The Waltz. Georgia Hill

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      Say it with Sequins

      The Waltz

      Georgia Hill

      A division of HarperCollinsPublishers

       www.harpercollins.co.uk

      HarperImpulse an imprint of

      HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd

      1 London Bridge Street

      London SE1 9GF

       www.harpercollins.co.uk

      First published in Great Britain by HarperImpulse 2014

      Copyright © Georgia Hill 2014

      Cover images © Shutterstock.com

      Georgia Hill asserts the moral right

      to be identified as the author of this work.

      A catalogue record for this book is

      available from the British Library

      This novel is entirely a work of fiction.

      The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are

      the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to

      actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is

      entirely coincidental.

      All rights reserved under International

      and Pan-American Copyright Conventions.

      By payment of the required fees, you have been granted

      the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access

      and read the text of this e-book on screen.

      No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted,

      downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or

      stored in or introduced into any information storage and

      retrieval system, in any form or by any means,

      whether electronic or mechanical, now known or

      hereinafter invented, without the express

      written permission of HarperCollins.

      Ebook Edition © March 2014

      ISBN: 9780007562183

      Version 2018-05-03

      Digital eFirst: Automatically produced by Atomik ePublisher from Easypress.

      Contents

       Copyright

       Georgia Hill

       Dedication

       Say it with Sequins.

      Step One.

      Step Two.

      Step Three.

      Step Four.

      Step Five.

      Step Six.

      Step Seven.

      Step Eight.

      Step Nine.

      Step Ten.

      Step Eleven.

      Step Twelve.

      Step Thirteen.

       About HarperImpulse

       About the Publisher

       Georgia Hill

      I used to live in London, where I worked in the theatre. Then I got the bizarre job of teaching road safety to the U.S. navy – in Marble Arch!

      A few years ago, I did an ‘Escape to the Country’. I now live in a tiny Herefordshire village, where I scandalise the neighbours by not keeping ‘country hours’ and being unable to make a decent pot of plum jam. Home is a converted oast house, which I share with my two beloved spaniels, husband (also beloved) and a ghost called Zoe.

      I’ve been lucky enough to travel widely, though prefer to set my novels closer to home. Perhaps more research is needed? I’ve always wanted to base a book in the Caribbean!

      I am addicted to Belgian chocolate, Jane Austen and, most of all, Strictly Come Dancing.

      Keep dancing, everyone!

      To Sarah, who loved Strictly Come Dancing.

       Say it with Sequins.

      

       The Waltz: a dance full of romance.

       “The waltz really is the most romantic of dances. With the right pairing, costumes and music, it can transport you into a fairyland. How lovely to find your very own Prince Charming to hold you in his arms.” Tabitha ‘Whiz’ Wisley, Tattin and Brownlow Literary Agency.

      Step One.

      Lucy sat back on a gilded chair and watched as the studio party got going. The ninth series of the ever-popular Who Dares Dances competition had just wrapped its first show – and she had been in it.

      Her lips curled into a relieved smile. No one milling round on the famous dance floor, champagne in hand, could possibly know how much it had cost Lucy to dance that one short waltz in front of a studio audience of two hundred, and a television audience of, well, it was anyone’s guess. Lucy tried not to think about the millions of viewers examining every fluffed move, every faltering missed beat that she had taken – for a recovering agoraphobic that was a dance step too far.

      “Ready to join the party, Cinders?” It was Daniel Cunningham, her professional dance partner, bowing with theatrical extravagance and holding a hand out to her. Lucy leapt to her feet with a triumphant smile, ignored her sore feet and, once more, allowed Daniel to lead her onto the dance floor.

      As they reprised their dance, she couldn’t help but think how lucky she was with her partner. Patient and kind-hearted, Daniel had been nothing but encouragement. The weeks of training had flown by and now, unbelievably, it was the launch show party. The show itself had passed in a blur. Lucy had seen it as though through another’s eyes – it was as if she hadn’t been there. She had no recollection of actually performing the dance, of even walking down the famous gilded staircase to the dance floor. But she supposed that somehow she must have done it. The judges remarked that her waltz had been competent, which