Spotlight Saturday: Not Strictly Ballroom (Dance Lovers Collection) by Jem Wendel

Our second #SpotlightSaturday this week is Not Strictly Ballroom by Jem Wendel.  I'm loving the sound of this, I love the idea of an all male dance pairing, and this sounds amazing.  I'm tempted after reading the excerpt, so I hope you all are too.  This is out now, enjoy!

From the blurb:   

This year Darcy’s dreams may finally come true - he has a chance at winning the National Ballroom Championships, something he has worked for and wanted, with his family's support, for as long as he can remember. But after his dance partner leaves to pursue her dreams as a Marine Biologist, Darcy's world is turned upside down… until he dances with his best friend, Nick.

Darcy's dream, future, and family's dance school are in trouble, and his mum convinces him that winning could give them the publicity they need to save it. However, that means he cannot dance with Nick... A ballroom competition has never witnessed two men dancing as a couple, and they would never be crowned champions.

The night of the competition changes everything and what Darcy thought were his dreams come crashing down and splitting his family apart. Can Darcy rebuild his future with Nick by his side?

Excerpt:

I find him in the changing room. He’s sitting on a bench, changing into his trainers.
“Hi,” I say, keeping my distance but leaning back against the door.
He looks up, but his face is neutral, and I can’t read it.
“Hey.” He returns to tying his laces.
“How have you been?” I ask, and I’m saddened to see him shrug. We’ve never kept secrets from each other, and have talked about how we’ve felt with each other many times. I guess remaining friends is easier to promise remotely, via text, than saying it face to face. But now I’ve felt how good it was when we danced together, I’m not willing to give it up without a fight. I take a deep breath.
“Will you dance with me?” I blurt before my nerve fails me.
“We just danced.” A frown crosses his face.
“At the Nationals. Will you dance with me at the Nationals?”
He stands and faces me. “We can’t dance at the Nationals,” he says with a derisive snort.
“Why not?”
“Surely it’s not allowed.”
“I’ve checked. There’s nothing in the rules that says we can’t dance together.”
He starts pacing. Nick is never still, but pacing is his stress response.
“I’m not good enough,” he says roughly.
“You don’t believe that any more than I do. You saw those candidates; you’re way better than any of them.” He doesn’t slow his pacing, but his face crumples slightly. I feel like he’s slipping away from me and that makes me desperate.
“Nick, tell me you didn’t feel something when we danced. Look at me and tell me,” I demand.
“I can’t dance with you.” He doesn’t even turn around.
“Why not?” I’m almost yelling.
He eventually comes to a stop in front of me, so close I could touch him, pain written across his face as he answers.
“Because every time I get near you . . .” Anguish threads through his words. “I want to kiss you.”
I stare back at him, seeing those eyes, capable of holding the universe, look dark and haunted and I want to make them shine again.
“What if I want you to?” I whisper.

Not Strictly Ballroom is currently available as an e-book and paperback and can be read as part of your Kindle Unlimited Subscription