Free Dancing in Circles (Circles Trilogy) by Victoria Adams Page A

him downstairs.
    He snorted. "Nothin' to steal and nobody'd be stupid enough to try." Unless they had a death wish.
    As he strapped the bag to the back of the motorcycle, Julie struggled with her helmet. Robert corrected the problem and tightened her strap. He helped her onto the motorcycle, fastened his helmet and got on. "Ready?"
    She squeezed his waist.
    "Hang on tight," he yelled over the engine noise.
    ***
    The Laundromat was empty. Along both walls were banks of large orange driers, down the centre aisle, placed back to back, were the washing machines. Some machines were missing lids and even more driers were missing doors. The air smelled of stale cigarette smoke and fabric softener, and the walls were faded from years of neglect. Graffiti advertised lover's initials and For a good time call . Julie pointed at Robert's name and cell phone number. He smiled and unloaded his duffel bag into a couple of machines.
    He poured in soap, fed the machines quarters then sat next to Julie. "How was dance class?"
    Julie perked up. "Tiring. We're doing exams in a few weeks."
    "Ya got exams?"
    "Yes. Dance school is just like real school."
    He scratched his head. "What grade are ya in?"
    "Advanced and I'm going to try the pre-professional exam. I wasn't going to, but I thought about what you said about going after my dream. So I'm going to try."
    Robert grinned. He wanted to kiss her, but he didn't want to scare her away. Her kiss had been a timid surprise. His would be a passionate statement, but his gut told him she wasn't ready for that, yet.
    They sat in an uncomfortable silence for a few minutes until Julie took a big courage building breath. "Is Lauren your girlfriend?"
    "No, she's Mike's girl."
    "Then why…?" You big chicken. Just ask him.
    "Why am I sleepin' with her?" He shifted in his seat to face her. "'Cause. I don't got an answer. Earlier ya started to say, Francine said…." He waved his hand, prompting her to continue.
    Julie looked at the floor. "This is embarrassing, but it's the first time you've met the Shore stereotype. Francine said you have no morals. She said that your brains and heart are in your pants."
    She peeked sideways at him. "All you care about is having a good time. If a girl doesn't give in and sleep with you, then you'll drop her and start dating someone else."
    Unable to stop the words from pouring out, she continued, "But if a girl does sleep with you then you've got what you want from her and you drop her and start dating someone else." Her insides quivered. How angry would he get?
    "She's partly right." Robert leaned back against the wall. "We got morals, but not lots of 'em. I think we like to party 'cause it makes us forget about what life is like here. I spend all day in Westland. It's quiet and I feel safe. Then I come back here. Good old North Shore, where my neighboor beats up his wife and kids, or some junkie ODs in my doorway."
    He sighed. "If ya don't got enough money for food, then ya don't eat 'til payday. Lots of these people don't even got a payday. Factories are almost all closed. A lot of people eat in soup kitchens and sleep on park benches."
    Crossing his arms, he faced her. "But the morals ain't so great in Westland either. Christopher might have raped ya if I hadn't shown up. I've done a lot of bad stuff, but I ain't never raped no one. There's this guy." He paused. "He likes to abuse his twelve-year-old daughter. Sure, we drink and do drugs, but it's to forget about people like him."
    "But you slept with Trish, and she said you two haven't talked all week. You've been sleeping with Lauren. I'm not sure who you're cheating on – Trish or Lauren. If I were checking you out as a potential boyfriend and seeing the way you've treated those two girls, I'd say, forget him, he can't be trusted. He's Shore trash."
    "Whose morals ya tryin' to ram down my throat?" His brow darkened. "Trish got what she wanted. I'm like a notch on her bedpost. She threw herself at me."
    He stood and