Accompanied by a Waltz - Sneak Peek Excerpt
Blurb:
Jonathon Pfister’s life has settled into a maudlin existence since the death of Greg, his lover of seventeen years. But Greg’s daughter Jeana has decided she’s had enough, so she rents a small apartment in Vienna for him as a Father’s Day present. Jonathon agrees to go, against his better judgment.
Surprisingly, Jonathon finds the change of scenery refreshing, and he even makes a young friend in Hans, his landlady’s son. Then Hans’s older brother returns home, and Jonathon begins to truly awaken. Fabian touches something inside him, especially when the younger man takes it upon himself to woo Jonathon in full Viennese style, with a waltz. But shadows of the past and expectations for the future loom over them both and will have to be banished for their lovers’ dance to stay in step.
Purchase an Advance Copy from Dreamspinner Press
Excerpt:
Jonathon continued looking around until he heard music. “What’s that?” Jonathon asked, looking for the source.
Fabian leaned close. “That’s the surprise.” Fabian practically vibrated. “Once a week, they have a small orchestra that plays here, with dancers.” Jonathon listened to the beginning chords and rhythm of an unmistakable Strauss waltz. “They give lessons.”
“Don’t you have to pay?”
“More than that, you need reservations.” Fabian smirked and winked. “I called yesterday and got the last two spots.” He held out his hand. “Shall we dance?”
Jonathon felt his eyes widen. “Here? Us? Won’t everyone be shocked?”
Fabian shook his head. “I specifically asked, and they said they get a lot of same-sex couples. The girl on the phone actually laughed about it. So, are you game?”
“To learn to waltz with you? Absolutely.” Jonathon smiled as Fabian took his hand and led him off to the side to a small courtyard, where the orchestra played and men in tuxes and women in long formal dresses whirled around a raised dance floor. People stood nearby watching, and Fabian led them to where a small group of people had congregated.
“They’ll start the lesson after they’re done dancing, in a few minutes,” Fabian said as they joined the group.
Jonathon watched the dancers until they were done, with the audience clapping and filing away. “Guten Tag, meine Damen und Herren, good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. I’m Helmut, and I’ll be your instructor this afternoon, along with my partner Greta. What we’re going to do is demonstrate and teach you the basic steps of the Viennese waltz.” He motioned with his hand, and the orchestra began to play, and the two of them flowed around the dance floor, accentuating the movement of their feet and bodies. “We’d like each couple to come out onto the dance floor, and we’ll start by talking you through the steps.”
Fabian took his hand, and Jonathon followed him out onto the dance floor. “Who’s going to lead?” Jonathon asked with a wink.
“I will, but only because I’m taller. Besides, I already know how to waltz.”
“So you just wanted to dance with me then?” Jonathon said as he felt Fabian’s hand on his waist, and they followed the instructor, moving one step at a time through the dance. The instructor had them repeat the moves, and then the orchestra began to play. Couples began to move around the floor, a little clumsily, but they were doing it.
“Do you want to give it a try?” Fabian asked when Jonathon didn’t move.
“You mean dance? Sure. Keep time, don’t step on my feet, and follow along.” Jonathon began swaying to the rhythm of the music and then stepped right into the dance, twirling Fabian around the floor, smiling at his partner’s open-mouthed surprise.
“You didn’t tell me you could dance,” Fabian said as they danced by one of the other couples.
“You never asked,” Jonathon replied with a smile as he guided them through the steps, looking into Fabian’s eyes. “In college I had a roommate who needed to take dance lessons for her wedding, and we took them together. It was so much fun that we continued them for almost a year. The waltz was one of the things I learned.”
“Obviously,” Fabian retorted as the music ended, and Jonathon found himself pulled into a hug. “Dancing with you is really hot.”
The instructor began giving instructions again, and they listened until the music started once more. This time the tempo was slower, the notes making longer lines, dictating smooth, flowing movement. Jonathon saw Jeana and Inge standing near the dance floor, watching them. Then Jonathon felt Fabian’s gaze on him, and everything around them faded away. Nothing existed but him, Fabian, and the music, their bodies responding without words, the movement of one dictating the movement of the other.
“You’re beautiful, you know that?” Fabian said softly, and Jonathon missed a step before he could catch himself. “Your eyes waltz when you’re happy, and right now they’re dancing more than we are.” Fabian smiled and took up the lead, guiding Jonathon around the floor, bodies flowing, eyes locking, energy flowing between them wherever they touched.
“You’re pretty fabulous yourself,” Jonathon murmured as the music continued. “I can’t believe you took me dancing.”
“We aren’t dancing—we’re waltzing in the waltz capital of the world.”
The song drifted to a close, and the orchestra began again, the familiar chords of Strauss’s “Blue Danube” floating around them, through the tree limbs, and filling the courtyard. Jonathon smiled as Fabian put one hand on his hip and took his hand in the other as they swayed through the introduction before stepping off and into the waltz. Intricately, flowingly, Fabian guided them around the floor, eyes never straying from his, gaze intense and full, attention focused on him and him alone. Jonathon felt as though at that moment the entire world consisted of just two people, and in that moment he felt his resistance fade, and the last of those bands around his heart fell away. Suddenly, he felt light, the weight of Greg’s death, the fight over his estate and will, the sorrow, the pain, the loneliness—all of that slipped away and it was just him and Fabian dancing in the Viennese sunshine.
The music faded and Fabian slowed them to a stop, and Jonathon looked around. All the other students, instructors, and bystanders watched them as they stepped off the dance floor,
