A Little Bit Married

The Dance

"You did well," I said finally, turning to him as I took yet another bite of the cake.

It tastes expensive as hell, and they have to be earning a whole lot in order to be able to throw a party like this.

"Thanks to you," he replied, his voice low as he twirled his glass of wine in his fingers. "Alone, I would not have done so well."

I chuckled. "I can't just forget that you both had history. So I think I have made peace with it, and I am comfortable with everyone around you taking their time to realize that you both did not end up together."

He turned to me, his eyes solemn as he looked between my eyes and my lips.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" I asked, turning away and grabbing my napkin just in case there was icing on my lips.

He shrugged and turned away, taking a long sip of his wine. We fell into silence as three waiters cleared out the table. I was sad to see the cake go, and I gave a small pout as they wheeled it away.

They soon replaced it with a full dinner, from appetisers, desserts to main courses, and cocktails.

"This is a lot," I said, sitting up as Gray excused himself.

I still missed the cake but slowly dug into the food, serving my plate with some of the fancy desserts.

"Here," Gray suddenly said, and I looked up, my eyes wide.

He had a large slice of cake on a plate, and he was stretching it to me.

My eyes widened. "You went to get it for me?"

He shrugged. "You seemed sad that it was gone."

I chuckled, collecting it. "Thank you. Do you want a bite?"

"I don't like cake."

I nodded. "What would you prefer?"

He shrugged. "Doughnuts."

I looked around. "There are no doughnuts on the menu."

He shrugged before leaning up to serve his plate. He didn't eat much either, while I had a field day with the cake and another cup of something I didn't even know. It was delicious, that much I knew.

"Now to the dance floor!" The announcement came, and I chuckled, turning to Gray.

He had his elbow propped up on the table, his cheek resting on his hand, his eyes watching me.""

"The CEO and.... his wife will give us a dance for the night. We have brought the prestigious pianist..."

"I know, Gray," I said, bracing myself for the dance.

He chuckled and turned away. "I thought you would chicken out."

"Why would I? I have practised dancing like that for my wedding."

"Glad to have made your dream come true."

I laughed as he stood up, then took my hand. Gently, he led me towards the dance floor as the music came on, the lights dimmed, and two bright spotlights came up on us, tracking every movement.

He put a warm hand on the curve of my waist, then gently let his fingers press down on my skin. I met his eyes as he brought my hand to rest on his shoulder before holding my hand and intertwining his fingers with mine, filling the spaces in between like he was always meant to.

"Good enough?"

I nodded, and he started to move to the slow beat, leading me. We fell into a slow synchrony, his hands sometimes running up and down my waist, his eyes never leaving mine.

I felt heat rush up my cheeks as the dance progressed, and I broke eye contact, unable to take it anymore.

He pulled me even closer, and I adjusted my hand, so it wasn't just resting on his shoulder, but the nape of his neck, too.

"What are you doing?" I asked, my voice low as I leaned closer to him, my chest heaving.

He shrugged. "That's what I was going to ask you. What are you doing?"

My brows furrowed. I hadn't done anything at all.

"I did not..."

He suddenly raised my hand, twirling me slowly. I held my breath, his face coming up in each round. Soon, he turned me and slowly leaned till I was bent backwards, facing him, my eyes wide, his body hovering above mine, my hand still on the nape of his neck.

Weirdly, I think I know what I did now.

I wasn't sure how long that eye contact lasted. Houes? Weeks? But when he finally pulled me up and kissed my forehead, the time still felt a bit too short.

Other couples began to join us, and the lights came back on, but we both stood there, my heart fluttering slowly against my chest, my eyes melting into his.

I could barely find myself in him, talk more of the people around us, or the festivities we had originally come for.

He covered the distance and held my waist again, before he leaned to my ear.

"Do you want to go back?"

I swallowed, turning to him, my lips gently brushing his face. I didn't care to assert that it was a mistake. The small smile on his lips was worth it.

"Where?"

"To our seat," he said, meeting my eyes. He was so close we were practically sharing air. "But if you have any other ideas, run it by me."

I turned red yet again, and he smiled, his hand gently flicking my cheek. It was barely a flick, completely painless.

"You are cute," he said, letting a long finger run down my cheek. "I meant, you are beautiful. You have your answer whenever you catch me staring at you."

I swallowed hard, unable to get my brain to function or even try to bring up a response for what he had just said.

"Let's get you back in bed," he said before pulling away.

He led me back to our seat, and I sat there as he gave a short speech, thanking them and me, making sure to state my full name.

Before I knew it, we were back in the car, he was sitting beside me, his hand still holding mine, but mentally, I was back there, on the dance floor, hearing him tell me I was beautiful over and over again.