End Me a Tenor by Joelle Charbonneau Read Free Book Online Page A

the one who had gotten him off the hook. “I’m sure this investigation will go more smoothly. Now, if you guys don’t mind, we have work to do.”
    Devlyn arrived in the middle of vocal warm-ups. His smile was bright as he strode into the room wearing vibrantly hued purple workout pants and a purple and lime green shirt, but I could see the question in his eyes when he looked at me. Nodding, I let him know I was okay, and we got down to business.
    Out of the three disciplines of stage performing—acting, singing, and dancing—dancing was the hardest for me. I’d taken all the classes and knew the technique. I could do time steps and execute a triple turn without falling flat on my face. But for some reason no matter how much I practiced, I always felt self-conscious and awkward at dance auditions. And auditions were a piece of cake compared to demonstrating choreography to a group of high school students.
    My heart pounded and I began to sweat before Devlyn turned on the music. But if there was anything I’d learned in my short tenure as coach it was that, as with dangerous animals, you can never show fear to teenagers. Not unless you want to lose all control.
    Thank God Devlyn was a fabulous dancer and an even better partner. After he hit play, Devlyn grabbed my hand and pulled me close to his chest so we could demonstrate the first lift. He spun me away from his body and then twirled me back to face him. I placed both hands on his shoulders and jumped. He put his hands on my hips and lifted me up and around before putting me down on the other side. The lift was fun, flirty, and flashy but easy to execute.
    After ten minutes, the team had the gist and we moved onto the second, more difficult lift. This one involved being hoisted onto Devlyn’s shoulder and staying there for four beats before dropping into a basket catch. From that position I’d be flipped up and over onto my feet. It had taken Devlyn a lot of convincing to persuade me to try this lift and several attempts before I landed on my feet instead of on my now very bruised backside. Mentally crossing my fingers that I’d avoid landing on my ass, I jumped and found myself up on Devlyn’s shoulder. Four counts later, I dropped into his arms and watched the world spin before it righted again. Hurray.
    While Devlyn worked with the boys on partnering the lift, I talked the girls through their part. Then we performed it twice more so the kids could see the technique before they attempted it. By the time the first bell rang, four couples could perform the lift flawlessly and the other three were close. Not bad for a morning’s work.
    “Good work, everyone. I’ll see you after school for another rehearsal.” Before Chessie could ask, I added, “Be ready to audition for the solos. Mr. DeWeese says he’ll be in his office during lunch so you can use the choir room at that time to practice.”
    The students snagged their backpacks and made a mass exodus toward the door as Devlyn and I put the room back in order for class. As we pushed the grand piano back in place, I spotted Eric loitering in the choir room door.
    Doing my best impersonation of a real teacher, I said, “You’re going to have to hurry or you’ll be late for class.”
    The kid didn’t budge. “I have a couple minutes until the next bell.”
    My eyes flicked to the clock above the door. School would officially begin in two minutes. Eric didn’t just look like the blond, all-American kid; he was that kid. He dressed well, was polite, and always arrived to every rehearsal or voice lesson on time. For Eric to risk being late, he had something important on his mind.
    “What’s up?” I asked.
    “The cops don’t always get it right.” His eyes were filled with shadows. “You know they don’t.”
    “I’d like to believe they do most of the time.”
    Eric jammed his hands in his pockets as he considered my words. At the beginning of the year, Larry and Devlyn had said Eric was considering