36. Samara
Chapter thirty-six
Samara
I pull up to the dance studio at the far end of a small strip mall. It’s got a vinyl art print on the front windows of a man and woman wearing red Latin dance attire.
As I take a deep breath to calm my nerves, it dawns on me that I’ve never been in a wedding party that required anything like this, especially not months in advance. I wonder if they’re making the wedding party perform some cringy, choreographed dance together. In which case, I may be finding a way out of this entire arrangement because that sounds like my personal version of hell.
I like these people, but I don’t know them all that well, so it’s not like I’d consider any of them my friends yet. And as much as I’d love to make some, and frankly, I’m generally too stubborn to admit defeat, especially over something as trivial as a dare, I draw the line at this type of stuff.
I head inside anyway, sending up a silent prayer that this isn’t as bad as I’m afraid it’ll be.
Once inside, I see the entirety of the De Laurentiis family chatting among themselves. Kat sees me first, her face lighting up at my entrance. “Samara! You made it,” she says as she jogs over to me, wrapping me up in a hug.
“Sorry.” She laughs. “I’ve become a lot more of a hugger since dating Ale,” she says with a smile, looking over her shoulder to meet her fiancé’s googly eyes. I want someone to look at me like that, and I won’t settle for less.
“It’s alright,” I assure her. “I do have a question though.”
“Of course, anything,” she tells me in earnest, her brows drawn together.
“Is this some sort of choreographed dance rehearsal for the wedding?”
Her eyes grow wide before she keels over in laughter, drawing everyone’s attention to her. “Oh my gosh, no, definitely not,” she squeaks out and continues laughing, a snort slipping free. “We’re taking these lessons because everyone in the room can ballroom dance, but I have two left feet.”
My racing pulse settles, and I feel so much better already. Kat’s brother chuckles. “Choreographed? We aren’t ready for that,” he says, shaking his head. “We’re just trying to get her through the first dance without literally falling on her face or tripping everyone on the dance floor when it opens up later in the night.”
“Let’s not forget the secondhand embarrassment it would cause me,” Aiyana says from beside Kas, her arms snaking around his trim waist.
“Secondhand?” Kat asks.
“Yes, because there’s not a chance in hell that I’d be participating in that shit,” Aiyana says, rolling her eyes.
“You’re an asshole,” Kat tells her before turning her attention back to me. I’m listening to Kat speak, catching bits and pieces as she explains what kind of dance lessons these are, mentioning something about ballroom, but I can’t seem to focus with the chill of awareness traveling down my spine. I feel like I’m being watched, and their eyes are burning a hole in my back. “Alright, so are you ready?” she finally asks.
“Yeah, of course.” I smile at her just as the instructors enter from the side entrance.
“Hello, everyone. It’s exciting to get to work with you all and make Kat and Ale’s special day a beautiful night filled with lots of love and dancing,” the dark-haired woman says, bringing both of her arms up and flicking her wrists for dramatic flair.
I can’t shake the feeling that I’m being watched. I look over my shoulder, and sure enough, Luca is leaning against the wall behind me, his arms crossed over his chest and his feet crossed in front of him. He looks like a model on the cover of GQ magazine.
He quirks a brow at me, tipping his chin in the direction of the instructors speaking as if to tell me to pay attention to them. He’s not wrong. I probably should be, but it’s so damn hard to turn my attention away from him when I know he’ll be watching me from behind the moment I do.
Reluctantly, I drag my attention back to them and listen as they explain the styles of ballroom dance we’ll be learning over the next couple of months. Well , it isn’t a choreographed dance, but ballroom isn’t exactly my style either.
“Okay, everyone, split off into pairs, and we’ll get started,” the male instructor, Christian, tells us with a clap of his hands.
My eyes dart around the room, realization sinking in that I’ll have to dance with Luca. And when he moves to join me, I feel the electricity from his touch pour into me as he trails his fingertips down my forearm, drawing my body into his.
“Have you ever done the slow waltz before, Samara?” he asks me; his slightly woody and bright citrus scent wraps around me, and my core clenches.
I shake my head. “No, I haven’t. I dance, but this isn’t my usual style.”
“Follow my lead, and you’ll be fine,” he assures me, but his words do nothing but annoy me.
“Why do you think you’ll be the one leading?” I ask, tilting my head. “You think because you’ve got a dick swinging between your legs that makes you the leader?” I roll my eyes at him.
He shakes his head, no humor in his eyes as he speaks. “Samara, I’m not sure if you’ve noticed or not, but I’ve been surrounded by the most incredible women my entire life.” His eyes swing around the room as if to prove his point. “There’s not a single ounce of me that lives under the guise that I’m somehow superior to any of them. I think you’ll see soon enough why I’ll be the one leading,” he says, leaning into my space, his warm breath coasting over my ear. “And it’ll have nothing to do with my massive cock.” He chuckles deeply.
Another chill skates down my spine, but I stiffen, scoffing at him, not letting on to the way his words affect me. “Massive.” I laugh. “Men who actually have it, don’t flaunt it,” I tell him, unconvinced by my own words. He’s huge, and I have no doubt his dick is too.
Music starts to flood through the speakers around the room, bouncing off the slick wooden floors beneath our feet. “Alright, everyone, follow Cassandra and me. The lead will place their hands like this,” Christian says, demonstrating.
“And the follower will place theirs like this.” She shows us.
They nod their heads at us to give it a shot. I see Kat put her hands in the completely wrong place, and it’s actually kind of adorable. Alessandro gently sets them where they belong before pulling her closer to his body. They look so damn cute, and it’s hard not to long for something like that for myself.
Luca stands before me, clearing his throat to grab my attention back. “You ready?” he asks.
“Sure,” I say, winding one hand around his back in the leader’s position and the other in the air for him to grab hold of. His eyes glitter with mischief as he takes my hand in his, yanking my hand free of his back and depositing it onto his shoulder before snaking his arm around me and tugging me impossibly close to his chest. All the air is sucked out of my lungs as I’m forced to look up into his pretty eyes.
“I really don’t think we need to be this close,” I tell him, frustrated that he managed to make me the follower just as Christian makes his rounds over to us to check our stance.
“Perfect form, you two, brava.” He claps before heading over to the rest of the group.
Luca says nothing, but he doesn’t have to. His expression tells me just how goddamn smug he feels right now.
Once everyone is in position, they restart the music, showing us a few basic steps and telling us to practice on our own for a few beats as we get the hang of it. Luca and I fight for dominance the entire time, with me stepping on his toes, mostly on purpose.
I have to admit, it’s fun to push his buttons as much as he does mine. This little game of cat and mouse we have going is starting to almost feel enjoyable.
He tsks at me when I stomp my foot down on his as he continues to try to take the lead. “What you seem to not realize,” he says, pulling me abruptly into his chest before whispering, “ is that I like it rough .”
My skin heats at his words, but I refuse to show that I’m affected in the slightest despite the wetness that’s pooling in my core. “Cocky little boys like you always do,” I tell him with a wink.
He laughs darkly, dragging me across the dance floor to the center of the room. Cassandra and Christian go into greater detail, and before I know it, we’re on our own. “Okay, everyone, put those moves together, and let’s see what you’ve got!” Cassandra tells us excitedly.
The De Laurentiis men and Charlie look around the room at one another, each giving the other a curious head nod that makes me apprehensive. Nothing good can come of all these men being in silent agreement about anything.
The moment the music starts, they all take off, grabbing their partners and pulling them in closely. I have no choice but to follow his lead as he expertly carries us across the floor in perfect sync with his family members.
Angelo and Gloria stand in the corner, dancing similarly, with her legs strapped against his and her feet on his shoes as he moves her body with his. For a snarky-ass woman, she and her husband truly have the most incredible kind of love. No wonder most of her sons seemed to turn out so well.
I wonder what the hell happened to Luca.
“Ignoring me, principessa ?” he asks, dragging my attention back to his insanely gorgeous eyes. Damn him and those pretty eyes of his.
“Just looking for a better view,” I tell him, clearly lying. I’m unsure that a better view even exists when Luca’s in the room.
He smirks. “Let’s go find you a mirror because there’s no better view than the one I’m seeing.” He winks at me, throwing me off kilter.
Who is this man? Does he just enjoy riling me up?
“Focus, Luca,” I tell him. “I don’t need to lose a toe because you weren’t paying attention.” Regretfully, I have a feeling this man could do this in his sleep. I’m doing very little work because Luca is, unfortunately , a good lead. Not that I’d ever tell him that.
“If I stub your toe, I promise to suck it and make it better,” he says with a laugh, carrying me off in the opposite direction of where I was about to try and steer us.
“Yeah, somehow, I don’t think that would fix anything,” I say in defiance.
“Well, if it helps, I’ve been doing this all my life. The woman down the street from me growing up was a retired ballroom dance teacher. She gave us all lessons on the weekends until she passed when I was in high school,” he tells me in a moment of vulnerability, calling a silent truce between us.
Well, that surprises me, but at least it clears some things up. That’s for sure.
Before I can think of a response, he says, “Do you mind if I check my cell real quick? I left Gia with a friend and just want to check in.”
“Oh, of course not,” I tell him, not minding one bit, and I kind of need the breather. It’s not fair for any person to smell as good as he does. It’s intoxicating.
He smiles at me before heading over to the corner of the room and bringing his cell out. I stand here awkwardly, unsure of what to do in his absence, but a massive looming figure reaches out his hand for mine. His deep voice rakes over me. “Samara, it’s nice to finally meet you. I’m Dante,” he tells me. I recognize his name as Arielle spoke about him at book club.
“Likewise,” I tell Mr. Tall, Dark, and Mouthwatering. Do all De Laurentiis men look like this? Really, though, this guy is kind of intimidating. He’s covered head to toe in tattoos and black clothing. His eyes are as dark as his hair, with little difference between his pupils and irises.
I noticed him earlier, but it’s a tad strange to imagine someone as sweet and fairy-like as Arielle to be with a man who looks this tough.
“Care to dance? Arielle’s resting her feet,” he tells me, his eyes swinging over to his wife with her feet up on a chair and her nose buried in our book of the month.
“Oh, sure.” He grasps my hands in his, placing them where he’d like them to go, in a different spot than we were taught earlier. “We’re not doing the waltz anymore?” I ask.
“Not exactly.” He chuckles, the sound such a contrast to everything else about him. He whisks me away, whipping me around the dance floor, and I can’t help the bubble of laughter climbing up my throat.
This is undeniably so much fun. I let Dante swing me around, my feet sliding easily across the slick wooden floors as he twirls me, and finally, he finishes the song by dipping me so low the ends of my hair graze the ground before he deposits me safely on my own two feet.
The massive grin shining across my face tells him everything he needs to know. “Thanks for the dance, Samara.” He winks before releasing me to head back over to his wife.
I make eye contact with Luca, who’s leaning against that damn wall again, his eyes trailing over me as he wears a knowing grin. He pushes off the wall, prowling over to me, and I find my pulse kicking up as he does.
Before he reaches me, the music stops, and Christian makes his way to the center of the room. He claps several times. “Incredible job, everyone!” he says, and my eyes swing over to Kat. She’s standing limply, being held up by Alessandro. Her cheeks are bright red, and her hair is all over the place. The poor thing really does have two left feet. No wonder we’re starting this shit months in advance.
“Keep on practicing, and we’ll see you next week,” he says, waving goodbye to us all.
I head to grab my things but see that Luca is already carrying them over to me. I hadn’t even seen him step away.
I move toward him to take them from him, but he moves them to his other arm, sidestepping me. “Really, Luca?” I ask, rolling my eyes at how childish he’s being.
“Just let me walk you to your car, Samara. I don’t see why that’s such a big deal,” he says, heading toward the doors. I follow after him, too exhausted to care at this point. All I want is to go home, shower, and read until I fall asleep.
He holds the door open for me, and I wave goodbye to everyone before following him out. Luca hands me my bag and I search for my keys, unlocking the door. He opens it for me. I hoist myself inside, and he reaches across me, buckling me in, similarly to how he’d unbuckled me the other day.
I swear, this man is gonna be the death of me.
His hand lingers on my hip before he finally pulls it away, straightening as he says, “Goodnight, Samara.” He turns back to the building and heads inside.
Strangely, I had fun tonight, but I’m not so sure I’ll be able to handle more of this every Sunday for the next few months.