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First Act

Author: Jennifer Evans
last update Last Updated: 2024-10-29 19:42:56

LEONARDO'S POV

The stage lights, harsh and unforgiving, sliced through the gloom of the opera house in the heart of Manhattan, casting long shadows on the velvet seats where I sat. Two of Rosalina's female cousins squealed when the curtains lifted, but all I saw was her. Dressed in a white feather costume, gliding across the polished wood like a graceful swan.

But it wasn't just her that held me captive. It was the unnamed dancer whose hand brushed hers with an intimacy that sent a viper of jealousy slithering through my veins. Their steps, synchronized yet separate, spoke a language I could barely decode. My gaze narrowed on his hand on the curve of her waist, the way the back of his hand grazed her cheek.

Was it the choreography or the intimacy they shared off-stage? The thought of another man's hands over her body, that I had claimed for myself triggered the green-eyed monster gnawing at my soul.

With each spin, her tutu became a blur, a white cloud swirling around her. But then,
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