Midnight Ballerina (23 page)

I TRIED NOT to laugh as I caught sight of Monroe, who was attempting to hook her bait without touching it. That girl was independent and stubborn, two of the qualities that I liked best about her, and it was obvious she wasn’t going to ask for my help. But I couldn’t stop myself from laughing when one of the worms landed on her boot, and she sent that thing flying through the air so quickly, I would’ve thought her foot was on fire.

I wedged my pole into the soft bank and walked over to where she was crouched closely to the rock, trying to stab the hook through the worm without touching it. Her face scrunched up, causing her nose to wrinkle, which was one of the cutest damn things I had ever seen, and she bit down on her lip as she concentrated. I tried not to stare at her lips. Really, I did. But the feel of them on mine was all too fresh and I wanted them again. Taking things slow with Monroe was going to be impossible, that much was clear, especially when she managed to get on top of me, wiggling her hips around the whole time as she pressed against me. Yup, damn near impossible.

“Need some help?” I asked, snapping myself out of those thoughts that could only lead to trouble.

“Nope, I’ve got this,” she answered, still looking determined.

“You know, it would be a lot easier if you just picked the thing up,” I suggested, even though I knew that was the last thing she wanted to do. She proved me correct when she jabbed at the poor worm once again with her hook, but didn’t quite get it on.

“Fine,” she huffed, shoving her pole at me. “Will you please put it on? I guess I’m too much of a girl to hook my own line.”

“At least you tried.” I laughed and she nudged me in the stomach after I handed her pole back to her with a baited hook.

We spent the next couple of hours fishing and I was glad Luke suggested doing it after the picnic he had helped me put together. I wasn’t so sure fishing was the best thing to do with a girl on a date, but Monroe seemed to be enjoying it and it gave us plenty of time to talk. I could tell how much she had missed visiting her family for the holidays. She was extremely close to her mom. The fact that she even left to go to school in Georgia baffled me, but I guess it was a good thing, or we would’ve never met.

I glanced at my watch, groaning when I saw the time. “We need to be heading back in. There’s one other stop we need to make before I drop you back off at home.”

“You’re spoiling me, Miller Buchanan. I’m not used to these kind of dates.”

“Then whoever took you out before was a dumbass. These are the kind of dates you deserve. All the time.” And I had a feeling she was going to love what was up next.

The ride to the barn seemed like it went by way too quickly, and before I knew it, we were both putting our horses back into their stalls. “I’m really not looking forward to going into the club tonight,” I admitted as she looped her arm through mine and gazed up at me with those green eyes I found myself staring at most of the day. I never thought I was that guy. The kind that could get lost in a girl’s eyes and zone out the rest of the world. Most of the time I thought those guys were douchebags.

“I’m sorry. I know you’re going be so busy since you had to let Randy go. I’m sure it was nice having a manager and not have to be there constantly.”

“Yeah, but the manager was an idiot and that makes me feel like a dumbass for keeping him on so long. I should’ve fired him a while ago. I should’ve known what was going on. That’s the last time I trust anyone.”

“I’m sure it’s hard for you,” she responded quietly and I was glad that I didn’t have to give my reasoning behind my trust issues. She just got it.

“The main reason I don’t want to go in is because I have to deal with Bianca.”

Monroe snorted. “Yeah, I wouldn’t want to either.”

“People think that just because I’m the boss, that means I like firing people or something, but it’s the hardest part of the job, knowing that I’m cutting off their source of income, their need to support themselves.” I shook my head. “But Bianca crossed the line. She knew what she was doing was wrong. I was so pissed after getting rid of Randy the other night, though, I figured I would give myself some time to cool down and let her go with a level head. I’m sure she’s not gonna go willingly.”

Monroe giggled. “You’re probably right, that girl is bat shit crazy.”

“You got that—” I stopped short when I realized who was standing next to my truck. “Oh shit,” I muttered under my breath.

“What’s the matter?” Monroe asked, squeezing my hand that was laced through hers.

“Um….”

“Oh, Miller. I’m so glad I caught you. Luke said you should be heading in soon.” Mamaw smacked a kiss onto my cheek and then turned her eyes to our entwined hands, her lips puckering up slightly before she flattened them into a small smile. “And who might this be?”

Monroe glanced at me with a scared look in her eyes, evidence of how nervous she was, and I understood why. Mamaw could be the sweetest old lady you ever met, but when it came to me, she could also be one tough broad. “This is Monroe. Monroe, this is my mamaw.”

“Miller, I do have a name,” she scoffed lightly. “You may call me Mrs. Buchanan. Nice to meet you, Monroe.” She stiffly reached out a hand and patted Monroe on the back.

Mrs. Buchanan? Never in my life had she referred to herself as Mrs. Buchanan. It was either Maggie to people around town, or Mamaw to her friends and family. She was giving Monroe the cold shoulder and it was probably the first time she had ever done it to someone.

“Nice to meet you, Mrs. Buchanan. Miller talks about you all of the time. I’m glad I finally get to meet the special lady that’s made him the guy he is today.” Monroe smiled as she looked up at me, her green eyes lighting up, and I squeezed her hand. She had no idea that Mamaw wasn’t being too friendly.

Mamaw frowned at the compliment. “And how exactly did you two meet? Miller here sure has kept his lips zipped when it comes to you. Normally, he tells me everything.”

“Um….” Monroe gave me a panicked look and I let go of her hand so I could wrap my arm around her waist, pulling her close against me.

“We met on campus when I was bidding on a job in that area,” I answered for Monroe and I felt some of the tension release out of her body. “And actually, she’s starting to work for me at the office, come Monday.”

“Oh really?” Mamaw’s nose turned up slightly. “I wasn’t aware you were lookin’ for help. You know Tara could’ve probably done the job just fine.” Her eyes flicked back toward Monroe and she nodded her head. “Yes, Tara would’ve been just as good.”

“Oh, I didn’t realize Tara was looking for a job.” Monroe’s eyes darted back to me. “You could’ve hired Tara instead of me.”

“Tara doesn’t need a job,” I answered shortly. “And she will never work for me anyway.”

“You never know,” Mamaw replied in a singsong voice.

“Mamaw,” I said in a warning tone and she took a step back, her eyes dropping down to stare at the driveway. Good, I hoped she felt a little bad about how she acted. I just hoped that Monroe wasn’t catching on.

“Well, I need to get to the restaurant. I’ll catch up with you later, Miller. Goodbye, Monroe.”

I opened the door of my truck for Monroe just as Mamaw backed out of the driveway, glad that whole mess was over with, but we were going to have a talk later about it.

“So that went really well,” Monroe sarcastically mumbled as I slid behind the steering wheel. So, apparently she did notice Mamaw’s icy behavior. Great.

“Don’t worry about it.” I moved my hand to rest on her knee and she placed her hand over mine. “She loves Tara, if you couldn’t tell. Try not to take any of that to heart. She’ll come around.”

“If you say so, Miller.” She twisted away to look out the window, and I knew how much that whole situation back there had hurt her. Meeting Mamaw was just like meeting someone’s parents, anyone would want to make a good impression.

“Hey,” I pulled over onto a side street, trying to change the sour mood. This was our first date and I wanted to make it special, something that she’d want to remember forever and would be hard to top. I grabbed onto her hand and slid her across the seat so she was pressed against me, right where she belonged.

“Is this where we’re going next?” She looked around in confusion at the road dotted with houses, placing her hand on my thigh, which only led to distract me as I reached across her and into the glove box, pulling out a handkerchief that would be perfect. I wanted that hand to go higher, to finish what we started earlier out by the pond, what my body was yearning for right now, but then we wouldn’t have time for the surprise.

“Nope.” I reluctantly moved her hand, but I knew it was for the best. If it remained there, I would end up having to take her right in my truck and I wouldn’t give a fuck who saw us. I turned sideways to face her, tucking some of her hair back before I held the handkerchief up. “You aren’t allowed to see where we’re going.”

“Oh?” Her eyebrows shot up and she bit down on her lip as I covered her eyes. “Can you at least give me a hint?” she asked after I finished fully covering her eyes and then asked her how many fingers I was holding up. I was pretty sure she couldn’t see a thing, just like I wanted.

“Nope. I can do this, though.” I brushed my lips against hers and I could feel her own curve upwards before I slipped into her mouth, tasting her once again. I couldn’t get enough of her sweetness. She sighed as our tongues tangled, and I squeezed her thigh as her hips twitched and her body arched into me. I wanted to pull her onto my lap and take things further and it took everything in me to pull away, nipping her lip before I righted myself and adjusted the front of my pants.

“I’ll take that anytime,” she said with a smile as I started my truck back up. I turned onto the road that led to downtown, and once we arrived, pulled my truck into the parking lot behind a tidy row of businesses.

"We’re here.”

Monroe carefully placed her hand in mine, and I pulled her the rest of the way across the seat, and out my door. She hopped out of the truck and I caught her, setting her down gently and brushing a kiss against her forehead.

“I really didn’t want to rush this but since we ran into Mamaw, we kind of have to. So, we got your work schedule all set at the office.” I looked at her sideways and even though her eyes were still covered, I knew she was rolling them beneath the material, but she kept her mouth shut, which was surprising.

That had been one of the things we discussed while we fished. I knew Monroe was overworking herself by going to school, trying to keep up with exams and papers that were due, and then working at the club on top of that, still barely scraping by. She didn’t have classes on Friday, so I gave her that day off and Monday through Thursday she would work in the afternoons after she got out of class until six or seven at the latest. The real kicker was that I would to pay her a full-time salary. That’s what she wasn’t happy about and it confused the hell out of me. I was just trying to help her out a bit.

“I guess if you want to call it set,” she responded sarcastically. “More like you demanding and me needing to listen. Don’t forget you promised a hundred dollar pay decrease.”

“How could I forget?”

She argued with me for a while when I told her what I decided on for her hours and salary. I thought she would be ecstatic, instead she got pissed. She got even sexier when she was angry; her green eyes flaring, her plump lips turned into a scowl and her tiny fists on her hips. Finally, I agreed to a pay decrease, even though I doubted I would honor it, but if that’s what made her happy, then I guess I could live with it.

“Exactly where are we going?” she asked again when I placed my hand on the small of her back and ushered her through the back door of the business that sat on the end, and into a small office space.

“You’ll see.” I undid the handkerchief, tucking it in my pocket, and watched as her eyes darted back and forth, trying to figure out where we were. “This is partly why I gave you Fridays off. It’s your decision on what you want to do, but I figured you’ll probably go with it.”

“Miller! It is so good to see you,” Nina greeted from behind her desk. She jumped up and gave me a tight hug before turning to smile at Monroe. “And this must be the girl you told me all about. So nice to meet you, Monroe. I’m Nina Pierson.”

Monroe smiled, seeming slightly uncomfortable as Nina wrapped her in a hug. “Nice to meet you, too.” She looked around, the realization of where we were evident on her face. I could tell she liked the surprise.

“Nina was a friend of my ma’s. She was a couple years ahead of her in school, but they used to hang out all the time.”

“More like caused a whole lot of trouble together,” Nina piped in, patting my back as her smile faltered. “Fortunately, I grew out of that phase. Abby, on the other hand—”

“So, anyway,” I grabbed Monroe’s hand. “How ‘bout we give Monroe here a tour? She doesn’t know why she’s here.”

“Oh, Miller. Always such a secretive guy, even when he was a little boy. Well then, Monroe. Welcome to Expressions Dance Center. Let’s get out of this boring old office and take a look at the fun stuff.”

Monroe’s eyes lit up, just like I hoped they would, and I loved the way she beamed at me. I hung back as Nina showed her the three different rooms she had set up for classes, and the areas where the parents could watch from the other side without interrupting.

“I’ve actually been here before,” Monroe explained. “I used to come in for some of the studio time late at night.”

“Oh, really?” Nina asked, smiling over Monroe’s head at me.

When Monroe told me that she hoped to one day own a studio, I immediately thought of Nina, and then I just happened to run into her a couple of days ago at the corner market. I told Nina about the first time I had seen Monroe dance, here at the studio. She said she’d never met her before because there was a night manager that ran things for the evening crowd. Then she mentioned that she was starting to set up dance workshops on the weekends, and though she was excited about the idea, she knew that it was going to be exhausting. I asked her if she needed an extra instructor and she looked at me like I was a saint when I suggested Monroe. Hopefully, she would want the job. I figured she would. Dancing was what she loved, anyone could see that. Even from just watching the graceful way she walked, like she was floating across the room or something.