Alora: The Wander-Jewel (Alora 1)

“I’ll expect to see you before curfew, or you’ll be grounded.” She poured on the sarcasm. But in her distraction, she stepped on his foot again.

“Ow!”

“I’m sorry! I’m hopeless!”

“No, it’s my fault. I forgot to keep my feet out of the way.”

The music ended, and Wesley made his escape. “I want Kaevin to meet some of my buddies. We’ll be back.” He snagged Kaevin and shuffled him across the room to a table full of guys.

“I guess you won’t feel you need to snatch him back from that group,” said Beth. “He’s a really good dancer. You’ll have fun dancing with him. I gave him a quick polka lesson, too.”

“He needs to be a good dancer, because I’m terrible.”

“He shouldn’t be here at all,” said a snide voice behind them. Shanna Wallace stood glaring with her arms crossed, backed by her entourage. “He’s not a student here, so he’s not allowed to come to a school dance.”

“Mrs. Parker gave him permission,” said Beth. “He’s my cousin.”

“Your cousin? I guess that’s why he can’t afford a haircut,” sneered Shanna.

“But I like his long hair—” Her friend snapped her mouth shut at Shanna’s sharp scowl.

“My father’s on the school board, so he can hire and fire Mrs. Parker. We’ll see what she says after he speaks to her on the phone.”

Wesley and Kaevin returned with some of Wesley’s guy friends in tow.

“Hey, Shanna,” said a boy who stood almost as tall as Kaevin and even broader in the shoulders.

“Hi, Justin,” said Shanna, giggling. “I... I uhmm... didn’t know you were coming tonight. I thought you were getting your wisdom teeth out.”

“That’s next week,” he said. “Did you meet Kaevin? He’s cool! He can ride without a saddle or a bridle, and shoot a bow at the same time. He’s gonna show us how next week.”

“Oh... that’s great, Justin. Uhmm...”

“Shanna was just explaining to us how she wanted her dad to get Kaevin kicked out of the dance,” said Beth.

“Why would you want to do that?” Justin frowned.

“I was just kidding,” said Shanna. “Let’s go dance, Justin.” She tugged him onto the dance floor, throwing a scathing look over her shoulder at Beth.

“If she was the Wicked Witch of the West, I think she’d be setting you on fire right now,” Wesley joked to Beth.

“What do you mean, ‘If she was’? There can’t really be any doubt, can there?” Beth and Wesley pealed in laughter, and Alora couldn’t help joining in, forgetting her tension at Shanna’s aggression. She laughed even harder when Beth tried to explain to Kaevin who the Wicked Witch of the West was.

“Come, Alora. Dance with me.” Kaevin begged.

She let him drag her onto the dance floor, ready to make a fool of herself. He’s going to hate me when he finds out what a terrible dancer I am. While the other couples were dancing close together, in a polish-your-belt-buckle position, Kaevin held her in a formal dance pose, like the dancing couples in Pride and Prejudice. Within seconds, she tripped over her own foot and lost her balance, landing hard on his toes. Kaevin held her up, never missing a step.

“Lucky for you, I didn’t find out you couldn’t dance before I fell in love with you.” His eyes twinkled as he laughed.

“Lucky for you, I didn’t know you were so mean when I fell in love with you.” The teasing words slipped from her mouth with ease, but she felt a bit silly saying them. Am I really in love? I like him a lot, and I feel all giddy around him. He did risk his life trying to save me when I broke through the ice on the lake. But do I really love him? I’ve always scoffed at the movies where people fell in love at first sight.

She stumbled again, and was mortified when she realized how many people were watching them. Of course, in a small school, everyone was curious about the “new” guy. Especially since the new guy was super hot.

“Kaevin.” She stood on tiptoes and leaned forward to whisper. “I can’t dance while everyone is staring at us. It’s embarrassing.”

Kaevin’s eyes never left hers. “Let them stare. They’re simply jealous because my dance partner is the most beautiful girl present.”

Alora almost swooned at his declaration. He’s so romantic; maybe I am in love with him. As her concentration drifted, her feet tangled, and she tromped on his instep. This time, she caught him wincing, but he steadfastly refused to give up. He seemed tireless, keeping her on the dance floor without a break, song after song. He mastered the new dance steps with ease, copying the motions of the teens around him. During one of the fast rock songs, Kaevin taught Alora to dance the Winged-Foot. Beth spotted them and squealed with excitement over the fun steps. Soon, the entire dance floor was scooting, swaying, and hopping in an attempt to duplicate the dance.