Dancing for the Lord The Academy - By Emily Goodman Page 0,69

hard they tried to drag it out of him. “This is Danni, Mom.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Best,” Danni said quickly, slipping in to offer her hand to the older woman.

“And Danni, this is my dad.” Nick gestured to him, but made no move to introduce him further.

“It’s nice to meet you, Danni,” Mrs. Best gushed.

Mr. Best just smiled coldly, all but ignoring her.

“Nicholas!” His wife elbowed him—and as she hissed his name, Danni realized immediately exactly what it was that Nick hated about his full name.

He was named for a father who not only had no appreciation whatsoever for what he did, but who actively disliked it. That distaste was evident on the older man’s face even now, as he gazed around him. Every time his eyes landed on a male dancer, he winced.

Danni gritted her teeth and didn’t say anything. That distaste had been around since a long time before her, and there was nothing she could say that would make it any better. She just laced her fingers a little bit more tightly through her partner’s, offering him as much reassurance as she could.

“Well…” Nick cleared his throat when it became evident that his father was going to ignore the whispered command. “Danni’s parents are saving a table—let’s head on in, all right?”

“Oh, of course! Now, is this your first year here, or are you a senior?” his mother bubbled, turning her attention to Danni—a knee-jerk reaction to his father’s rude behavior, Nick knew. He was used to the routine by now.

“First year,” Danni agreed cheerfully. “Nick and I have been working to get as much done as we can before senior year—those self-paced courses, you know.”

His father snorted.

Nick tightened his hand on Danni’s—not in warning, but in an effort to remind himself that he had to keep his temper under control. Letting his father have it in the middle of the parents’ day presentation wouldn’t be productive—no matter how much better it might make him feel.

“And how’s that going?” His mother’s voice was a little bit too high as she asked the question. “Are you two accomplishing a lot? I’m sure it must be a struggle, what with rehearsals and all.”

“Oh, it’s been interesting—but we make a pretty good team.” Danni sent Nick a look that warmed the tight place in his chest—a place that got tighter with every passing moment. “We’re actually pretty far ahead at this point—that senior year devoted completely to dance is looking more likely all the time.”

His father made a rude noise again.

Danni’s hand was white in Nick’s grasp. He tried his best to let it off a little bit, but that only increased the fury bubbling inside him.

Please, Lord, don’t let me lose my temper. I knew he’d be like this if he came. I didn’t even want him here. But…at least he did come. At least he cared enough to see me in my first major role.

“Well, how about that!” Mrs. Best smiled at Danni. “Nick, we are so proud of you,” she told him warmly.

That obnoxious noise. Couldn’t his father just hold his silence and leave things alone? They all knew that she was really speaking only for herself!

“Well—not everyone could do what you’ve done.” Her voice faltered for only a moment. “You’ve worked so hard—completing school on time with your dance schedule would be difficult, but here you are, finishing early!”

“Danni’s helped a lot.” He forced the words out through a throat that felt tight with shame. “She’s really a great partner all the way around.” Let his father see how much she meant to him. Heck, let him see that he was getting more and more attached all the time.

His father actually had the gall to shake his head in disbelief.

Nick ground his teeth and led the way into the dining room, hoping—praying—that Danni’s family would at least be able to pick up the lags in the conversation. He doesn’t want to be here, Lord. Why didn’t he just stay at home? Why did he have to come out here and ruin everything? Danni and I did so well tonight—accomplished something that no one even realizes we did. No one but Androv knows those steps well enough to know that we changed them, but we did it. Danni changed the choreography—we pulled off a performance that we had never even rehearsed before—and he can’t even congratulate me for that! No, it’s all, “How dare my son decide to be a dancer?” It’s not like I’m