Dance For Me (Strip in the City, Book 2)

40 • Hot Warning

I sat back in my chair. Staring at that envelope, I knew Tan's family tickets were inside. The ones she'd gifted to me on the first day we'd met. The ones she'd hand-delivered. I was able to give those tickets to Gemma because she'd been just as furious as I was that her ballet mistress had snubbed a sick girl.

Little did Gemma know, her love of ballet had brought me the love of my life.

Her wish had given me the greatest gift of all.

All of a sudden, I felt so damn guilty I could hardly breathe. A knot formed in my throat, and my chest clenched. Now, Gemma wasn't even going to be able to see the show she wanted to see, but I still got to keep my girlfriend.

It wasn't fair.

Taking a deep, centered breath, I tried to set aside my sadness and think. Getting upset wasn't going to help Gemma. This wasn't about me and my damn conscience.

This was about Gemma and giving her what she wanted most in the world. That's all that mattered.

I leaned forward, resting my forearms on the desk, and looked Enrique straight in the eye.

My job was to ease this family's suffering by granting wishes, and that's exactly what I was going to do. "Anything is on the table. Whatever she wants."

"Thank you, Mr. DuBois."

It wasn't enough. But it was the best I could do.

A few minutes later, Mrs. Rodriguez and Gemma appeared, and we made room for her wheelchair in front of my desk. She was eating a chocolate chip ice cream cone, but I noticed she wasn't smiling as brightly as she normally would over dessert.

She knew, I realized. They'd told her she wasn't going to get her wish.

I scrubbed a hand over my face.

"How's the ice cream?" I asked, casually opening a lollipop and popping it in my mouth.

Gemma shrugged. "It's good."

I knew no amount of ice cream or smiles was going to win her over. I needed to get down to business.

"So, I hear that you've come to my office to upgrade your wish because you've had some really good news. I'm all ears. Tell me what I can do to give you the best wish ever."

She cast a wary glance at her mother, who set a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. "Just tell him, Gemma. He'll make it happen."

"It's true," I said around the lollipop in my mouth.

Gemma gave me a hesitant smile. "All I really want is to be a ballerina. I took classes last year, and I learned a little bit, but..."

She bit her lip and looked away. My fucking heart broke in half.

"I don't know how you can grant that wish, Dom," she continued. "I'm in a wheelchair now, and ballerinas dance on their toes."

I swallowed all the heartache, allowing it to flow through me. I couldn't ease her suffering if I was suffering. I pulled the lollipop out of my mouth and pointed it at her. "It's never too late to learn how to dance. I'm sure you could learn how to be a ballerina. In fact, I happen to know a pretty famous ballerina who would love to meet you and teach you some moves."

A flicker of hope came to life in her brown eyes. "Really?"

I nodded enthusiastically. "Absolutely. I'm the wish guy, remember?"

Mr. and Mrs. Rodriguez shared a skeptical glance before Dad spoke up. "I thought you said Liberty Ballet wasn't open to wish requests."

I shrugged but kept my gaze fixed on the light in Gemma's eyes. "I only promise things I can deliver. Remember?"