Just then, the lights dimmed and the spotlight hit the dance floor. The first couple stepped out to a burst of holiday music and a flurry of applause. Sequins sparkled, hips started swaying, and the room buzzed with energy.
I leaned in closer to Holden, our shoulders brushing. “This is going to be fun.”
He reached for my hand beneath the table, his fingers threading through mine like it was the most natural thing in the world. “I’m just looking forward to the part where I get to dance withyou.”
My heart did a little spin.
And as the music picked up and the dancers twirled across the floor, I let myself soak in the moment—sparkles, laughter, and Holden’s hand in mine.
Chapter 16
Holden
December 23rd
The final couplestruck their pose to a roaring round of applause, the glittery confetti cannons firing off with a dramaticpop!that left a shimmer in the air. Barry Mynt was back at center stage in a flash, gleaming like a holiday ornament under the lights as he declared the end of the competition and invited everyone to join the dancers on the floor.
I didn’t care who won.
Honestly, I couldn’t tell you a single move any of them performed. Not when Belle had been sitting next to me, looking the way she did, like she’d stepped straight out of a dream I didn’t know I’d been having until tonight.
Her laughter, her little gasps of delight at the moreoutrageous moves, the way her fingers stayed laced with mine under the table like she wasn’t even thinking about it, had all made everything around us feel a little quieter, a little more in the background.
The music shifted to something softer, smoother—“The Christmas Song,” still festive, but slower now.
I turned to her, my heart picking up speed. “May I have this dance?”
Belle’s eyes sparkled as she looked up at me. “Only if you promise not to step on my toes,” she said, the corners of her mouth lifting in a teasing smile. “But yes,” she added softly. “I’d love to.”
Warmth bloomed in my chest as I stood, guiding her through the scattering of tables and toward the center of the dance floor. The music had softened into something slow and sweeping. All around us, couples swayed under the glow of twinkling lights and the glittering chandelier, but all I saw,all I felt, was her.
I turned to face her, sliding my hand to her waist as she stepped closer, fitting against me like she’d always belonged there. My hand rested against the small of her back, the other holding hers, our fingers intertwined like they’d found something they’d been searching for.
The lights around the ballroom sparkled, casting a golden glow over her face. She looked up at me with this softness in her eyes that made it hard to breathe. I wasn’t sure what I’d done to deserve this moment, but I knew I didn’t want it to end.
She rested her head briefly against my shoulder aswe swayed to the music. Soon she pulled back just enough to look up at me again, as if remembering something. “I talked to your aunt tonight.”
My chest tightened a little. “Maggie?”
She nodded. “She came to my room before the ball and said she wanted to talk.”
I held my breath. Belle had only broken up with Alex a few days ago. If Maggie was here to talk about “what this looked like” or to gently push Belle away from me…
“About what?” I asked, trying to sound casual, but my voice came out lower, rougher than I meant it to.
“About…us.”
I braced myself.
But Belle’s expression didn’t shift into guilt or uncertainty. If anything, she looked sure, grounded.
“She said she’s not surprised I wanted something different than Alex,” she said. “That she thinks you and I make sense. That she’s been hoping you’d find someone who could make you happy.”
It took me a second to register the words.
“She said that?”
Belle smiled softly. “She loves you like a son, Holden. She just wants you to be happy.”
