Chapter 35: Barely Surviving
Everyone had a drink in hand, whether it be a wine, beer, or requested cocktail made by yours truly before Marlene laid out her first sugar-coated insult of the night.
"It's good that you have making drinks in your back pocket in case dancing doesn't work out. Bartending is a career you can make life long if you wanted."
The lip of my wine glass touched my tongue as I tipped it back, downing more than I'm sure Marlene's watchful eyes deemed acceptable.
There wasn't enough chardonnay in the universe to get me through today.
"Amber is an incredibly talented dancer, mom. She's got a competition next week that she's a shoo-in to win."
"Oh?" Marlene feigned interest, obviously displeased that her son had come to my rescue.
"Do you win a little trophy or a certificate or something?"
"Actually, it's the possibility to work at any number of the national or internationally renowned dance studios that will be present and judging. Winning there is a pretty huge deal," I shot back.
Marlene's mouth formed an O shape as she nodded, foregoing a response and instead tilting back a sip of wine. From the corner of the kitchen, I spotted a ghost of a proud smile on Jordan's mouth that he tried to hide from me, but I caught it still.
"Have you and Gabe been able to get in enough rehearsal time?" My mom chimed in as she passed by, steaming hot green beans in hand.
"Some, but he's coming into town tomorrow and is staying with me through the competition so we can rehearse as much as we need."
Truth be told, knowing that my reward for simultaneously dealing with my heartbreak and Jordan's heinous mother would be seeing Gabe as soon as tomorrow was the only thing getting me through this evening without totally losing it.
"Is Gabe your boyfriend?" Marlene's stare piqued with curiosity.
"We wish," my mom muttered.
"Mom." I playfully swatted my mother's arm, properly scolding her with a hard-to-fight smile.
"Gabe's my best friend from the city. He's been my dance partner for years."
"So you and this Gabe aren't an item?"
Jordan's shoulders slumped as he sighed and turned to his mom with a lop-sided grin. "Mom, he's a male dancer who lives in New York City. Take a wild guess."
"Says the guy who freaked out the first time he met him," I let slip.
Heat smacked my cheeks as soon as I registered what I'd blurted out.
Jordan's reply came dented with a playful smile. "You had yourself wrapped around him like he was a pole you were trying to climb. So excuse me for thinking otherwise."
"Maybe you should have taken a wild guess."
Surprise backlit Jordan's gaze, silhouetting his gloom as it evaporated from sight. For a stolen moment, we held each other's stare, and I got to watch as beauty struck like lightning in his eyes, illuminating every fleck of endearment Jordan felt right then.
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Tempting /A Jordan Knight fanfic ✔️
Fanfiction(Completed) All my life, I had worked tirelessly to achieve perfection. Perfection was in my blood, and so was the art of dance. All that hard work had earned me my dream job as a professional dancer at the ripe age of twenty-four, the perfect boyf...
