One Step Closer(48)

It was the very moment when she fell madly in love with him.

What more could a girl want? Prince Charming buying her shoes with money he’d taken a beating for.

Amazing.

That’s the word her mind always chose when she thought of Caleb.

Her eyes welled with tears as she went to the ballet barre in front of the mirrored wall on the east side of the studio room, and lifted her leg to put her right heel over the barre. Her left foot fell into turnout as one arm rose gracefully above her head and her posture lengthened. Wren’s hands and body naturally assumed ballet pull up and heart forward position from her years of practice. With her neck long, fingers and arms poised, she bent at her waist, her left arm reaching toward her right foot as she stretched.

She’d been with her company less than a week prior and her body was still nimble, and she moved through the standard warm-up moves their Ballet Master put them through before every practice or performance.

Finished with her stretching and warm-up, Wren began to dance in the middle of the hardwood floor, letting the soft and gentle music overtake her. The lyrics about love and loss caused emotion to well up inside and overtake her in such a way that the rises and falls in the music dictated her steps. With practiced precision and flawless technique, she performed a series of Arabesques, Chasse’s, extensions, Jete’s and Fouette’ turns, not even aware of her movements.

When the song ended, Wren was startled by the sound of clapping coming from the doorway of her studio. Her heart lurched and her head snapped around to find Macy lurking there. The woman would have had to walk through her bedroom uninvited to watch her dance.

Wren’s breath left her body and her hand went to her cover her heart. “You scared me, Macy.”

The dark-haired woman straightened from where she was leaning on the door jam to walk into the studio. “Sorry,” she said casually. “This is some set-up.”

Wren walked quickly to the other side of the room to turn off the music, and Macy took note of the way she walked. The way her knees and toes turned out from her hips screamed ballerina and Macy wondered if she always walked like that.

Wren was nervous about being intruded upon during such a private moment. She used shutting off the music as an excuse to turn her back and brush the tears from her cheeks.

“Yes, I’ve always loved it. Edison had it done for me after Caleb went off to college. He was very generous.”

“I can see that.” Macy looked around and peered through the adjacent door that led into Wren’s bedroom. “A little dancing suite, all your own. How convenient.”

Wren grabbed a small towel and made the pretense of wiping the back of her neck and face. It was strange having Macy sneaking around the house and watching her dance in silence. It felt creepy and awkward.

“I couldn’t sleep. The jet lag and the long nap before must have done a number on me.”

Macy went into Wren’s bedroom to continue snooping, and Wren could do nothing else but follow her through the doorway to watch her casually inspect the room and pick up odds and ends; examining everything.

Macy was a good 5 inches taller than Wren, but she wasn’t intimidated.

“Macy, can I help you with something?” Wren asked hesitantly, lifting first one foot, then the other, to peel off the ballet slippers.

Macy turned to look at Wren. “I couldn’t sleep either. Caleb seems to think we can’t do the nasty in this house, and I’m not used to sleeping without him.”

“Oh.” Wren’s cheeks and neck began to flush uncomfortably. That was a little more information than she wanted. “Well, it was his father’s house. And, I’m sure he’s not himself, considering his reason for being here.” She went to a drawer and took out an oversized sweatshirt that Caleb had sent her from MIT. She pulled it over her head, and shoved her arms into the sleeves. She’d often worn it over her leotard after a workout because it made her feel closer to him while he was in Massachusetts.

“MIT, huh? Caleb’s?” Macy sat on the end of the queen size bed and watched Wren untie the skirt and lay it over the back of the chair at her vanity.

Wren flushed at Macy’s correct assumption, but she was starting to get angry. The line of uncomfortable questions coupled with the intrusion, were starting to wear on her. “He sent it to me while he was away at school. It was new.”

“I see.” Macy’s eyes narrowed. “I think we should have a little chat.” She patted the bed, as if it were her right to invite Wren to sit down in her own room. “I’ll tell you all about me and Caleb, and you tell me all about your relationship with him.”

“Um…” Wren’s delicate fingers flitted over the top sheer chiffon on the back of the chair. She struggled with whether she should tell her to get the hell out, or be casual and get this out of the way. It was inevitable, given the way Caleb had melted into her in front of Macy, earlier. “I’m not sure what you want to know.”

Wren didn’t think she wanted to know anything at all about Caleb and Macy, nor could she tell her very much about her own relationship with him. He wouldn’t want it either, in any case. “Caleb doesn’t really like people talking about his business.”

“Aw, come on; it’s me and you. We’re the two women in his life. Surely the rules don’t apply to us.”