"I want to sort your website out first," Luc said, once he'd scraped his plate clean and pushed it away slightly.
"What's wrong with the website?" their dad asked.
Luc stared at him. "You're kidding, right?"
Adam shifted in his chair as he watched the two of them stare each other down.
"Your dad designed it," Deborah, their mum said, when neither man spoke.
"Well, it's a great effort," Luc said, picking over his words slowly. "But you need better. You need something with more pizzazz."
"Pizzazz?" Their dad curled his upper lip. "We're primarily a ballet school."
"But that's not all you teach," Luc said, barging on as though he really didn't care about their dad's feelings. "Besides, there's no reason why ballet has to be boring." His gaze flicked to Adam ever so briefly. "Right?"
Adam didn't appreciate being dragged into the middle, so he gritted his teeth and kept his mouth shut. It wasn't that he didn't agree with Luc—about ballet anyway; he knew nothing about website design—but he wasn't going to take Luc's side over his dad's.
"What are you suggesting we do?" Deborah asked.
"I was going to ask Jane, the web designer I work with to take a look at it. If you can give me all the login and server details, she should be able to whip up a new template for you."
"We can't afford that," their dad said gruffly.
Luc waved his hand. "I'm pretty sure I can talk her into doing it as a favour to me. Don't worry about it." He leaned forward onto the table, planting his elbows in the space he'd cleared by moving his plate away. "I noticed you have no social media presence. At least, I couldn't find you on Facebook or Twitter when I searched." He looked at their parents, his eyebrows raised a fraction, lips parted, as he waited for their response.
"We've never bothered with that stuff. It's just cat pictures and people whining about their lives, isn't it?" Their dad asked.
Luc laughed. The sound made Adam's lip curl.
"Social media can be a powerful tool, Dad," Luc said. "I'm surprised Adam didn't suggest you get on there."
Adam narrowed his eyes.
"I've never bothered Adam with the business side of things," their dad said. "He's a damn fine teacher and dancer."
Finally, Luc looked at Adam and held his gaze for more than a microsecond. "Yeah," he said, drawing the word out. "I remember how good a dancer he was." Luc looked away abruptly.
Adam continued to stare at him, eyes narrowing further as he tried to pick apart the expression on Luc's face and the tenor of his voice. His words had been soft, as had his gaze, and that confused the hell out of Adam.
"I'll set you up on Facebook and Twitter and manage the accounts while I'm here," Luc went on, his attention firmly divided between their parents. "But one of you is going to have to take the time to sit with me and see the kind of things I'm posting, the frequency and so on, so you can keep it up once I head back home."
Their parents exchanged an uncertain glance.
"Maybe Adam could do that," Deborah suggested, with a thin smile on her lips. "It would give the two of you a chance to catch up."
"I don't want to catch up," Adam said. He scraped his chair back and stood abruptly.
He started clearing the table, not looking at any of them as he picked up their plates. His comment hadn't been massively mature, but Luc's presence was bringing out the worst in him.
"Adam," there was a clear note of warning in his dad's voice.
He sighed. "It's your business. You've never wanted me involved in this side of things before, why do you want me involved now?"
"We're not getting younger," his dad said. "You'll gradually need to take on more responsibility. If you want to."
Was his dad saying what Adam thought he was? Not that he wanted to think about it. Aside from the fact he wasn't sure he wanted to take over the dance school one day, he definitely didn't want to dwell on the mortality of his parents. He'd already lost his biological mum far too early.
He filled the dishwasher in silence, half listening to the conversation that carried on behind him.
"Have you got permission from parents to use photos of your students for marketing purposes?" Luc asked.
Adam guessed their parents shook their heads, when only silence answered.
"Okay, I'll draft up a form for you. Get those permission slips in as quickly as you can and then I'll come into lessons and take some photos. Maybe some video too. It'll be good to put up on social media, to get people interested in what you do. Do you have a flyer already designed?"
"Yes, hang on," Deborah said. The legs of her chair squeaked across the tiles and then her slippers made a slap, slap, slap noise as she wandered out of the kitchen.
"Adam, sit down," their dad said.
"I've got stuff to do."
"Sit down."
Adam did as he was told. There it was again: feeling like he was a kid, rather than a grown man. He knew it didn't help that he was acting like one.
"You two need to sort things out, for your mum's sake," their dad hissed.
Adam folded his arms and leaned back, glaring at Luc.
"I'm sorry," Luc mumbled.
"For what?" Adam asked.
"For being mean to you when we were kids."
Adam hissed out a breath. That wasn't all Luc had to apologise for.
"Adam?" their dad asked.
"Apology accepted," he grumbled.
"I want you to let Luc teach you about the social media stuff."
Adam started to shake his head, then bit his lip. "Fine."
"Let me get things set up first," Luc said, looking down at the table. "Until we get those permission slips in and start taking some photos, there won't be much I can do." He cleared his throat. "I'll need your class list and prices, too."
Deborah wandered back into the kitchen, brandishing one of their flyers. It was very similar to the website in look and feel, so Adam doubted that Luc would be impressed by it. Not that they'd bothered with flyers in a long time.
Luc took the flyer and gazed at it for a few seconds. "I'll get Jane to redesign this, too. Maybe put an offer on it of a free introductory lesson."
They parents gaped at him.
"You're supposed to be helping us make money, not give things away for free," their dad grumbled.
"An introductory lesson is a great idea," Luc assured them. "It gets people through the door without them having to spend anything except their time. Then it's up to you guys to show them you are the best dance teachers around."
Deborah put her hand on their dad's shoulder. "We agreed we'd give all Luc's ideas a try. He knows what he's doing, Ken."
Their dad inhaled deeply. He raised his hand to Deborah's and patted it. "I know." He nodded. "But one thing at a time, okay? Don't thrust too much on us at once."
Luc grinned, which made the dimple in his chin more pronounced and, for a second, his face looked a little less harsh and angular. "Let's get the web side of things sorted out first." He dropped his hands to his lap. "Right, I'm going to take my suitcase upstairs and get freshened up. Am I in my old room?"
"Next to Adam's, yes," their mum said. "It's all ready for you."
Luc smiled at his parents but seemed to avoid even glancing in Adam's direction. Then he stood and scurried out of the room with surprising speed.
"I'm going down to the cellar," Adam said, standing. He needed to dance. Needed to work some of the frustration out of his system. "Come get me when it's time to head to the studio."
He wasn't sure how long Luc was planning on staying, but he could already tell it was going to feel like a life sentence.
Chapter Five
Luc
Over the next few days, Luc spent as much time as possible in his old bedroom mostly doing his actual job. It was easier than being around Adam. Besides, there wasn't much he could do, except set up social media accounts for the dance school, until Jane got back to him with a new website design. She'd agreed to
bill him for her time. It had been too much for Luc to expect a freebie from her, but he wasn't going to pass the costs onto his parents. They had enough financial worries without coughing up for an expensive new website.
He ended up with a growing pile of social media permission slips from dance school parents. He poured over the timetable and fees list, looking for gaps in the school's provision, compared to what the other local dance schools offered. As far as he could tell, there was one glaring difference. He decided he was going to talk to his parents about it over breakfast, when things were generally the most relaxed.
He froze as he walked into the kitchen. Adam was the only one in there. He was standing pouring milk over cereal, with his back to Luc, wearing nothing but a pair of grey jogging bottoms, which rested low on his hips. Luc couldn't help but stare at the V shaped muscles on Adam's back, between his hips, that vanished beneath his waistband. He imagined what it would be like to leave a trail of kisses down Adam's spine, until his lips met that waistband. Heat flushed through him. What the fuck was wrong with him? He had to get his thoughts and feelings under control. He wasn't a teenager with raging hormones anymore.
Luckily, when Adam turned around, he didn't even bother to glance over at Luc, so there was no danger of him seeing his brother's discomfort.
"Morning," he grunted, before carrying his cereal bowl over to the table and sitting down.
"Morning," Luc said, his voice about as cheerful as Adam's had been.
He made himself breakfast with record speed, making sure to keep his back to Adam the whole time. Then he dashed to the table and sat down, hiding the boner that he'd have to attend to soon, before it became excruciating. He needn't have worried. Adam still didn't look at him.
Seconds later, their parents wandered in. Luc waited until they'd made coffee and toast and had settled at the table, before speaking.
"Why don't you have lessons for kids under six?"
Ken stared at him for a few seconds, the expression on his face suggesting that Luc's question was stupid. "The bones in children's feet aren't properly developed until around then," he said eventually. "If you start formal ballet training too young, you could do more harm than good."
Luc remembered starting to learn dancing just after Ken had married his mum. Adam used to sit and watch him, eager to join in, but their parents had refused to let him until he'd turned six.
"All the other schools in the area have lessons from three."
"That doesn't mean it's a good thing," his mum said.
"No." Luc inhaled. He knew he had to tread carefully. "But what it does mean, is that you're missing out on a lot of potential students. Unless their parents are unhappy, the dance school they put their kids in at three, is the dance school they're going to stay at as they get older." He pursed his lips as he stirred his milk drenched cereal. "Couldn't you offer some form of fun dance lessons from three? It doesn't have to be formal ballet."
"It's a good idea," Adam muttered.
Luc glanced at him, eyebrows lifted. Adam was staring at his own cereal, the set of his jaw harsh. Luc found his gaze lingering on his stepbrother.
"I could come up with some ideas for classes, if you want?" Adam carried on, his voice gruff.
Luc hadn't expected Adam to back him up, even if he was doing it grudgingly. Was that because it was Luc's idea? Did Adam hate him that much? Luc's shoulders slumped. If Adam did really hate him, he only had himself to blame. He'd been awful to Adam those last few years before he'd gone to university and didn't deserve anything but contempt from his brother. It was for the best, too, because if Adam was actually nice to him, he'd probably fall apart and confess his attraction to him.
"I really don't think—" Ken began.
"Let's see what Adam can come up with," Luc's mum said. "Don't rule it out completely."
Luc wondered if every suggestion he made would be met with equal hostility from his father. It was his mum who had asked for his help, not Ken. What had she done to persuade him to lay down his pride and let his nearly estranged stepson help him? He tried not to think about it too much as he wolfed his breakfast down.
Adam was the first to leave the table.
"I'm going to go jot down some ideas," he said after clearing his bowl up. "Later."
Luc took the opportunity to leave too, following close behind Adam whilst their parents' gazes were elsewhere. Adam took the steps two at a time and Luc jogged up after him. Adam disappeared into his room, but, unusually, left his door open. Luc half hid behind the door.
"Thanks for backing me up down there," he said.
Adam, who had just grabbed a T-shirt from his drawer, paused and glanced around at him and shrugged half-heartedly.
"I really want to help turn the dance school around," Luc told him.
"That's why you're here." Adam pulled the T-shirt over his head. "And why everyone's acting as though everything's fine."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Luc asked. He almost stepped into the room, but stopped himself.
"Do you have any idea how upset Mum was when you decided to move so far away and then didn't even bother to come and visit?"
Luc shook his head, although he could guess. His mum had always been emotional.
"Yet no one's mentioning it. No one's hauling you over the coals because of it. You're back and everyone's treating you like you God's fucking gift or something." Adam gritted his teeth and glared at Luc for several seconds. "But once you're done here, you're just going to fuck off and break Mum's heart all over again and it'll be me and Dad who have to pick up the pieces, whilst you're living it up." He marched forward and pushed the door shut.
Luc stepped back just in time to avoid getting smashed in the face by the door as it slammed closed. He'd known Adam was angry with him, but he hadn't realised just how bitter his brother really was. Now he knew, but the problem was, he had no clue what to do about it.
Chapter Six
Adam
Adam was letting Luc get under his skin in the worst possible way. Even whilst he worked on ideas for dance lessons for youngsters, he couldn't get his stepbrother out of his head. Luc really didn't have a fucking clue what he'd put their parents through. He thought he could just waltz back in, like some kind of prodigal son. And that's pretty much what their parents had let him do. Their dad was a little less receptive than their mum, but still, neither of them were calling Luc on his shit. Were things really that bad with the dance school that they had to pander to Luc and forgive everything he’d done to them?
Sighing, he rested his elbows on his desk and clasped his hands behind the back of his neck. There was a distinct possibility that he was the one who was being unreasonable. That by not being able to let go of the past he was hurting his parents. But he wasn't sure he could.
He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to push past the hurt and pain to a time when he and Luc had been inseparable. A smile tugged at his lips as he remembered how they'd once chased one another—Luc had been taller and faster then—and had ended up wrestling, seeing who could pin the other for the longest. Adam generally won that game, because dancing had made him physically strong.
And then everything changed. His skewed memory wanted to tell him that it had happened overnight. That he and Luc had gone from best friends to Luc waking up and suddenly being an ass to him. But it had been slower than that. Not much slower, granted. The change in Luc had happened over a couple of weeks. He'd decided that he was too old to wrestle; too old for 'games'. Then he hadn't wanted to sit up talking until all hours of the night in one or other of their bedrooms.
Next, he'd started to avoid Adam altogether, getting up early so he was already downstairs by the time Adam surfaced to take a shower in their shared bathroom. Finally, he'd found himself new friends at school and started ignoring Adam. Maybe he could have coped with that and found it in himself to forgive his stepbrother, but what he couldn't forgive is that the friends Luc had found for himself were all fucking bullies. They tormented
Adam because he danced and Luc not only let them, but he'd jeered along with them. He wasn't sure what he'd have done if Mason hadn't stepped in to support him. But Mason wasn't around anymore and everyone was expecting Adam to smile and pretend that everything between him and Luc was fine.
A soft knock on his door prompted him to look up.
"Come in," he called, glad his voice was stronger than his emotions in that moment.
His mum slipped into the room, smiling. She was carrying a plate of ham, egg and chips and a cup of water, which she set down on the desk beside him, before sitting on the end of his bed.
"Busy?" she asked. "It's not like you to not come down for lunch."
Adam glanced at his watch. "Sorry, I lost track of the time."
She smiled faintly. "You normally only do that when you're dancing."
"I was... sort of..." He picked up the pad of paper he'd been writing on and waved it at her. "Ideas."
"How's it going?"
He shrugged. "Okay, I think. There are exams little ones can do, so I was looking at the requirements for those. I'm not suggesting we do any of them," he added quickly, grimacing at the unhappy expression on her face. "I think you and Dad would probably agree it's too much pressure for little kids. But I figured it would be a good starting point."
She pursed her lips and nodded. "That's a good idea. I'm glad you're on board with Luc's suggestions."
Adam scowled and turned away. "I want to help, that's all."
She stood and rested her hands on his shoulders, using her thumbs to knead his tense muscles. "Can't you try a little harder to get on with Luc? You've barely spoken to him, or even looked at him. The two of you have been shut up in your rooms avoiding each other. And us."
"I guess you'll be having this chat with him, too, then?"
She sighed. "He's been trying, Adam. Can't you see that?"
Luc was trying all right.
"You two used to be so close."
"Yeah, well, we're not anymore." He shrugged his shoulders to loosen her grip, so he could spin his chair around to face her again. "I'm sorry," he breathed. "I'll try harder."
A Dance For Two Page 3
