Oh my gosh! Thanks for all the great reviews! Especially those who have been reviewing almost every chapter. I really appreciate getting feed back from those who have been reading my story.

Chapter 16: Learning to Dance

"Conner whatever are you racing about for?" Brielle asked shakily, irritated at how feeble her voice sounded, even to her own ears. Erik, the blasted man, was steadily driving her into the madhouse with his nasty remarks and bone melting apologies. It had been years since anyone had been able to rile her so. She was sure her cheeks were blushing bright red at that very moment. Damn him!

Apparently choosing to ignore his sister, Conner planted himself in the doorway, a wild scoundrel's smirk sharpening his features. Thrusting one figure into the air to point rudely at Erik, he suddenly exclaimed, "How dare you sir! You owe me an apology!"

Without turning her head from her brother, Brielle could physically feel Erik immediately stiffen behind her. A sigh escaped between her lips at the thought of having to patch them up again. In the five days since Conner arrived, the two men had stepped lightly around each other. Both, apparently, were not used to sharing space with another man.

Lord, it constantly amazed her how strange the males of the species truly were. Men had a complex simplicity in their every action and thought which continued to mystify her to this day. Though to be fair, Brielle was willing to acknowledge the main reason Erik and Conner weren't getting along; their personalities were the complete polar opposites of each other. Erik's dark and moody silences clashed violently with Conner's open and boisterous comedy.

Despite this she would not tolerate brawling in her household. Unfortunately, if Erik's quickly darkening expression was any indication, she wouldn't be able to stop them.

"An apology sir?" Erik inquired politely from behind Brielle, as he took a step forward. "And what, may I ask, am I to apologize for?" Though his words were softly spoken there was a bite to them, giving away the tension racing through his body.

Conner nodded vigorously at Erik's quiet inquiry; his expression suddenly melted into a good natured grin. "You are a musician and you didn't tell me!"

A moments silence followed Conner's question before Brielle raised a hasty hand to cover the relieved laugh bubbling in her throat. Thank God. She glanced over her shoulder at Erik, immediately loosing her self control at the expression upon his face. The man's normally hard mouth was slack now in astonishment, his serious dark brow comically high.

When her laughter burst out from behind her hand, Erik shot her an irritated glare. The sight of him struggling to hold on to the vexed expression only sent her into another peel of laughter.

"I am sorry," she managed to say between giggles. "It is just that you looked so surprised!"

Slowly Erik relaxed his stance as she continued to fight against the hilarity of the moment, the exasperation fading from his wind swept blue eyes when they settled upon her flushed face. Brielle suddenly stopped laughing when a smile played at the corners of his stern mouth. God, he was gorgeous when he wasn't glaring at her.

Conner, missing the subtle interaction between Erik and Brielle, stepped forward. Aria skipped along behind him, a plain black violin case clutched in her arms. "You must tell me, what do you play? Just the piano or a little bit of everything?"

Brielle smiled at the excitement she heard in her brother's voice. The poor man had endured an entire childhood with a sister who couldn't string two notes together. It must be terribly exciting for him to realize a fellow musician was so close at hand.

The moment Erik's eyes left her face and turned to her brother's, she became aware that she had been holding her breath. Shakily, Brielle breathed out as she raised a hand to her burning cheeks. What was it exactly about him that made her so self conscious? His burning eyes? His knowing silences?

"I can play anything that will make music," Erik replied haughtily. His response prompted a laugh from the redheaded man as he crossed the room. A laugh which immediately set another scowl upon the masked man's face.

"Can you indeed?" Conner asked enthusiastically, coming to stand directly in front of the other man, his large hands rubbing together in excitement like a child.

"I wouldn't say it if I couldn't," came the terse response, as Erik's lips thinned due to Conner's close proximity and his flippant attitude.

Ignoring the unfriendly undertones in the other man's voice Conner clapped a hand on Erik's shoulder and grinned. "Excellent! I can't tell you how thrilled I am to know there is a fellow musician in the household. Not to say I don't enjoy tickling the ivories with Aria now and then, but the child can't read a single note of sheet music yet."

"I d-don't like those d-dumb p-papers!" the child screamed as if on cue, latching one dimpled hand onto her Uncle's pant leg. "I don't l-like the v-violin either!"

Patting the babe on the head Conner smiled down at her. "There now, love. No one is going to make you think differently." Apparently satisfied, Aria flashed a smile and handed over the violin case to her Uncle's waiting hands.

Straightening, the black case cradled in his arms, Conner gestured to a pair of wingback chairs. "Come sit down. I don't know how familiar you are with violins," he began, his voice lowering to a hushed whisper as he sat down and flipped open the case's clasps, "but I am sure this will be a treat."

When Erik merely continued to stand where he had been, his arms crossed stubbornly over his chest, Brielle stepped forward. "Excuse Conner's excitement. With his demanding schedule it isn't often he gets to consort on a personal level with other musicians. Or show off his instrument."

"I am not showing off Brielle! My violin is genuinely interesting!"

"Of course it is," Brielle replied with a smile before turning her eyes back to Erik's face, gently placing a hand on his elbow. He stiffened momentarily at her touch out of reflex before relaxing immediately. As she continued to grin up at him expectantly, the frowning man slowly unfolded his arms with a sigh and walked across the room to sit next to Conner.

As the boys settled in next to each other, Erik with a glare and Conner with a grin, Brielle reached up and unclasped the heavy winter cloak she still wore. She was actually surprised that Erik had given into playing along with her brother's silliness. It proved he was at least trying to behave himself and control his temper, a fact which made her extremely happy.

His eyes flickered back to her from across the room, accusation glittering in his look, before lowering to the violin Conner now held in his hands. Brielle's smile grew as she watched shocked color slowly infuse Erik's rugged features. When his mouth fell completely open, Conner let out a deep chuckle.

"I told you it was interesting."

"Interesting!" Erik stammered as he reached out and traced a finger down the body of the instrument, "Do you know what this is?"

"Indeed I do. One of Stradivarius' finest works. And isn't she a lovely sight?" Conner exclaimed, holding the object of his affection up so that the late afternoon sunlight warmed the rich mahogany wood and glinted off the layers of varnish.

"I have only seen one other like it. A violinist at the Opera years ago owned such a violin, but even his was not as fine as this one," Erik murmured, his voice lowered out of respect for the masterpiece before him. With eyes shining in awe, he hesitantly reached out and brushed his fingertips along the curves and ridges carved by a long dead craftsman, unable to keep his hands off it.

Conner grinned impishly at the sudden tenderness in Erik's eyes. "I suppose I really don't have to ask but…would you care to give her a try?"

Startled blue eyes leapt up to Conner's smiling face. An almost childlike uncertainty flickered across Erik's hard features. "You would…You would allow me to play upon this beautiful thing?"

His smile sobering at the question, Conner nodded. "Of course sir," he stated positively. "It would be an honor for a fellow musician to bring her strings to life. In return I ask only that you do her justice." With both hands Conner held out his prized possession for Erik to take.

Brielle watched the complex emotions flickering like candlelight behind Erik's bottomless blue eyes for one silent moment. A thick ball of unexpected emotion swelled up into her throat when slowly the dark haired man reached out and took the violin from Conner's hands.

Raising the violin to his chin Erik stood, accepting the bow when Conner handed it to him. He paused, poised on the brink of setting bow to string, his softening eyes seeking out Brielle's across the room. A sweet bolt of warmth shivered up her spine when those stormy eyes settled upon her. And then he smiled, nearly sending her into a faint as he drew out the first heavenly note.

Hurriedly Brielle sought out a chair and sank boneless into it when finally Erik's eyes released her. Aria came and quietly sat upon her mother's lap as both girls settled down, already enthralled with the unearthly sounds emanating from the violin. Wrapping her arms about her daughter, Brielle tilted her head to the side letting her cheek fall against Aria's head.

The first several bars of music which slid out from under Erik's fingers were like nothing Brielle had ever heard before, deep, rich, and haunting. It pulled at the darkest recesses of her mind. Then somehow, with the violin weeping all around her, wailing in her very mind, Brielle's thoughts turned unbidden to her day at the hospital.

And slowly, as her eyes fluttered shut, the crying of the violin faded behind a different kind of sound; the moans of torn bodies and beaten spirits filled her mind. Brielle's body went numb when the groans grew louder. Wailing in every corner of her brain, beating against the confines of her skull, screaming, screaming.

Far away Brielle, heard Erik's music soften and painfully she forced her eyes open just before the image of a blood splattered wall could focus within her head. A trembling began deep within her belly, working its way out until her hands shook slightly against Aria's shoulders.

Taking a deep breath, she steadied her hands and stilled her features, pushing all dark thoughts aside. Her face relaxed into an expression of peace as Erik's music, now a soothing and soft melody, slowly began to wipe away the horror of the day.

She glanced up and started when she found Erik's intense gaze fixed upon her from across the room. Lazily he drew out the last note as if he was unwilling to let it go. With one final flourish of the bow Erik ended the song, lowering the violin to his side. Funny Brielle hadn't noticed before, but he was breathing hard. Almost as if the exertion of pulling the music from his mind had put a strain on his body.

Not liking the intimacy of his eyes upon her in the silence of that moment Brielle quickly brought her hands together in applause. "That was wonderful Erik," she said, cheering up as Aria hooted approval.

Aria leapt from her mother's lap, her hands thrown up in the air in delight. "You are j-just as g-good as Uncle Cah-cah-Conn…" the girl squealed, too excited to mind the fact she couldn't finish her sentence. Racing over to Erik she latched onto his pant leg, stuffing a thumb into her mouth as she grinned up at him.

Standing, Brielle smiled quietly as she watched Erik shift uncomfortably under her daughter's attention. He obviously wasn't used to dealing with children; yet despite that, he had a natural talent for it. It seemed he had many talents she wasn't yet aware of.

Laughing, Conner slapped his knee before jumping to his feet. "Wonderful! Damned if you wouldn't give me a run for my money if we squared off. I haven't heard something that original in years. Were you a violinist at the Opera?"

Caught off guard by the question, Erik covered for his surprise with another scowl. "I don't see how that is any business of yours. I…" Brielle suddenly cleared her throat while arching her white eyebrows in his direction, giving him a very pointed look. The exasperated man impatiently snapped his mouth shut and narrowed his eyes at her, a muscle in his jaw ticking out his annoyance. She was going to make sure he kept his promise and acted civilized even if she had to bully him every step of the way.

Reluctantly Erik turned and handed Conner back the violin, careful of it even in his riled state. "No, I was not a violinist for the Opera," he ground out between clenched teeth, the effort of controlling the biting comments lodged in his throat stiffening his back and shoulders. Slowly, like air being let out of a balloon, he forced himself to relax. A damn-the-world smirk curled his lips at the corners. "I was more of a consultant to the managers there," he said, the smirk growing into a rakish smile.

Conner nodded while rolling his eyes. "Ah managers! I would rather work in a pit of poisonous snakes. How could you stand it?"

A grin suddenly lit up Erik's face, as if the subject of distasteful managers had finally broken the ice between the two musicians. "I barely made it out with my sanity intact, I assure you."

At that Conner gave a boisterous laugh and slapped Erik heartily on the back. And if the look on Erik's face was any indication, the man wasn't quite sure what to make of the friendly contact. "You sure have a wonderful sense of humor for being such a crotchety old man," the redhead remarked, a devilish grin lighting his eyes at the barb.

"Excuse me?"

Hastily shifting his focus to his sister, Conner swaggered across the room and wrapped one arm about her thin waist. "Brielle, my lovely lass!" At his words Brielle couldn't help but smile.

"Here we are allowing our poor guest to do all the entertaining tonight. We should be ashamed of ourselves."

"I can't be bothered being ashamed of myself. I am always too busy being ashamed for you!"

"Ah, words of love from my kind and beautiful sister," Conner sighed, the chuckle he was holding in sending his stomach into a fit of shivers. "Come now Brielle; it is our duty as Irishmen to show this son of France what a true good time is!"

The smile suddenly fell from her face as a sneaking suspicion of what was coming next popped into her head. "Absolutely not."

"Come on Bri! Just this once. Come on!"

"No. It is entirely out of the question! I am tired Conner. I have been working all day."

Grinning like a madman, Conner moved into the center of the room, dragging Brielle with him. "All the more reason to unwind! You know I won't leave you alone unless you do!" And she knew then that he was pestering her so as to get her mind off of the day's unpleasantness.

Raising her eyes to heaven to pray for patience, Brielle was silent for a moment. Then with a dramatic sigh she lowered her gaze to her brother. "Fine, alright." When he whooped in victory and danced away from her she glared. "But only for a little while. Or I swear to God that…"

"Brielle love, it isn't nice to swear," Conner cut her off merrily as he ushered both Erik and Aria into chairs, the dark haired man looking utterly confused and the child looking elated.

"I'll start you off nice and slow," her brother said as he raised the violin to his chin.

Fisting her hands onto her hips, Brielle let out a cocky chuckle. "Don't bother boyo. I'll be leaving you in the dust in either case."

Mystified by the exchange going on between brother and sister, Erik leaned over and whispered to Aria. "Do you know what is happening?"

"M-Momma is going to d-dance!" Aria murmured, her eyes twinkling with excitement. Nodding, Erik leaned back in his chair his arms crossing over his chest. His face was impassive, but his eyes were alight with interest.

"Ha, there's the Bri I know and love." And with that said, Conner set bow to string, making the precious instrument in his hands jump to life. His fingers blurred, moving from chord to chord faster than the eye could follow, the bow sawing almost violently against the strings. As he settled into a lively pastoral ditty, his right foot began to tap out the racing beat.

Brielle smiled at how quickly he had set the tempo, seeing it to be the challenge it was. Narrowing her eyes at him, she could feel her heart begin to race with the excitement of the moment. Reaching down, she hiked up her skirts to a point well above her knees. A decidedly unseemly height, but all of a sudden she didn't care. How good it felt to just not care, to give into the silliness of her girlhood. Things had been simple then.

Holding her elbows down at her sides, Brielle began to move her feet, keeping her entire torso still. Her riding boots thumped against the Persian rug as her feet sped up and matched the blurring pace Conner had set. She laughed aloud as the exertion of the fast pace broke a light sweat out on her forehead.

Braving a glance Erik's way, she was slightly embarrassed to see the open amazement plastered over his features. To his credit, his eyes were fixed upon her moving feet and not her knees as she had first expected. Apparently he had never seen a traditional Irish dance before.

Giving her skirts a light flick, she executed a graceful series of kicks. Reaching out a hand she beckoned Aria to come and dance with her; the little girl happily obliged. Slowing her steps to compensate for her daughter's inexperience, Brielle dropped her skirts and settled into a waltz - twirling her daughter around and around until the child squealed in delight. Conner instantly switched from the rowdy Irish jig to a more appropriate tune, matching Brielle and Aria's steps with a slow lilting melody.

As the pair whirled about the center of the room, their faces glowed in the fading winter sunlight. Aria twirled away from her mother having grown bored with the slow pace and promptly fell on her bottom, too dizzy to even walk any more. But she continued to laugh, the sound clear and musical, free from the stuttering which plagued her speech.

Placing a hand on her forehead to calm the dizziness spinning about her head, Brielle couldn't help but laugh. She turned her eyes to where Erik sat and grinned at him. While she had been dancing the tough-looking man had sat forward in his chair, his elbows resting on his thighs, his chin cupped in one hand.

In the weeks since his arrival she had never seen him so relaxed before. A smile graced his hard features and when Aria fell over onto her fanny, Brielle watched as laughter filled his normally somber eyes. Perhaps it was the abnormal lightness of his expression which made her suddenly forget herself and boldly stroll across the room toward him.

When she neared his chair, those laughing eyes slowly rose to meet hers. Before she lost her nerve, Brielle held out a hand to him. "Will you dance with me Erik?"

The sparkle in his eyes dimmed slightly behind a curtain of confusion. The strange vulnerability he had shown when Conner offered him the violin returned as he stared up at her. "Excuse me?"

"Dance with me. A waltz is meant for two."

As if he couldn't believe his ears Erik gaped up at her, dropping his hands into his lap. "I don't know how," he said simply, a slight blush rising up to stain his cheeks. "I mean, I have never had much need to learn how."

"That's all right. I suppose you will be learning how today then. For I have need of a partner," she said, smiling at his uncharacteristic uncertainty. Leaning forward, she took one of his hands and drew him to his feet. The poor man was in such a state of embarrassment and so busy trying to hide it that he didn't even fight her.

Silently Brielle took Erik's right hand with her left. "This is a structured dance. Each person has a framework in which they stay. Your right hand in mine and your left about my waist." When he merely continued to stare at her, she took his other hand and placed it just above her waist.

"The steps aren't very difficult once you learn the rhythm," she said, speaking over the sound of her brother's violin. "Follow my lead."

Brielle took the first step of the waltz; Erik following her after a split second of hesitation. The pair stumbled slightly when their steps didn't match correctly. With a smile, Brielle repositioned her feet and began over again.

They moved slowly in a wide arching path about the room. His head bent slightly to watch the progress of their feet. After several rotations of the parlor, their pace picked up as Erik grew more familiar with the movements of the waltz.

"You are a fast learner Erik. A natural born dancer," she said with a laugh, his gaze rising to her face when she spoke.

"A d-dancer like M-Momma!" Aria shrieked from the sidelines, her boisterous squeal eliciting another smile on Erik face.

"Do you think you can handle leading now?" Brielle asked while blowing a loose strand of hair out of her eyes.

"Let's see, shall we?" he replied, biting his lower lip in concentration when they switched leads.

Once again the pace slowed as Erik acclimated himself to the new angle on the steps. He quickly overcame the difficulty with the change and began to twirl Brielle about the room with confidence. As the pace sped up and the room about them blurred, time seemed to slow.

Nothing remained outside of that moment. The hospital, the worries of a widowed mother - all disappeared in the happiness of dancing with a friend. As his confidence grew, Erik dared to improvise upon the steps. He boldly dipped Brielle down till the top of her head was mere inches from the ground. She shrieked in surprise at the move as she clung to his shoulders, trying to keep her balance.

Conner hooted in boisterous approval of the masked man's daring from across the room. Brielle herself burst out in peals of laughter as Erik drew her up again; clutching at him, she fought the dizziness whirling about her head. She smacked him in the shoulder as the laughter paralyzed her.

Apparently something about that particular moment, her expression, or her laughter, broke down a portion of Erik's reserves. He tilted his head back and burst into waves of deep laughter. His entire body shook with the force of the sound and Brielle had the unique experience of feeling the vibrations of his happiness through their close contact.

"Don't know how to dance indeed!" she managed to say between giggles as her gaze rose to meet his.

"Like you said I am a quick learner," he teased, his laughter slowly stilling as his eyes dipped to her smiling mouth.

In that moment, Brielle suddenly realized how close they actually were. When Erik had raised her up from the dip, somehow her arms had become wrapped about his neck. The length of her body was now pressed firmly against him and one of his arms was still wrapped about her waist.

The realization was shocking. Not because the intimacy of the close contact, but because she found herself liking it.

Immediately she eased away from Erik's embrace by dropping her hands from his neck to lay flat against his chest. He released her gently as she pulled away from him, but as she turned her head to the side, Brielle was certain she caught a flickering of a dangerous hunger in his eyes. Dangerous and thrilling.

Aria, bless her, broke the intensity of the moment by racing across the room and throwing herself onto Erik's leg. He started slightly at the child's weight slamming into him, but quickly softened his features when he looked down at her. Brielle stepped farther away from him, trying desperately to calm the quaking within her stomach.

"M-My turn! Dance with mah-mah-m-me!" she demanded as only a child could.

With a great deal of seriousness, Erik seemed to consider her statement to great length. Aria began to whine and pluck at his pant leg at his silence, but she quickly stopped when he laid a hand on her downy head and said, "It would be an honor to dance with such a lovely little girl." This pleased the child greatly and she grinned happily up at him, sticking a thumb into her mouth.

Brielle smiled quietly at the scene. Erik was so good to Aria. Despite his moodiness, he was a good man. She hadn't been wrong in that assumption. And his rare but increasing signs of kindness were softening the ice she had built about her heart. She didn't much like it. Such things were dangerous for a woman who had vowed she would never care for another man.

As Conner brought his violin back up to his chin, Brielle's eyes drifted over to the clock sitting upon the mantel. With a gasp that drew everyone's attention, Brielle cursed rather loudly. "Good Lord! It can't be that late already! I haven't even started dinner yet!"

And with that Brielle fled the room. Fled the disturbing feelings stirring within her body, but most of all fled those that stirred within her heart. She hurried to the kitchen to whip up something simple for everyone to eat, hoping that no one had guessed the reason for her hasty retreat.

She let out a shaky breath and smoothed her hands down her skirts as she heard the sounds of Conner's violin start again down the hallway. "From now on I will have to be more careful. Just keep my distance…just be friendly and nothing else. It should be simple really." Shouldn't it?