15. Chapter Fifteen #2
While I’d been glad to have the ache of wanting her vanish, perhaps she thrived on the drama.
Maybe I missed that about her. I couldn’t be with a woman who demanded an emotional roller coaster, no matter how attractive I found her, no matter how much my chest burned at the thought of not having her.
“I’m really worried,” Alyssa said, yanking me out of my head and back into the hospital room.
I raised my eyebrows but couldn’t speak.
I didn’t want to talk about her injury. Instead, I wanted to dig into what had made her say ridiculous when she’d clearly meant maybe .
The urge to ferry her away, find some way to turn the maybe into a ridiculous was all I could think about.
She couldn’t go back to Ricky. She couldn’t.
What could I say or offer or do? Promises I couldn’t keep would make me like every other guy who’d let her down.
I wouldn’t do that, but I had to do something.
The curtain to our section of the emergency room came back, and the doctor entered with Mia and Gerald on her heels.
Mia had changed from her final concert outfit to jeans, heels, and a cashmere sweater.
Whenever she was worried her age would be a factor in a decision, she dressed older, as though her version of mom clothes would make people take her more seriously.
I suppressed a grin, and she shot me a glare from across the hospital bed. She probably knew what I was thinking—we spent lots of time teasing each other.
“So,” the doctor said, gripping her clipboard, “the good news is that nothing is broken or so torn that it won’t heal.”
“It’s a sprain?” Alyssa’s voice was little more than a whisper.
“Yes.” The doctor glanced at the paper on the clipboard.
“What grade?” Alyssa’s hands were folded in her lap, and she wasn’t looking at anyone .
I ran a hand down her back, unable to help myself when she seemed on the verge of tears. A sprain was a good thing, wasn’t it?
“Grade Two.”
Both Mia and Alyssa sucked in a breath, and when Alyssa made eye contact with the doctor, there were tears shining in her eyes. “How many weeks?”
The doctor looked from Mia to Alyssa and back again.
“With physiotherapy, you could be back in good shape in as little as three to four weeks. Sometimes it’s closer to six or eight.
People don’t always heal on the same timeline.
According to the paperwork you filled out, this isn’t your first ankle injury, so you’ll need to keep that in mind. ”
“She’s part of my show,” Mia said. “She’s going to have to sit out. Is that your recommendation?”
The doctor grimaced and stared at Alyssa before sighing deeply.
“With your history, Alyssa, yes, I would suggest you go heavy on the recovery to have any chance of being back in shape in three to four weeks. Ultimately, it’s your choice about what you’re capable of doing.
I haven’t seen the show, so I don’t know the expectations.
Physiotherapy and rest are your best avenues to wellness. ”
The cold stone of realization settled in the pit of my stomach.
We wouldn’t be able to practice together anymore for sure.
Even at the shortest timeline, that took us almost to the wedding.
The longer timeline would take her into rehearsals for Sarah Telling’s tour.
Would this jeopardize her job with Sarah’s show? Alyssa must be worried about that too.
“Thank you,” Mia said before the doctor ducked back out of the room.
“So.” Mia uncrossed her arms and ventured closer to Alyssa’s bed.
“No more dancing for the rest of the tour. I’m not putting your career in jeopardy.
This is one tour, and it’s not going to make or break your career at this point to bow out early with an injury.
We need to be smart. That also applies to helping Pasha with the wedding routine.
Is there anyone on the tour you’d suggest as a replacement?
Off the top of my head are Amy, Maria, Tashi, or Yorelis. ”
Alyssa ran her hands down the sides of her face, all the color gone. “Can I have a minute alone?”
Mia straightened and then frowned. “You’ll still be paid for the rest of the tour, injured or not. You can take on a coaching role with Pasha’s performance if you still want to be involved. I know it’s been your hard work that’s gotten us this far.”
“Can I just—can I please have a minute?” Alyssa’s gaze was focused on her ankle.
I wanted to comfort her somehow, but that was impossible with Mia in the room. Any of the things I wanted to do right now would increase the pressure Alyssa felt. When Mia didn’t move at Alyssa’s request, I made a shooing motion to her and swept her and Gerald out of the room.
I half turned to Alyssa, unsure if I should leave or act as though Mia wasn’t outside the curtain. The stress of her diagnosis coated her, made her look especially tiny in the hospital bed.
“Alone,” she said, her gaze still on her ankle.
I nodded and stepped out into the hall. As soon as I came out, Mia grabbed my arm and dragged me away from Gerald and down a side hall.
She looked around the corridor before saying, “There’s something going on between you two, isn’t there?” She narrowed her eyes .
I met Mia’s gaze. Never had I lied to her before, but something in the way she was looking at me made me think she didn’t want the truth. “No. No. No.” I frowned, pretending to be offended at the suggestion.
She released her breath in a whoosh, and her shoulders dropped.
“Like, seriously? Really? That’s a relief.
Watching you two in there, I was sure something was going on.
So much tension. Can you tone that connection down?
I know you’ve gotten close with all the hours you’ve spent together. But I have to fire Jazz.”
“She stepped into Alyssa’s slot on stage in the last song.”
Mia cocked her head and scanned my face.
“She did. She was off her head on something tonight. In the dancer’s contract, being high during a performance is a fireable offense.
I’m having her drug tested right now, but I’m sure of it.
You should have seen her after the show.
So out of it. She’s not going to take being fired well.
It’s a death sentence for her career on tours—people talk.
” She took a deep breath. “I don’t want her and a lawyer sniffing around you and Alyssa, looking for retaliation.
My contract also has a nonfraternization clause.
” She held my gaze. “Do you understand what I’m telling you? ”
“Yes.” My heart kicked. Alyssa had been right. Mia, backed into a corner, would have to fire someone.
“Taryn said you swooped Alyssa off the stage like a knight in shining armor. Someone probably has it on video. So, if there is something going on, it would be best if it wasn’t .
For now. I’m glad there isn’t anything going on with you two, so I’m not accused of selectively enforcing my contracts. Am I making myself clear?”
She was. She wasn’t going to confront them, but she knew something was going on. The warped version of the story suited all of us best. Ignorance. Avoidance. Okay with me. “Yes. ”
“Having another person dancing with you and Alyssa from now until the end of the tour should put any rumors to rest. A different partner. A different vibe coming out of the practice room every day. Probably for the best…while we’re on tour.”
She’d rarely spoken to me like I was stupid, even when my English had been so terrible it would have been easy for her to assume I had nothing going on in my head. The way she was being so deliberate now emphasized how much she needed me to fall in line.
“You have nothing to worry about.” With Alyssa’s injury, Mia was right.
A natural step back for us could happen without any drama.
After Alyssa had implied she might take Ricky back, perhaps this was some kind of intervention from a higher power.
So why did the thought make my chest constrict, like I couldn’t get a full breath?
“Taryn is here, taking care of Alyssa’s hospital bills. We’ll make sure she gets back to the tour safely with us. I need you to get back and supervise the Jazz situation.”
“I have to say goodbye.” I indicated Alyssa’s curtained room. No matter how conflicted my feelings were, I couldn’t leave without seeing her one more time.
“Do you think we’ve left her alone long enough?”
I nodded, though I wasn’t sure. The chasm between Alyssa and me had been widening since our car ride. My instinct was to find a way to close it, but I’d just promised Mia I wouldn’t.
Besides, if Alyssa was considering Ricky’s request, she didn’t feel for me what I was starting to feel for her.
I still had enough control that I could reverse these feelings, grind them to a halt.
The last thing I needed was to become some lovesick puppy begging for crumbs.
If she wanted someone like Ricky, so be it. I’d stay out of the way .
Mia slipped back through the curtain, and I followed behind her, staying far from the bed, ready to leave again as soon as I’d said my goodbye.
Before I could say anything, Mia asked, “I know this is hard, and being injured sucks. But I am one hundred percent behind whatever you need to get back to full strength.”
A tear slid down Alyssa’s cheek, and she scooped it up without looking at either of us.
“Do you know who we should ask for the wedding dance?” Mia asked.
Alyssa raised her chin and avoided looking at me. Her resistance to meeting my gaze made my stomach flip. “Yeah,” she said. “I trust Amy the most. I can ask her.”
“That’s okay.” Mia waved her off. “You’ll need to coordinate physio with Emika, so I’ll talk to Amy. Are you okay to coach them through the routine? I can show Amy the original video so she knows what she’s getting into.”
Tears swam in Alyssa’s eyes, but no more fell. “Of course, yeah. I agreed to do it. I’ll see it through.”
I ground my teeth at the implication I was little more than a job. “I have to get back. I hope you feel better.” I could barely get the words out.
“Thanks,” she said, but she still didn’t look up.
Frustration ate at me. I clenched my jaw to keep all the words I wanted to say from spilling out. From the minute she’d mentioned Ricky in the car, I’d been on edge, and her indifference was eating holes in my self-confidence. Perhaps she really didn’t care for me at all.
“Let’s take a few days off from rehearsing, okay? Maybe two or three while we get organized with new people and schedules.” Mia looked between us. “I think the routine is in good shape with how much time we have left.”
“Fine,” I said, parting the curtains to leave. If I didn’t escape now, I would say something to Alyssa, give us away to Mia, create a storm none of us needed. Right now, I had to focus on Jazz’s drug test, getting her off the tour without incident.
Then, I needed to lock down my feelings.