks like you’ve both worked up a sweat,” she said as she bounced her way over to us.

  The cool demeanor I was used to seeing from Eduardo once again stole over his face as if the curtain were dropping at a Broadway performance. “Jasmine is a hard worker.”

  I pressed my lips together to keep from grinning. God, how I’d love to show him just how hard I could work.

  His eyes left my face, his gaze shifting to Marina. “How’d it go for you guys? Ready to run through this routine?”

  I glanced over to Marina. Her expression didn’t look very hopeful, but she said, “Sure. Let’s try it and see what happens.”

  What happened was nothing short of a disaster. Mac couldn’t remember the steps, fumbled his way through the ones he did remember, and refused to give it his best effort.

  Eduardo didn’t spare me more than a passing glance the rest of the day. When it was time to leave, all he said was, “See you Monday. Be sure to practice this weekend.”

  I told myself it was only because Marina and Little Mac were around. Deep down, I knew it was more than that.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Eduardo

  I spent my entire fucking weekend thinking about her.

  Jasmine.

  With her dark eyes and olive skin.

  Jasmine.

  With her perfect body that nipped in at the waist right before the top of that tight, amazing ass.

  Jasmine.

  Who worked harder than any of the celebrities I’d ever worked with on the show.

  Jasmine.

  Whose lips were softer than silk and tasted like the cherry lip gloss she wore.

  If I wasn’t feeling conflicted over my intense attraction to her, all of my obsessing wouldn’t have phased me—I’d just act on it when I saw her next. But I couldn’t do that.

  There was a dancer on the show who was always fooling around with his partners. He had become known more for which nightclub he visited and what starlet he had on his arm than his work as a choreographer and dancer. If you asked me, the guy was a fucking sell-out, plain and simple. And that was the last thing I wanted for myself.

  I’d spent my entire life trying to be taken seriously as
a dancer and choreographer, and the last thing I needed was to ruin that reputation by fooling around with Jasmine—no matter how appealing she was.

  The kiss we’d shared was merely a moment of weakness on my part. At least that’s what I’d told myself. Though replaying it over and over in my mind for the past two days had nearly driven me bat-shit crazy.

  When I walked into the studio Monday morning, I was surprised to find her already stretching. I was early myself, having not been able to sleep. I’d spent the past several nights tossing and turning with thoughts of the woman who was currently bent over stretching the back of her legs—ass out.

  Lord, give me strength.

  “Morning,” I said, nodding at her when I walked past to set my things in the corner.

  “Morning.” She sounded shy and unsure.

  We needed to discuss the kiss—I knew that. If I was honest, I was happy Marina had come in the room and interrupted us after I’d pulled away from our kiss. It’d allowed me to sort my shit out before speaking to Jasmine alone again.

  I set everything where I needed it and walked over to join her on the floor. She said nothing, only giving me a small smile that didn’t reach her eyes.

  Taking a deep breath, I decided it was time to man up. “Jasmine, can I talk to you for a second?”

  “Of course,” she said, moving out of her stretch to sit cross-legged facing me.

  “About the kiss…” Something flashed in her eyes, although I wasn’t sure what it was since it was there and gone so fast. “I don’t think it’s wise for us to get involved while we’re working together.”

  She pressed her lips together and nodded. “Okay,” was all she said, though a little hesitantly.

  “It’s not that I’m not attracted to you. I am—”

  “I get it, Eduardo. The ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ speech. Consider it forgotten.” She pushed up off the floor. Now I didn’t understand too much about women, but I was bright enough to see that I’d pissed her off.

  I shot up off the floor and caught her arm. “I mean it.” I looked straight into those big eyes of hers so she’d know I meant it. “I like you. A lot. But I take my job seriously, and I don’t mix business with pleasure.”