‘Me too,’ I said, shaking my head in disbelief. All this time we had been feeling the exact same way. ‘I was travelling a lot then. Daniella and I were doing well in competitions. My father was young enough to run the farm single-handedly and I barely gave home a second thought. It should have been the happiest time of my life and yet it felt like something was missing. Or like I had had something special within my grasp and I had stupidly let it go.’
I kissed her then, not able to wait a minute longer.
‘Are we really doing this?’ I asked her, stroking her bare arms with the flats of my hands.
‘But how? With you in Italy and me in Castlebury?’
‘That is something we will have to work out, but we will find a way, I promise you,’ I said, meaning every word.
‘Then I’m all in if you are,’ she whispered back.
‘All in with what?!’ asked Sedi, choosing that moment to burst noisily into the corridor with my mother following a few steps behind her.
‘And here,’ said Sedi, thrusting her phone at Lira. ‘Mum wants to speak to you.’
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVENLira
I walked away from the group to take the call from my mum, not least because I couldn’t hear a thing with an over-excited Sedi shrieking about how much she loved the show, and Sofia laughing in a way I’d never heard her given everything that had happened; I was glad that at least we’d cheered her up a little bit, and that seeing Gabriele up on stage had given her so much joy.
‘Mum?’ I said. ‘It’s me. Where are you?’
‘Never mind that, Lira,’ said Mum, sounding as though she was in a wind tunnel. Was she out on the deck of the ship? ‘Sedi sent me the video of you and Gabriele dancing the Argentine tango. It was breathtaking, Lira. Really, I had no idea you were that good.’
A warm feeling spread through my body and I thoughtthat out of everyone who had congratulated me tonight, my mum being proud of me had meant the most.
‘Thanks, Mum.’
‘So listen, I’ve been thinking. And Daddy and I have been talking and we’ve decided that you should absolutely go and pursue the dancing career you should have had years ago. The studio has been running well with the stand-in teachers, hasn’t it?’
‘Yes, really well,’ I said, confused. What exactly was she saying?
‘So let’s carry on like that for now. If you’re okay to keep an eye on things remotely until we get back from the cruise, I don’t think you need to rush back to Castlebury if you don’t want to. And once we’re back in the UK, Daddy and I will take over the management of the studio. It’s our turn to step up and run the business we started and for you to get your chance to shine out on the stage.’
‘Mum, are you serious?’
‘Of course I’m serious! After the way you danced tonight? There’s no way we can let you go back to managing the studio full-time, although I’m sure your clients would love to see you there now and again, whenever you can manage.’
‘Of course! I’ll be there whenever I can. There’s no way I’m just going to abandon you all.’
‘And you must get yourself an agent, Lerato. Can Carlos help with that?’ said Mum.
‘Probably. And Gabriele said he’d introduce me to someone,’ I replied tentatively.
‘Perfect,’ said Mum. ‘That’s settled then. I just wish you’d asked for help sooner, Lira. Please don’t ever think you are disappointing me by going after your dreams. This is your time to go after what you want – don’t think about us or anybody else. Especially not Gabriele Riccitelli.’
‘Why on earth would I be thinking about Gabriele?’ I asked, trying to laugh it off, as though he had been the very last thing on my mind.
‘Mother’s intuition. Promise me, Lira?’
I nodded. She was right – I hadn’t come this far for nothing. Gabriele and I might have feelings for each other, but I couldn’t let that impact the decisions I made next. Wanting to be with him didn’t mean I couldn’t put myself first for a while, now that I actually had the chance to.
‘I promise.’
As I wandered back to the others and handed Sedi back her phone, still reeling from the conversation I’d just had with Mum, Carlos burst through the door leading through from the bar, joining our impromptu private party in the backstage corridor.
‘I have something to ask you both,’ he announced grandly.
I raised my eyebrows at Gabriele, who shrugged in response. Neither of us seemed to have a clue what he was talking about.
