She shrugged. “Gina and Stone were really in love. Jackson and I weren’t. We never would have been a match for that. Besides, this guy snagged second place.” She flicked a finger against Kevin’s forearm. “Still in touch with Lauren?”
Kevin took off his hat and ran a hand through his hair. “That girl was a piece of work. Being her partner was exhausting.”
Natasha believed him. Kevin and Lauren D’Angelo, an Olympic figure skater, had nearly won last season, but Lauren’s technical perfection couldn’t top Stone and Gina’s emotional connection. In retaliation, Lauren had sought to sabotage the reality show Stone filmed with his family in Alaska.
Lori lowered her voice. “I heard Lauren made the rounds through most of the male cast—prosandstars.”
Kevin held up both hands. “Not me.”
Natasha held back her comment. As much time as they spent together, Kevin was secretive about his dating and sex life. She never knew when, or if, he was involved with anyone. Lori, on the other hand, was an open book. She didn’t hide her search for true love.
Lori finished chewing on a chip. “Judges, too, come to think of it.”
Natasha dropped her tiny taquito. “Huh?”
“Lauren. She didn’t just stop with the cast. She went after the judges, too.”
Natasha covered her reaction with a sip of her second drink. It couldn’t be Mariah Valentino or Chad Silver, as neither of them dated women. That meant it had to be Dimitri.
It wasn’t a total surprise. Lauren had flirted with Dimitri—with everyone, really—backstage, when she hadn’t been talking shit. Once, when they were all out at the salsa club where Lori’s ex worked, Lauren had been all over Dimitri. He loved attention, and despite his position as a judge, clearly had no qualms about dipping into the talent pool.
But Lauren? Really? The figure skater was a viper.
If the producers were cracking down on backstage hookups, how much worse would it be if they knew Natasha was shacking up with one of the judges?
Natasha cut into the conversation the others were having about a cute new camera woman. “So, wait, how are Donna and the other producers going to know if we’re hooking up?”
Kevin shrugged. “Nothing stays secret. And Donna will be stalking your social media and any news items that pop up about you. That’s what she used to do to me.”
Great. Now she had to go on social media lockdown, and be extra careful about coming and going from Dimitri’s house. He used to have a gate, but Nik had broken it and Dimitri hadn’t fixed it yet. Anyone could waltz up to the front door, including paparazzi.
Lori held up her phone. “I just got an invite to a concert tomorrow night. We should go!”
“Looks good,” Kevin said, glancing at the screen. “Hey Tash, we can park and pre-game at your place, first. It’s not too far from your apartment.”
Natasha shook her head, with perhaps a tad too much vehemence, because Kevin’s brows drew together. “No. I mean, I have a lot of work tomorrow, and work early the next day. You know, I’ve got a ton of summer jobs, and I’m trying to cover the full rent, plus the new car . . .”
“Oh, yeah, I forgot about that.” Kevin tapped his fingers on the table in thought. “What about dinner beforehand? Then Lori and I will go to the concert.”
“My stove isn’t working,” Natasha blurted out.
“Oh, that sucks.” Lori patted her arm. “You love to cook. How long has it been out?”
“A few days.” The lies were getting out of hand. “The building is providing a new one, but things are kind of a mess, and you know . . . it’s just one more thing.” She gave a little laugh, to imply it was a minor inconvenience, nothing they should worry about. “Why don’t we try the new Thai place down the street from me?”
“Awesome, I love Thai food.” Lori seemed pleased, but Kevin’s expression was unreadable. He opened his mouth, but the waiter appeared with the check, saving Natasha from further questions.
“Let’s split three ways,” Kevin suggested, tossing his credit card down on the tray. Lori added hers, and Natasha bit back a grimace as she placed her debit card on top of the pile. Living like this was going to clean her out. Why the hell hadn’t she insisted on coffee? And why had she just agreed toanotherdinner?
She took a deep breath. It would be okay. Some of her jobs the next day paid cash, and at least one other check should be showing up as direct deposit any day. She’d been in worse spots before. She just had to make it to the new season. When her paychecks fromThe Dance Offstarted rolling in again, she’d be back on her feet.
So long as she kept anyone from finding out she was living with Dimitri. If that happened . . . she’d be out of a job, and out of options.
The only one left would be going back to New York as a failure.
9
The next morning, Natasha pulled into the parking lot behindThe Dance Off’s rehearsal space. She was scheduled for a quick promo shoot, which would hopefully bring in money from the show sooner than expected. Proximity to the building pushed her financial concerns from her mind and pushed a different worry to the number-one position: she had to keep Donna and the other staff from finding out she was staying with Dimitri.
