The Dance

*21*

'Emma, I hope you weren't jealous tonight,' Prince reassured Emma, as his hands moved from her hair to her shoulders, caressing them gently as he continued to speak. 'I do like beautiful women dancing at my shows. My audience does, too. It's part of my performance package, so to speak. Gives the boys in the audience something to look at. That doesn't mean I want to take any of them home, or go home with them. I have you. At least, I hope I do.'

'Oh, you definitely have me. And no, I wasn't jealous. Not really. I think I was clear the other day when I said I don't share my man. If it comes to that, it will break my heart, but I'll have to leave. That's really a non-negotiable for me.' Emma's hand continued to make circles, which kept moving closer to Prince's favorite spot to be touched.

'It is for me, as well.' Prince swallowed hard as he tried to maintain control. He didn't want to make love to Emma in a limo, it was part of the past he had moved away from. 'It wasn't when I was younger, but we all grow up eventually. The lyric I wrote about preferring to be bound to my partner was true. Like so many of my lyrics, they're based on my life.' He pulled Emma closer, picking her hand up off his leg, and giving her a kiss on the cheek.

'Okay, I'll admit to a little twinge of nervousness when I walked into your dressing room and found a beautiful young woman who had been asked back there, just as I had been weeks earlier. But, I never got a vibe from you that you were seriously attracted to her, only that you enjoyed looking at her and thought she might be a dancer.' Emma snuggled in a little closer, and Prince gave her a kiss on her nose, making her giggle.

'She definitely fit the type for my shows, and she danced very well for an amateur. I'll know when I find the right dancer.'

'I hope you do, and I hope she turns out to be as sweet as Marguerite. Sometimes young girls bring a lot of drama with them.'

'That, I've had lots of experience with, and I'd rather not experience any of it again.' Prince winced at the memories of the past. 'I like things just the way they are right now.' He pulled Emma onto his lap, and they started necking in the back of the limo.

Emma broke off the kiss, and started giggling. 'Look at me, necking with a music star in the back of a limo!'

'Prince took her face in both of his hands, and quietly replied, 'No, Emma, you're being loved by a guy who knew music was the only thing he wanted to do, and worked hard to win at it. A guy who thinks you are the best thing that ever happened to him.'

Emma leaned her forehead against Prince's and sighed. 'You are the most romantic man. What did I ever do to deserve you?'

Prince grinned, and said, 'I think asking the question the other way makes more sense. What did I ever do to deserve you?'

They cuddled all the way back to the hotel. Prince made sure it stopped at cuddling.

In the elevator, headed to the penthouse, Emma remembered her girls' arrival was imminent.

'The girls will be here tomorrow! I can't wait for you to meet them. I'll try to keep them as drama free as possible, since you said you've had enough young girl drama. It will be great to see them.'

'Are you sure they're okay with us being together? I'm sure this isn't a lifestyle you would choose for them,' Prince, said, worry creasing his forehead. He opened the door to their penthouse, and stood aside for Emma to enter.

'You're right, it isn't a lifestyle I would choose for them, but this is where we are now, and I think that's for you and me to decide. Emma walked to the sofa and sat down. 'I will say, their reaction on the phone was far more positive than anything I was expecting. You heard them, they were excited at the prospect of me being in a relationship at all. They even wanted to claim some of the credit for it! Of course, they may be assuming our relationship is completely chaste. Kids never like thinking that their parents actually have sex.'

Prince laughed out loud at Emma's last comment, and pulled her closer to him on the sofa. It occurred to her that they always wanted to be right next to each other, which was really sweet. Prince continued, 'You're right, they sure don't! I'll admit, I was surprised by what I overheard. It was a relief for me, though. I worried that if your daughters disapproved of your choice, you would leave me high and dry in order to keep them happy.'

'I really haven't given that possibility any thought. I know how happy I am with you, and that I haven't been this happy in years. I still find myself looking around, to see if I'm really in this wonderful relationship with you.'

'I know what you mean. I haven't felt this peaceful in maybe forever. My creativity isn't stifled, in fact it's the opposite. I don't feel confined or that I'm missing out on something by being emotionally bound to one woman. It just feels right. And I am thankful.' 

Prince pulled Emma to him, giving her a deep, satisfying kiss, and said, 'I think it's time we went to bed. I warn you, I am not tired at all, so you better be ready to stay up for awhile!' The famous Prince smirk was in full effect as he took Emma's hand to help her to her feet.

'I have great faith in your ability to keep me awake as long as you want,' Emma retorted, giving his hand a squeeze. 'You have very strong powers of persuasion.'

'That I do, and I'm glad you recognize.' The smirk disappeared, replaced by an extremely intense gaze, while Prince brought Emma's hands to his mouth, kissing each one while holding Emma's eyes hostage. Emma was led into the bedroom of the penthouse and the door was closed against the possibility of intrusion. Then she was reminded again of what a sensual man she was with.

Clothing dropped to the floor, and Emma found herself once again lying on an unfamiliar bed in another in a series of hotel penthouses, being brought to ecstasy again and again by what was now a very familiar pair of hands and an extremely talented mouth. Finally, as limbs wrapped around each other in the most intimate embrace, Emma and Prince, in a series of whimpers, moans, and cries of passion, confirmed their love for one another again.

The next day the whole group flew to the Netherlands. They landed, and Emma realized they hadn't gone through official airport customs in Portugal, either country in Scandinavia, or the Netherlands. An officer had come aboard to check passports while they stayed comfortably on the plane, and that was the only step they had to follow.

'You really can travel pretty anonymously this way, can't you?' she inquired, as they waited for clearance. 'I mean, we haven't had to go through customs, security, or declare anything. That's kind of amazing in this day and age.'

'True, and no photographers, either. I'm most thankful for that. I don't like pictures I don't have control over.'

'Now, 'fess up. Is there anything you don't mind being out of your control?' Emma asked jokingly.

'Only you, because I don't think you need controlling,' Prince answered very seriously. 'I really do have control issues. It's something I've had to work on all my life. I'm doing better now that I have so many things set up the way I prefer them. If there's one thing I can't stand, it's chaos. I dealt with too much of that growing up.'

'I don't see how you could have been as successful as you are without finding ways to control as many aspects of your career as you have. I think the hard lesson we all have to learn is that we can't control other people, even when we see the choices they are making are terrible for them.'

'Do you have any serious examples of people whose choices were obviously that bad, but wouldn't take any advice or direction from you?' Prince looked genuinely interested in the subject.

'Not me personally, but Randee did, with her sister in law, who passed away several years ago. That's when they found prescriptions hidden in her closet from online pharmacies all over the world, sending mail order drugs to a post office box her husband didn't even know she had. It was a really tragic situation.'

'Wow, that is serious,' Prince replied. 'Okay, it's getting way too heavy in here. I imagine the luggage is in the limo by now. Let's go see the hotel we're staying in. I think you're going to like it.'

A/N-Sorry to get so heavy at the end of a chapter! I promise things will be much brighter with the next chapter! Vote, Comment, and as always, thanks for reading!