Page 30 of Scarred

“Flattery will get you everywhere,” my mom grins back, causing Rusty’s shoulders to shake with laughter. “I’ll have my usual salad with grilled salmon,” she says, not bothering to pick up the menu since we know it by heart anyway.

“I’ll do the same,” I smile.

“And two whites of my favorite wine,” my mom adds, sending me a cheeky grin. “We’re celebrating today,” she states when I raise my eyebrow because we usually don’t drink on our lunch dates if we’re working later.

“What are we celebrating?” I ask, completely oblivious to what I’m missing.

“To life,” she smiles. “Isn’t that a good enough reason?”

“I completely agree,” Rusty chimes in. “Nothing is better than living a life you love.” He waves his arm at the beautiful ocean in front of us. “Blessed for sure.”

“That we are.” My mom’s green eyes warmly smile at Rusty before he heads to the register to put our order in.

I shift in my seat and study the people on the beach below. A few families are out today enjoying the warmth of the sun, their little ones digging holes or chasing the seagulls that appear on the beaches in hopes of being fed.

“Want to talk about it?” My mom asks after our wine is delivered.

“Talk about what?” I take a sip, thankful she ordered it to ease some of my tension. This isn’t like me to be so affected by something—particularly a someone.

“You’ve been distant and in your head a lot lately. You didn’t even give Mav hell when he beat you in poker on Sunday night, and you two are the most competitive people I know at our family game nights,” she softly laughs.

She’s not wrong. Sunday family dinners have always been something I’ve looked forward to, especially when it’s my turn to pick out the game for the night. Being the youngest, I’ve always been competitive with my older siblings and can get really into it. The banter is half the fun of winning.

“I guess I just have a lot on my mind recently. With my solo in the spring show coming up and trying to balance practice and work,” I say, shrugging it off, “it’s just a lot right now.”

“I’ve seen your solo, love. You could dance that with your eyes closed, and still hit every movement beautifully,” she smiles. “Dance has never stressed you out. It breathes life into you.”

Our salads arrive, and I move the lettuce around my plate as I try to put what I’m feeling into words. I knew my mom would see right through me. She knows me better than anyone and has always been the one I go to when I have something on my mind.

This time feels different, though. My emotions are all over the place, and it’s hard for me to decipher them all.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t help your friend,” I suddenly blurt out. “I know you recommended me when he came to you, but I’m pretty sure Cayden hated everything about that session,” I laugh dryly.

“That’s what you’re worried about?” My mom’s eyes widen in surprise before she chuckles softly. “You have nothing to be sorry for. Those sessions aren’t for everyone, and that has nothing to do with your ability as a teacher.” She studies me for a second before speaking again. “What makes you think he hated it?”

“Well, for starters, he couldn’t get out of there fast enough when it was over. It was like the hounds of hell were at his feet,” I snort, remembering how fast he left without so much as a backward glance. “Usually, I make people feel so much at home that I have a hard time getting them to leave.”

“I can see that being true,” my mom softly laughs before pressing her lips together in concentration. “Not everyone leaves because they are uncomfortable with you, Luna…sometimes they leave because they feel too much.”

“Too much of a dislike,” I mutter before shoving a bite of salad in my mouth.

“He stayed, didn’t he?” She simply reminds me.

I hesitate, my mind replaying the session again. The way his jaw tightened. How he flinched every time I touched him. It was like his body was fighting something I couldn’t see.

“He could have easily left the second it got uncomfortable,” she continues, “but he didn’t.”

“I’m pretty sure his coach forced him to stay. At least for one session anyway.” I push the salmon around on my plate and frown, remembering he canceled this week’s appointment.

“I don’t think anyone could force that man to do anything he didn’t want to do,” my mom laughs. “He’s got quite the dominating presence. He’s also drop-dead gorgeous,” she adds, hiding a smile behind the rim of her glass as she takes a sip of wine.

I feel my cheeks redden, causing my mom to slightly chuckle. “So you did notice,” she teases.

“You would be blind not to. He’s also a client. Or was,” I cringe, remembering he’s not anymore. “Not to mention the fact that he’s the dad of one of my new dance students.”

“What?” My mom laughs. “This just keeps getting better and better.”

“You mean messier and messier,” I say under my breath.