Real(ity) Feelings

Chapter 19

Joe felt himself pulled into her hazel eyes - they were red and watery, but still just as beautiful as they had been the first time he had laid eyes on her out on the driveway day one.

Without even realizing it, he felt himself nod slowly. He watched her eyes fill with fresh tears - although this time, they seemed to also be full of relief. He glanced up, realizing all eyes were on them. The other couples kept their distance, gathered over near the bar, and Marco stood, chest heaving in anger just a few yards away.

Joe looked back toward Dianne, doing the only thing he could think to do. He spun on his heel, jerking his head over his shoulder, signaling for Dianne to follow him back inside. As he pulled the glass door open, he could just make out her small figure meekly approaching behind him. He felt himself soften the tiniest bit as he realized she was just as nervous as he was.

He made his way over to their bed, taking a moment to reflect. Just that morning, he had told Dianne he loved her as they had laid between these sheets. It felt like it had happened years ago.

Sitting somewhat awkwardly against the headboard, legs extending out in front of him, he let out a sigh. Dianne stood on the other side, eyeing him curiously.

"I can't think of anywhere else to go, so..." Joe started, looking down at the duvet, trailing off with a shrug.

"So you went back to the place we know best," she whispered.

He shrugged again, but this time, raised his eyes up to meet her. He watched as she slowly sat down on the other side of the bed, crossing her legs beneath her. He could tell she had a lot to say, so he remained quiet, waiting.

---

Dianne took in a shuddering breath, closing her eyes briefly before opening them again and falling deeply into Joe's, as they remained, staring directly toward her.

"There's...a lot I want to tell you. A lot I want to explain," she started softly. "I'm just not sure where to start."

"Why don't you start with who the hell Marco is," she heard Joe spit out angrily, the harshness in his voice taking her by surprise. She saw his eyes soften slightly as he watched her physically recoil at his response.

"Sure," she replied shakily. "Just so you know, I didn't know he was coming here. I had absolutely no idea, you have to believe me on that."

She thought she saw the smallest flash of relief in Joe's eyes at her words before she continued slowly. "So, here's the abbreviated version. I...I used to be a competitive ballroom dancer." She paused, letting Joe react to the information she had been holding back for three weeks. His eyebrows raised, but he remained quiet.

"I toured all over Australia with a few different partners. One was my brother...and one was Marco." Dianne saw Joe's eyes darken at just the mention of his name. She carried on speaking before he had a chance to respond. "Marco and I...we were together. Dating. Whatever you want to call it...for about two years. I stupidly thought he was the person I'd marry."

She heard Joe hiss, breaking his silence, letting his breath out and tipping his head back against the headboard.

"We made it all the way through the national competition three years ago and were facing an amazing team from Sydney," Dianne continued to speak, rushing the words out to try and minimize Joe's pain in hearing them. "I knew we were better than them though. I knew this was my chance to become the biggest name in the Australia ballroom dance world. "

Dianne took a deep breath, steeling herself for her next words. "About an hour before the finals, I got a text from an unknown number - full of photos of some woman with Marco. In some...compromising positions. He had been cheating on me, for at least a year. I didn't know who the other woman was, and I didn't care. I chose to ignore the texts and not say anything to him until after the competition - dancing has always been my life, and I couldn't let this ruin my chances of being national champions."