“Now shake your arms this way.” I moved my arms parallel to the floor, hands toward them, and shook them the same way.
The little darlings shook their arms toward me, hopping up and down with excitement.
“And now, shake your arms over your head.” I lifted my arms into a very rough fifth position above me and shook them some more. This was working better than a game of Simon Says. The ballerinas in training had their arms in the air. “Now, stop and hold those arms up in fifth position.” I stopped moving my arms and held fifth position with fluid grace.
A few of my students managed to do the same. The others…
They wouldn’t achieve the position this week. I’d let Eve worry about their refinements for the Christmas Extravaganza.
“And rest.” I brought my arms down to first position and waited for them to do the same.
The little dears turned serious. Heels together. Toes apart. They’d mastered first position and loved it.
“Ladies, it’s been a pleasure teaching you this week.” I curtsied.
They curtsied in return.
“Class dismissed.”
Three ballerinas rushed up to hug my legs. “We love you, Miss Allie,” they chorused.
It was nice to have something in my life that was as straightforward as teaching little girls how to dance.
Nick entered the classroom, dwarfing the little girls in their various shades of pink. He wore a jacket but there were traces of teal paint on his green T-shirt, marks left when he’d ended this afternoon’s kiss too soon and I’d reached for a handful of soft cotton with a paint-stained hand for seconds. “Hey, I have news. Noelle had her baby and – ”
“Mommy had twins!” Ivy darted around Nick and cut her uncle off. She wore her black leotard and tights. Her strawberry blond hair was in a listing bun on top of her head, signs of Nick’s work, no doubt. “Joseph and Gabriel are here!”
“But when… Are Holly and Eve back already?” I was more than a bit confused.
Ivy scampered off to tell the friends in her class the baby update.
“No.” Nick smiled ruefully, as if reluctant to break bad news. “Eve had the twins in Denver, but the boys are six weeks early and in intensive care.”
“But they’re all right?” I was suddenly concerned. “Why aren’t you glowing with happiness?”
“The twins are good, all things considered. But the doctors aren’t sure when the babies will be stable enough to come home.” Nick took my hands. “It might be Christmas. It might be New Year’s. It might be latter.”
“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that.” The import of his words and his hands encircling mine sank in. “Is no one coming home before that?” Not even Holly?
Nick shook his head. “I don’t want to impose, but…”
“But you need me at the Sleigh Café. And Eve needs me here. And my mother needs me at her shop.” I nodded. I knew what needed to be done in the short term. And I was happy that I had an excuse to be busy this holiday season.
But that solved nothing in the long term.
Nickand I sat on a bench in Mom’s boutique after dance lessons were done for the day. He’d found a bench somewhere and had it in his truck bed when he picked me up that night after dropping little Ivy off with Grams.
Outside, snow fell, softly illuminated by street lights. Nick had Christmas music playing softly on his phone and had my right foot propped up on his thigh.
I wore a wooden clog on my left foot. I’d donned a glow in the dark bunny T-shirt and a white tiger striped faux fur coat over my dance clothes. I was trying to understand why my mother had purchased such things. But the merchandise she’d bought felt no better on me than when I’d looked at them in their boxes. “Looks like I’m going to be staying in Christmas Mountain for a while.”
“You can help me renovate Bowlful of Jelly next.” Nick patted my ankle.
“I suppose. I should set goals though. Like I need to figure out who Rudolph is by Christmas.”
Nick sighed, turned his face toward me, and rubbed his nose.
“Nick.” I reached over and removed his knit cap. “It’s time to be serious.”