Keep Dancing
Page 26
The cake was now an appealing golden brown. I took it out of the oven and spackled the icing on it. There, I thought, admiring my handiwork. This will prove I’m not a total loss in the kitchen.
As I was washing up, the mixer fell apart in my hands. I picked up the pieces and saw that the two little bolts on either side of the handle were missing. Wonder where they could’ve gotten to? Did they fall off while I was making the icing? Pained, I looked at my beautiful cake, which was emitting a tantalizing aroma. No big deal, I decided.
Jack came into the kitchen. “What’s that great smell? Did you buy a candle?”
“It’s Dot’s recipe for Apple Brown Betty,” I said proudly, moving aside to reveal the cake.
Jack had a wary look in his eyes. “You didn’t have to do that.”
“Oh, it was a cinch. Come on, let’s try it.”
I cut a piece for each of us and put two glasses of milk on the table. Jack forked a big bite and put it into his mouth. “Mmm. This is good.”
“Oh, just one thing,” I added, recalling the mixer. “There may be bolts.”
Jack stopped mid-swallow. “Bolts?”
“I think one or two fell off the mixer while I was making the frosting.”
Jack took a big gulp of milk. “Bolts from a mixer?” he asked with a strange expression.
“Just a couple little ones. Don’t worry, you should be able to feel them.”
Jack’s eyes were wide. “All right, I’ll go slowly.” He took his fork, cut a small bite and mashed it several times on the plate before putting it into his mouth. Then he worked the cake around with his tongue, and washed it down with milk.
“It’s good, isn’t it?” I said, taking another bite. If you felt through the icing with your tongue, you could easily tell if there was a bolt in there, or not. So far, so good, on my end.
“Fantastic.” Jack gave me an odd look. “Nice of you to go to the trouble.”
Suddenly I realized what a disaster this was. I jumped up, grabbed both our plates, dumped the cake into the trash and then started scraping the contents of the pan into the garbage. Jack came up behind me.
“What are you doing? That was good.” He put his arms around my waist.
“No, it wasn’t! You could have choked. I can just see the headline: BOTCHED BETTY BUMPS OFF BAD-BOY BRIT!” I dumped the pan in the sink and turned to face him. “I’m never going to be a domestic goddess. I know your mother’s a great cook, but I just can’t seem to get the hang of it. And I know you hated it that she had to work, but I love my job. I’m no good at this other stuff.”
Jack smiled down at me. “Baby, I don’t care. You edit a mean manuscript. What’s more, you cream my corn. Make my eyelashes curl and you blow my top. So don’t worry about the cooking, all right? We can always go out to eat.” He cocked an eyebrow. “And you know how I like to eat in.”
After we cleaned up the mess, Jack wanted to try out his new guitar. A few days ago he’d mentioned that he planned to take me somewhere nice for our anniversary, and I was excited about getting dressed up in the outfit he’d bought me last weekend. It was a short, silky number that we’d found in a SoHo boutique, along with a pair of high heels that made my legs look almost as long as Vicky’s. I couldn’t wait to wear my new dress, but Jack didn’t seem to be in any rush to get ready. Maybe he forgot about going out, I thought. Or maybe he forgot that tonight’s the night. I swallowed a little lump of disappointment and sat next to him on the couch, watching his long fingers strumming.
“I never got to play you my song. Wanna hear it now?” he asked.
“I’d love to.” I felt a rill of anticipation. I’d been too guilty about my blunder at MSG to dare ask him to sing it for me.
Jack began in a husky voice as he stroked the strings:
Nothing takes me by surprise; seen too many crooked smiles
Lying hands and dirty minds, cringing whinging parasites
Snitches thieving, whores deceiving, ’til at last like a bolt from the blue
Feeling numb, used up and dumb—I was stunned by the jolt of you.
The realization of what I’d done to him hit me again hard, as he continued:
Never lost my heart, didn’t think I could
Didn’t want to, never thought I would
But your lovin’ arms and smile
Make me wanna stay…for a long long while—”
Jack stopped abruptly and threw down the pick. “Ahh, it’s bent. D’you mind bringing me the new bag of picks? They’re on top of the dresser.”
I was bowled over by the song. “That was beautiful, Jack. Those lyrics…I’m just so honored.”
He smiled. “Fetch me the picks, and you can hear the rest.”
That was even more amazing than I’d imagined, I thought as I went back to our room. Hearing his song is better than any dinner date; we can always go out tomorrow night. I looked on the dresser and found the plastic bag of picks tossed on a pile of change. I brought the bag back to the couch and held it out to Jack.
“Could you get one out for me?” he said, his eyes on the guitar neck, adjusting the pegs.
“Okay.” I couldn’t wait for the rest of the song. Quickly I poked around in the bag and handed him a purple pick.
Jack shook his head. “Not that one.”
I had no idea what he wanted. “Which one then?”
“Keep looking. You’ll see it.”
I poked around in the bag. Something glimmered among the dark picks. I plucked it out and stared at a white-gold band lined with sapphires encircling a large, antique-cut diamond.
“What is this?” I asked.
Jack put down the guitar. “It was Mum’s. She made me take it when we left England.” He took the ring and fitted it onto my finger. Of my left hand.
I was in shock. “Does this mean…”
Jack got down on his knees and took my hands in his. “It means what you think. If you’ll have me.”
“Jack, I love you!” Tears sprang to my eyes.
He smiled. “So you’ll marry me?”
“Yes!”
“That’s good,” Jack said, getting back on the couch. “My knees were killing me.”
After we’d kissed and kissed, Jack stopped for a minute. “Let’s set a date quickly, all right? Like maybe next month.”
“That’s really soon, but I’m sure it can be done,” I said through my happy tears. “Dot’s going to be ecstatic. Maybe she can help with some of the arrangements.”
“Which I hope we can keep to a minimum. And then once we’re hitched,” Jack raised an eyebrow. “The next thing on the agenda is getting you pregnant. That is, when you feel the time is right. I know you’re going to keep working, so we’ll just have to find a good sitter. Or two.”
I thought about my huge new self-help hit, and the humor book coming out next spring, which was sure to do well. The raise that I’d just been promised. The pile of manuscripts from agents who seemed to be beating down my door, now that I’d had a number one bestseller. Then I pictured Brenda from accounting, joyously flashing her pictures—carrying on.
I jumped up and pulled Jack off the couch. Still holding his hand, I started walking toward the bedroom. “No time like the present,” I said.
The End
If you’d like to read Come Dancing, the first novel about Jack and Julia, click here:
www.amazon.com/Come-Dancing-Leslie-Wells-ebook/dp/B00KVQAL98/
Dear Reader,
If you enjoyed Keep Dancing, it would mean so much to me if you’d post a review. Reviews are tough to come by these days, and you, the reader, have the power to make or break a book. Here’s a link to my Amazon page, and thanks so much again for taking the time to read Keep Dancing!
www.amazon.com/Keep-Dancing-Jack-Julia-Book-ebook/dp/B00T7278PM/
In gratitude,
Leslie
Sign up to receive an email when Leslie’s next book is ready: http://www.lesliewellsbooks.com
About the Aut
hor
Leslie Wells is the author of Come Dancing, the first novel about Jack and Julia. Leslie left her small Southern town in 1979 for graduate school in New York City. After receiving her Master’s in English Literature, she got her first job in book publishing. She has edited forty-eight New York Times bestsellers in her over thirty-year career, including thirteen number one New York Times bestsellers. Leslie has worked with numerous internationally known authors, musicians, actors, actresses, television and radio personalities, athletes, and coaches. She lives on Long Island, New York. http://www.lesliewellsbooks.com
Acknowledgments
The minute I finished writing Come Dancing, I knew I wasn’t done with Jack and Julia yet. The response from readers and reviewers was so rewarding, and I felt I had another novel in me. From that impulse came Keep Dancing.
The following people were very helpful in providing early reads and suggestions: Jessica Hatch, who is an amazingly astute editor; and also my friends Sheri Betuel and Amy Turza. Thanks to Hilary Malecki, Sue Nicoletti, Charles Salzberg, and Jill Sansone for being so supportive of my writing efforts.
The gorgeous cover for this book, as well as for Come Dancing and Dancing with Mistletoe, were provided by the wonderfully talented designer Laura Klynstra. Thanks again to Kassiah Faul for my fabulous website. Lucinda Campbell did a great job with the ebook formatting. Amy Bruno of Book Junkie Promotions, a real pro who’s as enthusiastic as she is organized, set up my blog tour.
My children put up with their mom working her day job as an editor, and then writing in the wee hours of the morning and late at night. My husband, Peter, listened to me read the whole book to him several times, providing insightful suggestions and being incredibly supportive. Ciao, bella!
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
About the Author
Acknowledgments