Dancing Away with My Heart: (Part 2 in Dancing with Artem Chigvintsev trilogy)

14

After a long plane ride filled with sleeping and watching videos from his European dance tour with him, Maks and I landed in Paris.

"The city of love." He said as we looked out over the city.

I put my arms around him, smiling from my heart.

"I haven't been here since..."

"Since you won  your world championship when you were 19." He finished my thought. "I was there too ya know. I was injured, and couldn't dance but it was the first time I ever saw you dance, and I just thought you were absolutely graceful and beautiful."

"Maks, you never told me that before." I smiled and he put his arms around me as well.

"So it's time for a confession." He laughed.

I looked up at him, taking a step back, "please don't tell me something I am not going to like." I warned him.

"No, no... Emma, you won't be mad at me, I don't think." He smiled, "but I kinda lied about this being a work trip."

"Maks.." I demanded to hear more of what we were doing here.

"It's just a vacation." He smiled "I know some people who know some people and I got us the best suite at the best hotel, luxurious dinner reservations, and we have plenty of you and me time."

"Maks." I repeated myself, this time with a glimmer of hope in my eye that I will finally be happy for a whole week without once having to feel any type of stress or pain.

"Come here." He pulled me in for a tight hug and I instinctively went for a kiss.

"Is that what you want?" He smiled down at me. I didn't know if being with Maks was a mistake or not, But I felt that in the moment it was the only thing that felt so right.

I nodded up at him and he picked me up and swung me around and planted a kiss on my lips, one that he hasn't given me since we ourselves were in a romantic relationship over 12 years ago.

"Emma." He smiled as we walked out the gates of the airport and into the sunny and beautiful French air, "your chariot awaits."

I didn't know what he meant until I looked up to see that he had arranged for a horse and carriage ride for us, just like the ones we used to go on in Central Park back when we were young and in love.

Maks helped me in and kept his arm around me the entire time. He felt like he was my protector, ready to jump into action in case of an emergency.

"Will there be dancing during this trip?" I asked him.

"Well..." He said "you can't have two professional dancers in a room and not expect them to dance, right..?" He kissed my head.

"Maks, thank you, I am so happy to be here in this city with you."

"No, thank you, for believing in me all of these years, for being the only person that isn't family that has worried about me when I seemed to have gone off the rails, literally.."

"Maks." I looked into his eyes, "on the outside you put on a mask, of toughness and strength and fearlessness, but I know the real you, you are sensitive, you are caring and you want to feel loved by someone who can see past all of the insecurities that cause you to put on that mask. I see you, Maks. I always have. It sucks, it really does, that it took me so long, too long to realize that people change, that feelings change."

"Ten years ago.." He said "I would have left Peta if there were any glimmer of hope that my best friend was still in love with me..."

"I'm sorry that I ruined all of that by falling in love with Artem.."

"You chased after him so hard, you wanted him, not me."

"I can't sit here and say that I don't love Artem, I married him for a reason and we have been together strongly for this many years, but I have always loved you. I don't think it has been fair to him knowing that his wife will always love another man, maybe that's what made him be with another woman."

"I left Peta because I couldn't ever marry her knowing that my heart was someplace else. I was unhappy after seeing you guys happily married and seeing you popping out babies that were his.." He paused to breathe. "I didn't want to ruin your life by begging you to be with me, it was too late. And so I told Peta that I couldn't be with her anymore after so many years together for those reasons, and then I got out of the country."

It took me a few moments to process all the feelings that I was feeling in my heart and then I let everything out.

"You took my heart with you." I cried "especially this last trip you took, not seeing you or hearing your voice for 8 months, I didn't know if you were okay, if you were laying dead somewhere."

"Oh Emma." He pulled me closer to him. "As long as you want me, I will never ever leave your side again."

I grabbed his face and we passionately kissed, never wanting to let go of each other.