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dance.
If are you dancing with someone and you don’t want to anymore, stop
and say something nice like you think you’re shoes are hurting your
feet and you want to sit down. Or something like that and walk
away.
    “The rules on the dance floor are the same as on the
street, but a little more sophisticated. You still don’t have to do
anything you don’t want to. Understand?”
    She nods. “Charlotte wanted me to be escorted but I
wouldn’t do it. I think maybe I was wrong. Will you go with me to
this thing tonight? I’ll pay. It’s a thousand dollars a plate.”
    The crease between his eyes is really deep this
time.
    “I have a date tonight after work. I promised. Thank
you for asking me I appreciate the compliment. Maybe next time?” He
smiles but now he looks uncomfortable.
    “Okay. I like dancing with you, but I don’t think
I’m going to dance at all tonight. It’s too complicated and I’ll be
there to work anyway. Maybe you and I could go dancing again
sometime? For fun?”
    “Sure. That would be great.” She’s not sure but she
thinks he blushes. Not as much as Charles. She feels like she
should make up for being so forward. “How old are you?”
    “Thirty-two.”
    “Are you married?”
    “Was. Not any more.”
    “Do you have children?”
    “A daughter, Amy is three. She lives with her mother
in California. I don’t get to see her very much.”
    “Are you a good Dad or a bad one?”
    Steven stops dancing, drops his hands and steps away
from her. “What do you mean, Judy?”
    “I mean do you beat her and don’t give her any food
or do you kiss her good night and take her to McDonald’s?”
    “McDonald’s Happy Meals. But don’t tell my ex
because she’s all for organic and vegetarian.”
    “I knew you weren’t like the others. Thank you for
helping me but that doesn’t mean I won’t still kick your ass if I
get a chance. I have to go. I’ll be back about seven. Is that
okay?”
    “Sure. I’ll be here.”
    “Thanks guys. That was fun.” Picking up her gun off
the table, she’s out the door and running to Big Boy. She’s
miserable. She’s broken her most Sacred Rule: Never touch a man,
who’s not Gerry or Franklin unless is a business handshake.
    They’ll claim your body and soul if they touch you.
Warriors by nature, men battle because they like to war. They
believe it is their right to hurt, maim and kill and love doesn’t
mean the same to them as it does a woman.
    Many times he’s seen her Dad hold her Mom and say
he’s sorry he hurt her and that he can’t understand why he did.
Minutes later he’s bashing her lovely face with his fists. I’ve
seen his eyes and the eyes of my brothers as they watch and enjoy
Dad tearing her body apart. It as if they don’t think she feels
pain and sometimes I see them enjoy watching her blood spill and
her face swell.
    There is no logic that applies to men other that to
battle is their fun, winning is primal and women are their favorite
prey.
    Gerry and Franklin are okay because they’re not like
most men. Their battles have been fought and put away. They don’t
need or want them anymore. I recognize that and I allow myself to
be somewhat trusting of them.
    And then there’s Steven. He’s man enough that he
doesn’t need to battle. He’s been her trainer for years. She sure
he’s probably touched her everywhere on her body one time or
another. But she’s his customer. She pays him to make her strong,
so she can survive the battle when it finds her again and it will.
If he has to touch her to do that, then that’s not breaking the
rules.
    Today – the dancing lesson – was different and
didn’t fit into any of her rules categories, but more unsettling
was that she enjoyed being close to him dancing. She should not
have enjoyed him touching her. That is definitely breaking the
rules.
    She’s driving and crying from frustration. “I’m the
boss aren’t I BB? I shouldn’t have to go through all this. It’s
just not