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“Ewww,” Isaac complains.
Dillan and I laugh, and I motion for Isaac to go play. A few of my students are still hanging around as they chat, and he happily runs to join them.
“Hi there, handsome,” I say to Dillan.
“Hi there, beautiful.”
“How was your day?”
“Not bad. Had two deliveries that went smoothly. I might have to leave at some point tonight if Mrs. Varjak goes into labor, but otherwise, I’m all yours.”
“Excellent. Let me usher these people out, and we can go home.”
It takes a while to get everyone to leave, but eventually they do, and I’m able to start closing up for the night. “I’m thrilled about what’s coming next,” I say as Dillan helps me close the blinds and clean up.
Isaac keeps himself busy by playing music on my phone and dancing in front of the mirror. He has inherited my love of music, which I adore and foster whenever possible.
“So am I,” Dillan says. “You’ve been working nonstop lately.”
“Hey, it’s paid off. If I hadn’t, I wouldn’t have been able to buy the studio next door and expand. Just think, I’ll be able to have two dance rooms. Which means, double the classes.”
“And double the workload, baby.”
“But also double the fun and double the satisfaction.”
“Can’t argue with that.”
I go up on my tiptoes to kiss him. “You’ll be happy to know that I’m in the process of hiring two more instructors. That way I can have a bit more wiggle room with my schedule and focus on the actual business side of things.”
“I’m so damn proud of you, Lizzie.”
“I’m proud of me too!” I grin, the excitement bubbling in me.
It’s true. The past three years have been filled with late nights, but it has been worth it. When the studio opened, my classes filled up quicker than I anticipated. In the beginning, I handled every aspect of the business myself, from classes to scheduling and advertising, to bookkeeping, to everything in between.
At the time, I thought I was in way over my head, but Dillan had always been there in my corner, cheering me on. Gavin, his marketing friend he connected me with, ended up doing more than just helping. About three months after I opened, Dillan explained how swamped I was, and Gavin didn’t even bat an eye—he took over marketing the studio himself and has been doing an amazing job ever since. I still remember how I squealed with excitement when he unveiled the visual campaign concept: a dancer caught mid-motion, one foot delicately en pointe in a ballet slipper while the other rests firmly in a white sneaker. It was like seeing my studio’s spirit leap off the page. Even now, I find it hard to grasp how effortlessly Gavin came to my rescue. Sometimes I sense this odd mix of genuine appreciation he has for Dillan, even with all the teasing he loves to dish out. I know there’s a story there, but the guys keep it locked away.
Anyhow, aside from a couple of social media posts now and then, I don’t have to do a thing. I often joke that he’s doing too good a job, but there’s really no such thing.
“The contractor called today,” Dillan mentions as we gather Isaac and get ready to head home. “I don’t have clinic hours, so I can be here to greet the crew. I want you to just stay home and rest.”
“Thank you so much.” I peck him on the cheek before attempting to tame my unruly hair that’s been misbehaving all day. And, oh, look at that—I glance at my fingers and realize they’re long overdue for a manicure. “I couldn’t have done this without you.”
“Of course you could. But I’m glad you accepted my help. Knowing I can take any stress away from you is enough for me.”
“I can at least drop Isaac off at preschool tomorrow.”
Dillan firmly shakes his head as I lock up the studio behind me. “Nope. You don’t even need to do that. I’ll have plenty of time to do it before coming here. Seriously, Lizzie. Sleep in. You more than deserve it.”
“Mommy, you look like you’ve been wrestling dragons all day,” Isaac comments.
“Well, you know, sweetie, those dragons had it coming. But guess what? Mommy emerged victorious!” I declare triumphantly, shooting Isaac a playful wink as I ruffle his hair.
“Mommy, why do heroes look all squished, not super cool like in my books?”
Dillan cracks up. “Haha. Okay, that was a good one, kiddo.”
“Remember, heroes come in all sorts of shapes,” I clarify and give Dillan a playful nudge. “Isn’t that right, Daddy?”
