A Twist Of Magic

Chapter Twelve

Daniel's POV

My heart felt like it had been shattered into a million tiny pieces as I heard her telling Jack everything. After all these years she had finally opened up to someone and it hadn't been me. It should be me holding her tightly as she spoke about what she'd been through. I felt sick to my stomach at the thought of that animal touching her. No wonder she had spent the next two years recoiling from my touch. She was ashamed, embarrassed and haunted by dark memories. Yet instead of being able to get through to her...I'd walked away....packed up my stuff and left her. How could I have been so selfish? He'd hurt my beautiful Mia and I had done nothing about it...I would never forgive myself.

My heart yearned to comfort her and tell her that everything was okay...I was here now. But as I locked eyes with Jack I realised that I had to pretend that I didn't know about any of this. It would only hurt her further to know that I knew the truth and she'd been through enough. For her sake I had to pretend that I didn't know her secret...I slowly wiped the stray tear that was rolling down my cheek and quietly made my way back upstairs to my bedroom.

Amelia's POV

"I should go." I said quietly as I slowly sat up.

He nodded and watched as I removed myself from his arms and sat up. As difficult as it had been to tell Jack, I couldn't help but feel relieved that I'd finally told someone. I now had someone around that knew exactly what I was going through and who understood my pain.

"You don't have to go." he said gently.

"We have a show in a few hours, I need to rest for a little while." I insisted.

He nodded and watched me sadly as I stood up and stretched slightly, gently rubbing my tired eyes. I was emotionally drained.

"Thanks Jack." I whispered as I hugged him quickly.

"It's okay, you know where I am if you need someone to talk too." he whispered in my ear.

"I know." I whispered back.

He watched me closely as I let go of him and stood silently. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up as he gently kissed my cheek.

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Daniel's POV

As I stood backstage waiting for the second show to commence, I began to pace. Normally going out on stage wasn't a big deal for me....it gave me a buzz...but not anymore. My thoughts wandered to Mia and a lump rose in my throat that made it difficult to swallow. How was I supposed to go out on that stage and pretend that everything was okay, when I knew what I did? I couldn't even look her in the eyes, I felt so guilty. The fact that I knew but she didn't know that I knew made me feel like I was being dishonest with her. But she wasn't ready to know that I knew.

I instantly stopped pacing as Mia entered the room. Her appearance took my breath away. The stylist had curled Mia's long brown hair and given her a dark makeup look. The skinny jeans and tight shirt complimented her figure perfectly. I hadn't seen her dressed up like this in a long time... she'd suddenly started wearing tracksuits all the time - it didn't make sense at the time...but I knew the reason behind it now. Finally everything made sense.

"You look stunning." I heard Jack tell her quietly.

"Thanks." she mumbled.

It was clear from her face that she was terrified about going out on the stage. I desperately wanted to comfort her...but I was afraid that she would reject me again..it broke my heart every time that she did. I thought about it for a moment, before deciding that her needs were greater than mine. She gasped as I reached over and gently squeezed her hand. To my relief she glanced up at me and smiled.

"You'll be fine." I reassured her.

She nodded and quickly let go of my hand and as the curtain rose, followed us out onto the stage.

"Ladies and Gentlemen a big welcome to our second show I'm Merritt Mcinney." Merritt stated.

"I'm Henley Reeves." Henley joined in.
"Daniel Atlas." I added, desperately trying to find my stage presence.

"And I'm Jack Wilder!" Jack cried.

"And this is Amelia Blake, who will be assisting us with one of our tricks tonight!" Henley announced.

"Tonight we are going to do some tricks that will blow your mind." Merritt stated.

I smiled at Mia for a brief moment and watched her as she stood in her position on the stage. She waited as I quickly formed the bubble and watched as she ran into it. She looked stunning as she slowly danced inside of the bubble.

Amelia's POV

As I twirled around in the bubble, I could see the other horseman watching me from the stage. The bubble gradually gained in height as I twirled around, trying to look graceful at the same time as keeping an eye on when I reached the chandelier. As I neared the chandelier I quickly bent my knee and popped the bubble with my heel. I screamed as I fell through the air...eventually coming to a sudden stop as I landed in Daniel's arms. I smiled at him and breathed a sigh of relief...he had been there when I needed him this time and hadn't let me down.

Daniel's POV

I watched carefully as I stood below the bubble, if my timing was out she could be seriously injured. My heart began to pump as she popped the bubble and screamed as she fell a short distance and landed in my arms. She smiled at me briefly before gazing around at the crowd. I couldn't stop looking at her...she was stunning and now knowing what I did only made me love her even more. Finally after all these years I knew that it wasn't my fault...she wasn't repulsed by me after all.

"I've got you." I whispered impulsively, knowing that she wouldn't be able to hear me over the noise of the crowd.