At the same time he envied her, too. She might not have chosen a high-paying profession, but she was definitely living her dream and doing what made her happy. And Matthew hadn't been able to truthfully say the same for himself for a long time now.
"Your mom sounded a little upset there," commiserated Matthew. "I couldn't understand a word of what she said, of course, but she seemed pretty agitated."
Sasha shrugged, unconcerned, as she speared a slice of honeydew melon from the bowl of fruit he had brought for her. "My mother spends her life in some form of agitation," she mused. "I've tried more times than I can recall to get her to relax, tried to teach her how to meditate and do some deep breathing." She shook her head, causing her curls to bounce. "Never going to happen. She's the most hyperactive person I've ever met, and it's exhausting to be around her for more than an hour or so at a time. One of the reasons I don't see her all that often."
"Hmm." Matthew took a drink of his coffee, a habit he still wasn't quite willing to give up entirely. "I take that to mean there are other reasons."
"Yes." Sasha gazed out the bedroom window, where the sun was shining brightly on what promised to be a cool but clear autumn day. "My mother is also incredibly stubborn, and doesn't give up easily when she gets an idea in her head. Apparently she's still determined to convince me to take up dancing again, specifically so that I can join the cast of that TV show she's on, and the producers can work the angle of having mother and daughter working together. There are only so many ways you can tell a person "never in this lifetime", and I'm pretty sure I've tried them all."
Matthew seldom had time nowadays to watch TV, and when he did reality shows tended to be at the bottom of the list. But he knew that both Lindsey and Hayley were big fans of Beyond Ballroom, and they had coerced him a few times to watch the show with him. He'd been incredulous to learn that Katya Veselov, one of the most popular professional dancers on the show, was actually Sasha's mother. The two women didn't resemble each other all that much, especially considering the amount of makeup and the glitzy costumes Katya wore, and he would have never made the connection if Sasha hadn't mentioned it.
He frowned. "How long has it been since you danced? Not counting the party before Ian and Tessa's wedding, that is."
"I stopped training and competing when I was fifteen," she replied solemnly. "Which not coincidentally was the exact same time I chose to live with my aunt. I'd had enough of that whole world by then, couldn't stand the thought of entering one more competition, or spending four hours or more at a time in a dance studio. But even though it's been more than a dozen years since I quit, my mother has never really let me live my decision down."
"Did you ever enjoy it? The competition, that is."
Sasha nodded. "Of course. I mean, I can't think of too many little girls who wouldn't love the idea of putting on pretty dresses and makeup and having their hair done, and then going out on a stage to perform. I entered my first ballroom dance competition when I was six years old, and it was pretty much nonstop after that. Everything revolved around training and competing, even dictating the times I was able to see my father and his family in Brazil. By the time I turned twelve, I had already started to resent it, and was trying to figure a way out. My dad knew I was unhappy, and tried to persuade my mother that I needed a break, but even he wasn't a match for her when she really set her mind to something."
"I imagine she was pretty pissed off when you finally set your foot down," commiserated Matthew.
She gave him a wry smile and speared a chunk of pineapple. "My dad was there when I broke the news to her, and afterwards he confessed that he would never have been able to find the nerve to do what I did. To say that she was angry would barely begin to describe the fallout. She refused to speak to me for months afterwards, and it took years before we could have an actual conversation. And while she's mostly forgiven me, she has definitely not forgotten. Which is why she keeps pushing me to resume my training and join the show - "Aleksandra, you could dance circles around these stupid, lazy cows. The American girls have no passion, no talent. You would be the best dancer on the show." I hear something like that almost every time we talk."
He chuckled as she gave what he assumed was a perfect imitation of her mother's heavily accented voice. "I didn't know that your real name was Aleksandra."