Prima - Alta Hensley Page 0,26

of the dancers considered it a sign I wasn’t trusted not to destroy the company’s reputation, I’d convinced myself allowing the mystery to build a bit had its benefits. But if I didn’t show my face after the curtains closed, how would the other dancers see me? I’d lose any respect I’d worked my ass off to build over the past few weeks. And there was the matter of the penalty I’d be expected to pay for failure to live up to my contract. Even though exactly what that would entail had remained unanswered, I wasn’t especially eager to find out.

Mysteries ran both ways, and I wasn’t ready to find out what price Alek would extract from me. He’d been avoiding me ever since he’d seen me naked… or rather, ever since he’d eye-fucked me from a distance and then practically shoved his tongue down my throat moments later before abruptly releasing me and stomping out of the room. I felt my body heating at the memory and instantly shut down that path, looking up at Yuri, ready to argue with him.

But as I glanced around at the other members of the company, they seemed to be nodding in agreement with Yuri as if they completely understood his logic. Or maybe as if they were scared of him. I wasn’t totally sure. I’d yet to get a true reading on this man.

I didn’t really know what to do at the moment. When I’d been a prima ballerina, I could make suggestions, and, while I might not have always been successful, at least I’d always been listened to. But unfortunately, I’d lost that right when I turned my life upside down. I got the sense if I started running my mouth off now, I’d end up isolating myself and proving the rumors I was difficult were true.

I knew I was on probation every single day. Yuri had kicked my ass in rehearsals far more than he had anyone else’s. The reason I didn’t complain was that I needed it. I wasn’t afraid of hard work and was determined to earn my place back on the stage.

With that, I forced all of my own opinions down and continued to listen intently, quickly realizing the more Yuri talked, the less I agreed with him. I’d heard whispers that many a dancer of the Volkov Ballet had left because of Yuri’s captaincy style, but I was doing my best not to let that affect me. I had a lot more to lose than anyone else. This was my only shot. If I had to get along with people I didn’t like and keep my opinions to myself, then I’d bite my tongue off and do it.

“Right,” he finished with a big beaming smile on his face as he glanced around at the people he’d drilled daily for hours. “You’re all ready. So, as they say, break a…” He paused, his eyes flicking to me as if remembering the fact that what was a common idiom had turned into horrifying reality in the last company of which I’d been a member. I was ready to protest my innocence once more when he surprised me by grinning. “Fuck the past. Go out and break a leg and do the Volkov company proud, is that clear?”

“Yes, sir,” chorused dozens of voices as we all did a final round of stretches before beginning to line up in the order required for the first act.

All of a sudden, as I heard the noise from the crowd die down, and the first notes of the strings in the orchestra waft through the wings as they warmed up, the newspaper headlines started to flow through my mind.

Disgraced Dancer, Simyoneva, to Return to the Stage.

Will Prima Throw Her Diva Act Again?

Clara Simyoneva Brings Her Tainted Past to a Once-Respected Theater, Destroying its Legacy.

A sickness swirled in my stomach, and my confidence level plummeted. When I’d awakened this morning, I’d felt ready to conquer. I wanted to prove to the people who believed in me I was worth it.

The surprise kiss I shared with Alek a few weeks ago floated to the forefront of my memory though it was never far from my thoughts. I so wanted to make this work for the man who had given me this chance. I’d felt honored to have been given this opportunity, and I’d felt like I could take on the world. That nothing would bother me. That I could brush it all aside and focus