If Laura had been worrying about what to say on the ride to their home, she realized very quickly that the only thing she had to do was listen as Juliet recounted every moment of the rehearsal.

At one point, she saw Matthew mulling over whether or not to interrupt his daughter. Leaning closer to him with her arm braced on the center console, she whispered. “Do you need to ask her a question?”

He shook his head and quickly replied. “Just thought you might want to get a word in.”

She’d waved off the idea. “She’s excited. Let her get it out. How long can she go?”

In the shadowy interior of the car she thought she saw a strange twist at the corner of his mouth, but he didn’t answer.

Well, that was fine with her because when she was a little girl her mother always encouraged her to get her own answers. Doing something, she explained, would ingrain the lesson like muscle memory in dance.

It was the same reason she had always encouraged her students to do everything with full energy, even a rehearsal because if you practiced things any other way, you made bad habits.

And it seemed that part of that lessons had stuck with Juliet.

When she decided to recount the day, she did it… in full detail.

So much so that even when they arrived at the house, any possible awkwardness was smoothed over as Juliet kept up her recitation while Matthew picked up the few items that were on the floor and refolded the blanket on the back of the couch.

When Juliet came up for air, Matthew asked her what she wanted to eat and Juliet pulled her answer right from the pre-teen handbook, adding a winsome smile and a ‘pretty, pretty please.”

They ordered a few deep-dish pizzas straight from Lou Malnati’s and an order of Bruschetta that was so good, the girls fought over the last piece.

And ended up cutting it in half when Matthew threatened to eat it himself.

After the food was inhaled by the hungry trio, Laura was surprised when Juliet turned on the couch and laid her head on Laura’s leg. Looking up at her, Juliet took Laura’s hand and set it on her head, smoothing it over the crown and down to the side. Her hopeful little smile was the end of Laura’s resistance.

Slowly, Laura began to stroke Juliet’s hair, combing her fingers through the long silky strands.

After awhile she saw Juliet’s eyes begin to close and still, she couldn’t stop combing through her hair, speaking softly to her.

She was only partly aware of Matthew on the other end of the couch with Juliet’s feet propped up on his leg.

“Miss Laura?”

Juliet’s soft and sleepy voice caught Laura’s attention. ‘What is it, sweetie?”

Smiling at the endearment, Juliet sighed and turned on her side until her cheek was pillowed on Laura’s leg. “I wish you’d stay.”

The words touched her in a part of her heart that had gone dormant a long time ago.

“But you’ll be asleep soon, so what would I do?”

Juliet groaned a little and snuggled closer, tucking one hand under her cheek and the other hand tunneled under the blanket her father had spread over her. “You could watch movies with my dad.”

Laura trailed the backs of her fingers down Juliet’s cheek. “We’ve all had a long day, sweetie. I think after you get into bed, I’m going to go home so your dad can get some rest, too.”

“He doesn’t need as much sleep as I do.” Juliet yawned and stretched before curling up in the center of the couch. “He should take you home.”

“Now I know you’re exhausted, young lady, but there’s no way that either one of us would leave you alone here by yourself.”

“I’m gonna be a grown up soon,” Juliet reminded them and Laura couldn’t help the grin that spread slowly across her lips. “You can leave me here by myself.”

She punctuated the sentence with a big, gaping yawn.

“I’ll put her to bed and then I’ll be back, okay? Do you need anything before I go?”

She grinned at him when she saw the worry in his expression.

“Not unless you’re going to be gone for several hours. But if you are, I can call for a search party.”

That seemed to ease the tension in his shoulders. As he gently lifted Juliet’s feet from his leg, Laura watched every little movement with rapt attention. So many times over the years she’d thought of what it would be like to have her own family. Most of her friends had married and lost contact with her. Children, they’d explain with a shrug as if that said everything. But, having her experience with children limited to a few hours here and there with each one, she really had no idea what it meant on a day to day basis.

As Matthew gently lifted Juliet from the couch and into his arms, Laura found her eyes drawn entirely too much to the way his t-shirt sleeves pulled across his biceps.

Did more dads like Matthew have biceps like those, because if they did, she would certainly pay more attention in the future.

When Matthew crossed the room to the hallway, Laura turned on the couch, tucking her knee on the cushion as she followed their progress.

When he turned slightly to ease them both through the doorway, keeping a watch for Juliet’s feet, she had to admit that her heart turned over in her chest.

Why did he have to be so sweet? So gentle with his daughter?

She wanted to enjoy her time with them, but if he continued to be this amazing every day, it was going to be hard to part with them when the show was over and done. Even the first rehearsal had been easy and fun. For all of Matthew’s protestations that he might look awkward in the scene, he picked the basics up easily. While Adrienne worked through other sections of the party scene, Laura had taken the time to work on his posture and the quality of movement that goes along with performing on stage. Matthew hadn’t taken things too seriously, laughing when he stumbled or when he stubbed his toe. Working with him made the whole day a true joy.

“Hey.”

Matthew stepped back into the room and Laura sat up to watch him with a smile. “Any trouble?”

“She didn’t even open her eyes when I put her in bed. How was I supposed to know that four hours of rehearsal would tire her out this much? I should have discovered this sooner.”

He rounded the arm of the couch and instead of sitting on the other end like he’d been earlier, he sat down on the middle cushion and turned slightly in her direction, laying his arm over the back of the sofa.

“Well, if she’s anything like I was, she’ll develop a tolerance for the rush of adrenaline and then she’ll be able to go for five hours... and then six.” She was very aware that the tips of his fingers were almost close enough to touch her shoulder. “You just have to hope that you do too.”

“You’re like the mystic of ballet shows,” he grinned at her, “is there anything you don’t know?”

She’d been preparing for it all day, but it was different when it actually happened. He hadn’t even asked a direct question and she was already in knots.

“It’s been a long time,” she admitted, “so you have to take everything I say with a grain of salt. You never know, maybe now it’s acceptable to do the wave in the theater after a really good moment in the ballet.”

Matthew cringed and she laughed at his expression.

“You cringe a lot when I’m around.”

He shook his head and held up his hands in what looked like the Scout salute. “It’s not just you. It’s girly things and all things ballet, I’m guessing. I know I’m clueless when it comes to all of this and when I miss something that I feel should have been only too easy to figure out, it’s like another mark against me as a dad.”

She turned even more toward him and shook her head, dipping her head to the side a little to catch his full attention. “Why do you say that? You’re a great dad.”

His smile said he was trying to accept the compliment, but it was the same wince of his expression that said he couldn’t quite believe it.

“When Juliet’s mom passed I felt a real loss for her,” Laura admitted, “for several years I would see the both of them come into the building before class and I watched the way that Juliet would hug her mom so tight that I was surprised Aimee had breath enough to tell Juliet how much she loved her before she left and then when Aimee picked her up again, you’d think they hadn’t seen each other in weeks.

“They’d hug and kiss each other like they were being reunited after a long trip.”

“See, that’s what I’m talking about, Laura, I-”

“Don’t.” As much as she loved hearing him say her name, Laura wasn’t going to let him abuse himself like that. She placed her hand on his arm and he’d stopped talking. “You need to hear the rest of what I was trying to say.”

She barely resisted the urge to grab him by the shoulders and shake him, but then he’d probably think she was trying to punish him.

Still, he managed to keep quiet, gesturing for her to continue.

“When I see you with Juliet, I see that same love between you that she had with her mother. She lights up when she sees you, even though you were only across the room. And when she looks up at you on stage, Adrienne doesn’t even have to tell her to look like you’re the best dad ever and project it in her eyes and her body language, it’s already there.

“I’m so happy that the two of you asked me to do this. It’s really an honor to see what a wonderful dancer she’s become. No one can look at her and think you’ve failed in any way.”

He cleared his throat. “I’m so glad you said yes.”

She felt a soft rush of sensation along her shoulder. Turning her head ever so slightly she saw his finger gently brushing along the edge of her blouse.

The sensations from that simple touch flooded through her veins. It was a gentle touch, one that spoke of a connection between the two of them, but it didn’t push any boundaries between them. Still, it made her realize how dangerous it was to stay any longer.

She was spending time with them for Juliet’s sake, not her own. And while Matthew Benson was probably the perfect man for her, this was not the time in any of their lives to even entertain falling for him.

“I should probably get going.” Clearing her throat, she reached for the arm of the sofa to help herself up to her feet.

“Laura, wait.”

His hand settled on her shoulder and the heat of his skin against hers was enough to settle her back against the couch.

“Am I missing something?”

“Not that I can see.” Oh boy. She really hoped that he had. If not, this was one conversation she didn’t want to have.

“We were having a nice conversation and suddenly you’re going for the door like you can’t get away from me fast enough.”

“It’s late,” she told him, and the excuse sounded silly to her ears, “and I know you don’t have a big love for the train, but it gets me where I need to go.” She looked at the clock on the wall. “I’m fairly sure that there’s a nearby station that I can-”

“I’ll get you a cab.” His tone said he wasn’t going to take no for an answer. “It’s not that I don’t like the train. I’m sure it’s perfectly fine.”

“But?” She laughed. “There’s a really big butt in that statement.”

He nodded, this time with a smile. “Yes. I don’t think it’s the safest, especially at night. A beautiful woman alone is an invitation to the worst kind of people and I would worry the whole time. I’d probably make you call me and stay on the phone until you were home and I knew you were safe. That would be a very long phone call and you’d probably hate me after, but I’d worry.”

She looked at him, tilting her head to see into his gentle eyes. He thought she was beautiful. Oh sure, there were other things that he said, but Matthew Benson thought she was beautiful.

“I’ve been using the El for years, ever since I moved to Chicago. I’ve never had a problem. Besides,” she leaned closer to let him in on a secret, “I don’t think anyone would attack a dancer.”

His brow furrowed a little. “Why not?”

“Because,” she reached down and pointed at the leg that she’d extended, “we kick, really hard. And our muscles can sometimes make us look like weight lifters. Who wants to mess with us?”

He hung his head and sighed. “Why can’t I get you to see reason?”

“Oh, I see it,” she grinned and dropped her leg back down to the floor, “I just think it’s not that big of a deal.”

The mood seemed to settle between them, Matthew finally sighed and nodded. “Okay, I may just be a little bit over the top, but I’d like you to think of two things.”

She leaned her shoulder against the back of the couch. “Okay, two.”

“One,” he held up a single finger, “tonight, you’re at our house and this is a residential area a little bit outside of the train route, so you’re going to have to get a cab to get to a station, so why not ride the cab all the way to your apartment?”

She opened her mouth to speak and he gave her a look.

Laura covered her mouth with one hand and motioned for him to carry on with the other.

“And Two,” he added a second finger beside the first, “I know you can take care of yourself, Laura. No one doubts that. But would it be so bad to let someone else take care of you a little?”

His words struck another chord deep inside her heart. When she’d moved to Chicago when she was a teenager, she’d lived in a dormitory with other ballet students. Sure, there were adults that made sure they ate and were seen by doctors when they needed it, but the instant she’d finished school and moved out on her own as a company dancer, it had all been on her shoulders.

If she was being truthful to herself, hearing those words from Matthew made her feel cherished, even if it was likely that most of his attention was because of his daughter’s attachment to her.

But the tender part of her heart that held all of her deepest emotions and dreams soaked in his gentle words.

“Okay,” she nodded, “if you want to get me a cab home, then I would be very happy to accept.”

“Great.” Matthew picked up his phone from the coffee table and had a cab on the way in less than a minute. “He’ll call when he reaches the driveway, that way we don’t have to stand outside waiting in the cold.”

She shook her head. “You can go to sleep, Matthew, I can-”

“Accept the fact that I’m going to wait with you and walk you all the way to the cab.”

Laura couldn’t help it. Having him watch out for her made her feel so warm inside.

“You’re just too nice to me,” she felt a lump form in her throat, “it’s been a long time since I’ve had that.”

Matthew took her hand in his. “Get used to it,” he smiled and gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

The subtle gesture didn’t just make her heart turn in her chest, it began to fall.