Despite her vocal denials to the contrary, she loved how possessive I was of her. I hauled her across the seat and snuggled her into my side. I couldn’t wait to get home and dig through the bags of new treasures.
But, when we finally got home, Juliette burst my bubble by informing me that the bags were for the honeymoon and proceeded to store them away in the closet while I stood back, mouth hanging open in shock.
Chapter 9
Juliette
Whoever it was who said ‘time flies when you’re having fun’ sure knew what they were talking about. The week I spent with Declan getting everything ready for the wedding was one of the best of my life. Unfortunately, it felt like it flew by in the blink of an eye. If Declan hadn’t been up and out the door at the butt crack of dawn, I wasn’t sure I’d have been able to drag mine out of bed to leave for the studio on time. I’d quickly become addicted to lazy mornings spent in bed with him.
Although, I’m not sure lazy was quite the right word for it. Declan had decided the best exercise routine during my time off was one which included a whole lot of horizontal action—with him as my very own personal trainer. I wasn’t about to argue, not when it meant I was able to stay in shape while enjoying tons of orgasms. It was the best kind of win-win situation for me, but it had come to an end and I was ready to make the most of the next few months in the studio before the baby came.
Serena had suggested I try my hand at choreography since my practice hours were limited by my pregnancy. I’d been hesitant at first, but I’d quickly fallen in love with my new creative outlet. There was one particular piece I was excited to show her and our artistic director today. I’d had a breakthrough in my composition that last night at the studio. After running through it in my head over and over again during my time away, I was certain it was exactly the way I wanted it.
The first thing I did when I arrived was to find Serena. “Hey,” I greeted her when I peeked my head into her office.
“Welcome back.” Her eyes drifted down to my belly and a big grin split her face. “You look amazing. Your time off must have been exactly what you needed.”
“It was perfect,” I agreed. “So much so that I think the piece I’ve been working on the last couple months is done.”
“You have fantastic timing!” She jumped up from her seat and hurried towards me, grabbing my hand and leading me down the hall to the largest studio. “Hayes is running through a couple new pieces today, so you can show both of us at the same time. He has a nice selection of dancers in there for you to pick from, and it should only take them a few run-throughs before they’ll be ready to show us what you’ve got.”
Butterflies took flight in my stomach at the thought of watching my fellow dancers performing the first piece I’d choreographed on my own in front of our artistic director, Leonard Hayes. I was already nervous about Serena’s feedback, but I knew she wouldn’t be too harsh. She would be constructive rather than harsh, even if she hated it. Plus, she’d liked the parts I’d already shown her. Hayes was a whole different story since he could be a bit of a jerk about other people’s choreography at times.
Apparently, this wasn’t one of those days since he was raptly watching several of the corps members perform. The piece was beautiful, undeniably so . . . it was also hauntingly familiar. It was the same exact one I’d been working to perfect during my last night at the studio a week ago! I hadn’t thought anyone had seen me. I hadn’t even known any other dancers were in the building at the time, not until we’d bumped into Irina in the hallway on our way out.
Irina! I searched the room for that black-haired bitch, and there she was—standing in the corner of the room next to Hayes with a smug smirk on her face. Why that little... It was terribly difficult to resist marching my pregnant self over there and punching her right in the face. She’d stolen my choreography! Down to every little step, without even bothering to change a single move. The gall of that woman never ceased to amaze me.
“She’s got balls. Giant, brass ones. I’ll give her that but not much else,” I muttered.
“Oh, I’ve got something to give her all right,” Serena snarled from behind me. “A swift kick on her behind on her way out the door.”
My dance mistress marched over to where Irina stood and flashed her a smile which looked obviously fake to me.
“Such magnificent choreography,” she cooed.
Irina’s face lit up with pride. “Thank you, Mistress.”
“And so different from your usual style.”
“You’ve always encouraged us to push our own boundaries,” Irina explained.
“It really is a major accomplishment,” Serena offered, and Irina practically preened with excitement at the compliment—only to find herself crashing back to reality when Serena continued. “For the dancer who actually choreographed the piece, who we both know was most definitely not you.”
You could have heard a pin drop in the silence following her announcement before Irina started to sputter. “What? Why would you even suggest such a thing? Of course I did!”
Serena switched her focus to Hayes. “The girl is lying.”
“I am not!” Irina screeched.
“I’m not sure how you thought you’d get away with stealing Juliette’s work, but I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that this is her piece.”
“Why? Did your little teacher’s pet tell you it’s hers in a desperate attempt to remain relevant since she can’t dance anymore?” Irina hissed.
“No, Irina. Because I’ve seen part of this dance as she’s worked on it over the last two months. She’s come to me for advice and asked for my feedback, just like I’d expect any dancer new to choreography to do. Can you say the same? Is there anyone who’s seen you work on this piece?”
“Yes, just this past week—“
Serena didn’t let her finish. “Do you think I’m dumb? That I don’t know a dance I’ve already seen? That it’s purely coincidence you worked on this piece during the one week when Juliette was absent?”
“Is this true, Irina?” Hayes asked.
“I—I—I don’t—” she stammered.
“Leave,” he ordered, pointing one long finger towards the door.
“And take your things with you because we have no room for a dancer capable of such duplicity in our company,” Serena added.
“My notebook,” I interjected, realizing that’s why it hadn’t been in the lost and found when I’d called. “Please make sure she doesn’t pack it along with her stuff. I’d like to get it back.”
Irina stormed towards the door, and I barely managed to get out of her path before she passed me.
“Fifteen-minute break, everyone,” Hayes called out, drawing my attention away from the door. “Juliette, please schedule an appointment with me for this week to discuss possibly using your piece in an upcoming show.”
The dancers filed out of the room, whispering about the drama amongst themselves.
“Wow,” Lisa murmured as she sidled up next to me, apparently headed in the same direction. “I don’t know whether to say congratulations or I’m sorry for all the drama. Are you okay? I mean, I know we haven’t really gotten the chance to get to know each other very well, but you are pregnant with my friend’s husband’s best friend’s baby. That sounded way less weird in my head than it did out loud.”
A giggle bubbled up my throat, breaking off when I let out a startled yelp at the sound of another voice behind us.
“No wonder my ears were ringing,” Nancy joked. “I thought I was going to surprise my friend and see if she could maybe do lunch today, but lunch for three sounds even better.”
“Oh, I wouldn’t want to intrude,” I tried to decline.
“You could never be an intrusion,” Nancy assured me. “Not when Kevin and I are thrilled to see Declan head over heels in love with you and so excited for the baby.”
“Head over heels in love?”
“Yeah,” she sighed, with a dreamy look in her eyes. “Kevin a
nd I were talking about it the other day while we were shopping for your wedding gift. He told me the first time he saw the two of you together, he finally understood why Declan had been such an antisocial grouch for so long. Kevin isn’t exactly the most insightful person ever—I mean, well, he is a guy after all—but even he said it was nice to see his best friend finally meet his perfect match.”
“I’m such an idiot,” I murmured, my head swirling with all the memories of my time with Declan. His gentleness and protectiveness. How possessive he was of me when we were around other men. The time he’d mentioned waiting four months for me while I’d been gone on my international tour. The look in his eyes when we made love. The proud way he’d slid his grandmother’s ring onto my finger when he’d proposed. It was all because he loved me.
“Lisa, can you do me a huge favor and make sure Serena gets my notebook from Irina? And tell her I’m sorry but I had to leave unexpectedly?” I asked. She nodded, and I pulled Nancy to me for a quick hug. “I’d love to do lunch with you, just not today.”
I barely took the time to grab my purse before I raced out of the building and hopped into the first cab I found. A quick text to Declan confirmed he was in his office, so I headed straight there as soon as the cab dropped me off at the hospital entrance. I didn’t bother knocking, just stormed in and threw myself into Declan’s lap when I found him in his chair behind his desk.
“Jules, baby, is everything okay?”
“More than okay,” I assured him, peppering his face with kisses. “Amazing. Astounding. Wonderful. I can’t even come up with a word good enough to explain how okay everything is.”
“Good morning at the dance studio?”
“You love me,” I breathed out.
“Of course I do.” He looked at me curiously, one eyebrow raised and his head tilted to the side.
“And I love you.”
“Damn straight you do.”
“I love you,” I repeated, enjoying how the phrase rolled off my tongue. “So very much, but I’d love you even more if you could say those three little words back to me.”
His eyes widened with surprise. “I’ve never actually said it, have I?” His arms tightened around me. “Fuck, how is that possible when I love you so damn much? From the moment I saw you on stage that first night, I’ve known you were meant to be mine, Juliette. I’m the luckiest bastard alive because here you are, expecting my baby and with my ring on your finger. I can’t wait for our wedding day, for you to become my wife. It’s all I’ve wanted from the beginning, as crazy as it sounds.”
“Oh, Declan,” I sighed, tears streaming down my face.
“I love you, Juliette Moureaux soon-to-be-McGowan.”
His speech was beautiful, but he’d gotten one thing wrong—I was the lucky one.
Epilogue
Declan
I jumped to my feet and clapped my hands so hard they started to sting and turn red. I didn’t care, I barely felt it any more than I felt the smile practically breaking my face. A beautiful ballerina glided to the front of the stage and curtsied, holding tight to her pink, fluffy tutu. She grinned brightly, showing off her dimples and sparkling violet eyes. Then she turned to step back into the line of other dancers, but not before waving her chubby little hand at me first.
She was so damn adorable, just like her mother. On the heels of that thought, I was distracted by my gorgeous wife as she stepped onto the stage to deafening applause. I laughed when Cassie darted out of line and ran over to throw her four-year-old arms around Juliette’s legs.
Juliette bent down and whispered something in her ear and Cassie giggled before scampering back into place. The crowd died down and the director of the dance school stepped out onto the stage with a microphone.
“We’d like to thank Juliette McGowan for taking the time out of her busy schedule to choreograph a piece for our recital. It was truly an honor to work with such a renowned choreographer and we are grateful New York City Ballet let us steal a bit of her time.” She wrapped up the performance with a few other remarks and then dismissed the dancers to find their families.
“Dadadadada! Gah!” I turned my attention to the little boy squirming in Nancy’s arms. My son reached for me and I lifted him high, nuzzling his round little tummy. Warmth filled my chest at the sound of Henry’s delighted little squeals and the twinkle in his warm brown eyes. Nancy patted his rump and then leaned up on tip toes to kiss my cheek.
“We’ve got to collect our little monsters and get them home to bed. I’ll say goodbye to the girls on the way out, but we’ll see you on Thursday, right?”
“Great. My parents will be here on Saturday to pick the kids up from your house. Thanks again for watching them until they could get here.”
“Are you kidding? Our kids ignore us when yours are over for a visit. It’s like a vacation,” Kevin joked.
I snuggled Henry to my chest and followed them out of the auditorium. They took off to find their kids, while Henry and I hung out, waiting for our girls. After a handful of minutes, a bundle of puffy, sparkly pink came barreling into the lobby and over to me.
“Daddy!” she screamed happily as she ran. I shifted my son to one arm and bent down to scoop Cassie up into the other. “Did you see me?”
I smacked a kiss on her cheek before answering, “I sure did, twinkle toes. How could I miss the prettiest ballerina on the stage?” I winked at her and she giggled.
I looked just beyond her and watched Juliette approach. Damn, she was amazing. Her eyes were soft as she looked at the treasures I held in my arms. When she reached us, she wrapped her arms around us and squeezed.
“She did great, didn’t she?” Juliette murmured proudly.
“Just like her mommy,” I agreed, then kissed her lips softly. “Let’s go home.”
***
“I miss my babies,” Juliette mumbled tearfully, and I hugged her close into my side. She’d been weepy on and off since we dropped the kids off at Nancy and Kevin’s last night. We’d said our goodbyes then because we had an early flight to Hawaii for our anniversary. In fact, she’d been in a state over leaving them on and off for over a week. I was familiar with these mood swings, plus she’d been feeling sick, and I wondered when she would catch on to the fact that she was pregnant again.
Her head rested on my chest and I dropped a kiss on her crown. “They are going to have so much fun, Jules. They won’t even know we’re gone.”
She sniffed and nodded. Clearly, she needed a distraction. With one long finger, I lifted her chin and covered her mouth with mine, lazily sweeping my tongue into her mouth and groaning at her delicious taste. A little moan escaped her mouth and I felt a shiver run through her. Before things could get out of hand, I pulled back and simply gazed at her. She was fucking gorgeous with her flushed skin and lust glazed, violet eyes.
“Hmmm, I’m not sure I’ll be able to get my fill of your sexy ass in ten days, baby,” I growled in her ear. I was mentally talking myself out of dragging her into the bathroom and joining the mile-high club.
She chuckled and patted the obvious bulge in my slacks. “Patience, Dec.” I glared at her but couldn’t help falling victim to her charms when she smiled and lightly brushed her lips over mine.
“Ahem.” We looked up to see a first class flight attendant waiting for our attention, a small smile playing around the corners of her mouth. “Newlyweds?” she asked slyly.
Juliette giggled and I cuddled her closer. “Anniversary,” I answered.
“Ah, congratulations! Would you like some champagne?”
Juliette opened her mouth but I cut her off. “No, thank you. I’ll have water and my wife will have apple juice.” Then thinking about Juliette’s last two pregnancies, I added, “With a little Sprite.” The woman was clearly surprised, but she simply nodded and moved onto the next row.
Juliette frowned at me. “I wanted so—” She broke off when the plane hit an air pocket and her face practically turned green. She threw off her seat belt a
nd tore down the aisle to the bathroom. I followed quickly behind, ready to take care of my woman. She was all too grateful for the Sprite later on and the rest of the flight was relatively uneventful.
Eleven hours later, we were finally pulling up to our hotel. I unloaded our bags from the rental car and set them inside the bungalow, then returned to carry my wife over the threshold. She laughed but allowed me the silly gesture, her cheeks turning pink with that blush I still loved to see.
I kicked the door shut and flipped the lock, then walked over and set her down. She traipsed over to the bathroom to freshen up while I unpacked a few things. When she stepped back into the room, I pressed a button on my phone and grabbed her hand, tugging her into my arms. “Dance with me, baby,” I crooned and began to sway to the beat.
We slowly moved around the room until I danced her over to the bed and laid her down. I was out of patience. Making quick work of our clothes, I sighed in relief when our naked bodies were pressed together.
“In a hurry there, Dec?” she asked on a laugh.
“Baby,” I sighed. “Henry has been sick and you and I have been working extra hours to get everything done so we could take off. We haven’t had more than a quick fuck in almost three weeks. I can’t help it if I’m desperate to feel you against me, I want to savor it. In fact,” I mused, “I think I’ll keep you naked for the next ten days.”
Juliette chuckled and wrapped her arms around me tightly. “Deal,” she whispered in my ear.
“I hope you don’t think I’m joking, Mrs. McGowan,” I replied archly. I so wasn’t.
“Declan, shut up and make love to me.”
I grinned salaciously. “But, you like it when I talk.” I sucked the lobe of her ear into my mouth and bit it gently. Then whispered, “It drives you wild when I say filthy things while I fuck the hell out of you.”
She moaned and squirmed restlessly.
I started to kiss my way down her body. “Let’s see how many times I can remind this sweet pussy who owns it over the next ten days.”
Dance With Me, Baby: A Yeah, Baby Novella Page 6
