“Well, as long as you aren’t starting one in my bar,” she teased lightly, eyes narrowing at him. “I clean up enough messes as it is.” Truthfully, she couldn’t exactly tell how much of what he said was true and how much was just playful joking– but something told her it wasn’t much. She wondered briefly why he didn’t like galas, but if his rough-on-the-edges demeanor had anything to do with it, she didn’t have to guess for long. Astrid had grown up modestly in a place where galas were a far-off idea, and she had never even been to one before that night. It was a miracle she was even able to find a dress at all, considering how last-minute her decision to go had been.
When Bernardo offered his hand, she didn’t immediately accept it. Everything about the man was telling Astrid to back away, as if she was going against her instincts just by talking to him. His posture, his expression, the way he spoke, the way he smiled– it all mounted to the feeling that she was somehow getting in over her head, but she took a breath and pushed that feeling down. She was already outside of her comfort zone, after all. So, deciding tonight was not the night for playing it safe, she put her hand in his. “I would love to dance. We’ll see about the biting,” she said as the smile eased back onto her face, taking a step closer to him. “Are you a good dancer? Or should I watch out for my toes?”
The man hadn’t known what to expect, he had hoped Astrid would have said yes, but since they didn’t really know each other that well it could have gone both ways. Not that he wanted to know her, this was all a plan for him to get laid, Bernardo reminded himself. He wasn’t in any condition to get himself into a relationshit nor would he ever be. As she accepted and took his offered hand his smile grew bigger. “Perfect. A man can only hope.” He countered back to her, as he followed her movements. Bernardo laughed at her question, “Amor, you’re with a Spanish male that also has Portuguese roots, I know plenty of moves.” Which wasn’t exactly a way to show off, but Spain was known for its Flamenco and let’s not forget Portugal with their dances that just demand constant hip swaying.
As he led Astrid to the dancing floor Bernardo felt excitement rushing through his veins, its been a long time since he has danced. Even though he was quite good at it, the dancing, the music, it all reminded him too much of home, of everything he has lost. So, it was nice to have some company with him this time. Once arriving at the dance floor, he immediately took the lead and started swaying them perfectly to the rhythm, adding twirls here and there. “So Miss Astrid, apart from cleaning up messes what else do you do? I would say an angel but then again, I’m not that cheesy guy.” Bernardo said as he sent her a wink before spinning her.
