Chapter 2: Mistress of the Dance

Back at the house, the others were just stumbling into the kitchen when Jon came in from outside, hair still wet from his swim.

“Hey, man, where’ve you been already?” Richie asked.

“I went for a ride, and found a lake. It looked good, so I went for a swim.”

Richie laughed. “You went for a swim? In the lake. When we have a perfectly nice pool out back. Are you nuts?”

Jon just looked at him with a saucy grin, and went about pouring a cup of coffee.

Richie knew what that look meant. “OK,” he said, “what did she look like, and how in the Hell did you meet someone out here already? We’ve been here less than two days!”

Jon laughed, and admitted that he was out riding the property line when he saw someone tear out of the barn on the other property. All he could see over the wall was a white Stetson. He told them about his curiosity and following the person to the water and discovering it was a woman. He left out the part about watching her sun herself on the boulder, and just told them he decided to go for a swim, and fell asleep in the sun. “She woke me up and I barely had a chance to open my eyes before she spouted her warning and took off,” he concluded.

“Yeah, right, you didn’t get a good look at her. You can set your eyes on a woman in one second, and know all her vital statistics,” Richie laughed.

Jon grinned. “Yeah, well, usually when a woman wakes me up, it’s because I’ve been sleeping with her. She caught me completely off guard. I got an impression of a tall woman with dark hair and a killer figure. That’s about it.”

* * * * * * *

Julianna, taking care of her horse, cursed herself for not being prepared. She usually was on top of exactly who was staying at her house. She should really pay more attention to the paperwork coming from the real estate agent handling the rentals.

Finishing in the stable, she went inside to take a quick shower before heading to her studio to work.

* * * * * * *

Richie didn’t believe for a minute that Jon didn’t get a good look at that woman. The fact that he was being so secretive brought out the asshole in him. He grinned. He was going to get a good look at the woman himself. After eating an early lunch, he told the guys he was going out to do his own exploring, and that he’d be back later. He immediately set out for the wall on the far side of the property. Maybe there was a rise where he could see over the wall. As he approached the wall, he heard faint strains of familiar music. I’d know my music anywhere; that’s one of mine, he thought. Standing right at the wall, he could clearly make out the music to one of the songs he did for the box set. Richie groaned. God, I hate this song, he thought.

Finding purchase on the wall, Richie hoisted himself up to look over. What the Hell am I doing? I am too old for this shit. What he saw made his mouth run dry. Through a wall of windows in what looked like the barn, a tall, willowy woman with jet black hair was dancing. Dressed in only a leotard and footless tights, he could see every curve of her body. After a few stops and starts, the woman crossed the room. Richie took the opportunity to hop over the wall while her back was turned, to get a closer look. By now, he couldn’t help himself. He had to see her more clearly. The music stopped. He took a step back from the windows. Jesus, I’m like a stalker out here, he thought to himself. She isn’t even my usual type. He preferred petite blonde women, not tall, dark goddesses like this one. Peeking around the corner, he saw the woman fiddling with some buttons on a console, then four TV screens come to life. They showed different views of what appeared to be a dance studio. The woman spoke softly enough that he couldn’t make out her words, just the low drone of a feminine voice.

Julianna got the video going. André, the head choreographer, liked to see the dance from all angles, so he got a good sense of what the movements were. Turning on the cameras, she addressed her unseen audience. “André, this is the Sambora number I told you about. Call me, tell me what you think.” She turned on the music player, and returned to the middle of the room, sinking gracefully to the floor, one leg crossed over the other.

As the piano started, she started to sway gently. When the lyrics started, she started to dance; her movements, her expressions captivating Richie, who by now was standing in full view of the room.

It's hard to remember time when I didn't have you
When I didn't have nothing but a cold bed to come to at night.
That was all I knew, until there was you.
And then you took my world and turned it all around,
I couldn't live without you now.

By the time the chorus came, he was lost, forgetting he was trespassing, and understanding why Jon didn’t want to share his find.

Baby, if I can't have your love, if I can't feel your touch
I’ve got nothing, yeah
Baby, if I can't taste your kiss, then I don't exist
I got nothing, yeah

No I can't imagine living life without you
I can't imagine living life without your love

Richie watched in amazement as she expressed with her body the longing, the yearning, the begging that he himself put into writing and singing this particular song. He remembered what was going on in his life at the time, the pain and the heartache, and saw it all expressed in every turn of her head, every movement of her body.

At the closing bars, the woman sank to the floor, with tears in her eyes. When the music faded away, she rose and crossed to the TVs again, and spoke into the cameras. Richie still couldn’t hear her, but saw the emotion in her face.

Julianna spoke to André again. “Either way, whether you liked it or not, give me a call. Let me know if I should work with Sam on this when he comes down next weekend. I can be in the city next week for to work with Lila, then will head back here. Let me know when the new music is ready, so I can work on the finale. Ciao, baby.” She blew a kiss to the camera, turned back to the video wall, pushed a few buttons, and the screens went blank.

Richie took the opportunity, when her back was turned again, to vault wall before his luck ran out. Damn, that was beautiful. I guess I do like that modern dance shit.