their proper places behind the counter, she told Isabelle she was taking a short break and went back to the table to join Sierra. Her eyes passed over Sierra’s curly light blonde hair as she took her seat. It was currently streaked with blue and piled into a messy bun on top of her head. As Jasmine recalled, the streaks had been violet last time.
“Are you having a boy?” Jasmine asked.
“How’d you guess?”
Pointing at her hair, Jasmine said, “The blue streaks.”
Sierra smiled again. “Very perceptive. Yes.” She rubbed the swell of her belly. “This is little Noah Cole.”
“Aww. Is Cole Parker the namesake?”
“Yep. He and Everly will be Noah’s godparents.”
That brought a smile to Jasmine’s face. “That’s nice. When’s he due to arrive?”
“The twenty-sixth, but I suspect he’ll be here sooner than that.”
“What makes you think so?”
She shrugged. “Just a feeling.”
Something about Sierra’s tone made Jasmine believe she was right.
“So how long have you worked here?” Sierra asked. “I meet Zoe and Hannah here all the time and I don’t remember seeing you.”
Shifting in her chair, Jasmine answered, “Not long. This is my third week.”
“Ah.” Sierra studied her another moment. Something in her sea-green eyes seemed ageless. “You’ve been working with Everly, right?”
“For close to six months now.”
“How’s that going?”
The gentle nature of the question had emotion clogging Jasmine’s throat. She took a moment to look out the window before replying, “I’m making progress.”
“I’m glad to hear that. Sometimes progress is hard.”
Jasmine let out a sharp laugh. “Yeah. And terrifying.”
“That’s true. But you know, the pain and challenge you’re facing right now will make it all the more worthwhile once you reach your goal,” Sierra said.
The words struck a chord in Jasmine. They completely changed her mood too.
“You’re right,” she said. “Thanks for that.”
Another smile. “You’re welcome. Actually, if you’d really like to thank me, I’d absolutely love to photograph you.”
“Really?”
“Oh, yeah. I mean, we’ll probably have to wait until this little guy arrives first, but the moment I can get back in front of my camera, I’d love for you to pose for me. You’re just gorgeous, and I think photos of a ballerina will make excellent additions to my portfolio. I’ll pay you for your time.”
“You don’t have to—”
“I’d like to.”
Jasmine might have suspected it was an offer of charity if it had come from anyone else. Now, she just sensed that Sierra both wanted to photograph her and help her however she could.
“Sure,” she found herself saying. “Why not?”
“Great!”
The door chimed again. Two energetic females rushed inside. Jasmine deduced they were Hannah and Zoe since they scanned the dining area and their gazes landed on Sierra.
“Thanks for sitting with me,” Sierra said as her friends advanced.
Jasmine got to her feet. “Of course.”
“I’ll reach out to you about the photographs, okay?”
“Sounds good. Good luck with the baby.”
Sierra thanked her again as her friends walked up to greet her. Jasmine left them and headed back to work, feeling lighter than she had before Sierra walked in. She found herself buoyed by the thought of posing for her. It wasn’t dancing, but she’d at least be doing something in line with that. It would be a nice change from serving coffee and wine.
And hopefully it would pull her focus from her crumbling dreams.
Chapter Seven
Will parked his truck in front of All You Can Dance, the fifth studio on his dad’s list. It was the last possibility within a forty-minute drive from his house that offered ballet for kids Katie’s age. He took a moment to study the classic lines of the two-story brick building before looking into the rearview mirror and meeting Katie’s gaze.
“You sure you want to do this?” he asked.
She nodded.
He still didn’t move. The last four attempts at this hadn’t panned out like he’d hoped. Katie’s disappointment was getting more and more difficult to bear.
He got the recap of studio visits one and two from his dad, who had taken Katie to see them the previous week while Will was on the first road trip of the regular season. The first studio said they were so thinly staffed that private lessons were impossible. They said if Katie would be interested in joining their beginner’s ballet class over the summer that it might be an option. It didn’t start until mid-June, however, and Will wasn’t sure Katie was ready for a group environment.
The second studio was apparently in high demand. Even the beginners’ classes had waiting lists. They also said they didn’t offer private lessons for children so