Free The Life of Anna, Part 4: Ensnared by Marissa Honeycutt

Peter, grandson of Vitaly,
who had taken Alex away from her.
    His warm brown eyes lifted to meet hers and
he smiled. He had grown a goatee since she saw him last and looked
older, but it was definitely him. Devin hadn’t told her he was a
dancer. Not that he’d had a chance.
Fuck.
    Anna clenched her jaw, but didn’t move
otherwise. He was a future Elder and she had to be polite and
accommodating to him. Maybe he wouldn’t recognize her. She turned
quickly away and got ready for the first warm-up. Thankfully, he
went to stand next to Aaron and Stephanie and she didn’t have to
think about him anymore.
*****
    She was heading off the stage after class
when she felt a hand on her elbow. She turned and looked directly
into Peter’s eyes.
    “You’re Anna, right?” he said with an accent,
though not as thick as she would have expected. His voice was deep
and, had he been anyone else and she been in a different life,
would have made her knees turn to jelly. “I don’t know if you
remember me....”
    “I remember you,” she interrupted coldly,
lifting her chin. “Why are you here?”
    “I wanted to have a break from my family and
have always heard wonderful things about the San Francisco Ballet
Company. You were the first to bring Nutcracker to America,
right?”
    “You left the Kirov to dance here?” She
arched her brow in disbelief. The Kirov was one of the best dance
companies in the world.
    Peter smiled a megawatt smile and shrugged.
“I had an opportunity to come and dance here. I also heard there
were very pretty ballerinas here.” He looked her up and down. “They
weren’t lying.”
    “Yes, well, I’m sure you’ll have your pick,”
she said in a dry voice. “They seem quite enthralled with you.
Excuse me.” She turned and walked away. He wasn’t technically and
Elder-Son yet...right?
    Throughout rehearsal she felt Peter’s eyes on
her. Why was he watching her? There were plenty of other girls that
would be thrilled to have his attention. Had she not made herself
clear?
    When rehearsal was over, she saw him walking
towards her and escaped to the Corps dressing rooms before he
caught her. She changed and got out of the theater quickly, walking
home in half the time it normally took her.
*****
    Anna walked back to the theater that
afternoon carrying her dress and everything she needed to get ready
for the after-party. She should have taken the bus.
    She paused to catch her breath before she
opened the door.
    “Can I help you carry your things?” a deep
voice behind her asked.
    She whirled around to see Peter behind her.
Some of the other corps dancers were walking up to the door and
they looked at the two of them curiously.
    “No,” she snapped and opened the door and
walked away as quickly as possible.
*****
    To Anna’s relief, she didn’t see Peter the
rest of the afternoon and evening. She stayed in the dressing room
as much as possible, and kept to herself. The other girls gossiped
about him and Anna tried not to listen.
    There was a burst of laughter. “Yeah, maybe
that’s why he thinks he likes her. She reminds him of his icy
home.”
    Anna had hidden herself in a corner, so no
one saw her. She had a feeling they were talking about her, and she
didn’t care. At least that’s what she told herself. She would not
admit that she was lonely and missed her friends.
    The show went very well. Standing ovations
and all. Anna thought Aaron was spectacular as always. She didn’t
realize how much she’d missed his dancing. Without thinking about
it, she went up to him after the curtain fell and hugged him.
    “Anna...,” he whispered as he held her.
    She backed away suddenly, realizing what
she’d done. Several of the other dancers stared. Without a word,
she ran away and hid in the dressing room backstage. How could she
have been so stupid? She needed to keep herself aloof. Apart from
people. For their sake as well as her own. She needed to be
wholeheartedly devoted to Devin and no one