Melting back against the wall, Teddy wanted to run his fingers through Finn’s hair, but then it would really be obvious what they’d been up to when they returned to their seats. He satisfied himself with gripping the back of Finn’s head and hanging on through the exquisite work of Finn’s mouth on him—again.
They had less than fifteen minutes, the time ticking away swiftly so that Teddy honestly didn’t know how much had passed when he felt his gut tighten and warned Finn that he was close. Finn didn’t pull away but sucked harder, finishing Teddy off until he came down his throat with a shudder.
“You do too much for me,” Teddy said, blissed out and boneless as Finn licked him clean and helped tuck him away.
“Are you kidding?” Finn stood with as content an expression as Teddy imagined on his own face. “All I wanted when I moved to that beach town was some excitement and passion in my life, and every moment I’ve spent with you makes me glad I didn’t let myself fall back into those old habits. Or, I did, but then you reminded me of everything I’d be missing and made me think that, maybe, I deserve something good.”
“You do.” Teddy grabbed Finn’s face like Finn had done to him earlier. “So much more than I do.”
“It’s not a competition. How about we agree we deserve each other?”
Teddy grabbed the other side of Finn’s face too and kissed him. “Agreed.”
“Besides.” Finn grinned. “You can pay me back later. Come on.” He tried to take Teddy’s hand to lead him out of the corridor.
“We can’t go back yet.” Teddy resisted, even if his pants were zipped and his shirt neatly tucked. “We’re both flushed. Anyone who sees us will know.”
“So, we wait until the lights start lowering.”
Even in the corridor, the lights flickered to signal it was time for everyone to return to their seats.
“Like now.” Finn giggled, dragging Teddy after him to the door. “We’ll wait until everyone else clears out, then sneak up and wait to return to our seats until the house lights lower. If anyone asks, we got caught up in you showing me around.”
He was diabolical. It was no wonder why Teddy liked him so much.
Finn propped open the door, and they peeked out, hands still clasped, watching the people in the lobby scurry away. Once it looked clear, they snuck to the bathroom to freshen up, then hurried up the stairs just as the house lights were coming down.
Teddy’s mother gave him a scrutinizing look when they snuck back to their seats after the curtains had already parted, but she didn’t say anything. Teddy would hear from Rick later, though.
The third act was the wedding, a fantastic climax—though not enough to rival the one Teddy had just experienced. He did feel relaxed, though, and as glorious as Erina proved to be in her final dances, Teddy didn’t feel moved to tears again; he was simply proud and content.
At the final curtain, he was left with very few nitpicks he would have scolded the dancers for if they had been under his direction. Clapping and getting to his feet was what finally pulled his hand from Finn’s since they’d returned to their seats.
Erina found Teddy in the crowd when she took her bow, and he nodded in acknowledgment.
“Shall we go monopolize my sister?” Teddy asked Frankie when they found her in the lobby afterward, motioning to where the dancers had come out in their curtain call outfits to take pictures with the audience. Erina stood out in a black, red, and gold tutu adorned with sparkling sequins. “If you’d like to meet her, that is?”
“I can meet her?” Frankie gaped.
After agreement from her parents, Teddy led Frankie to the cast.
Rick and Dan got pulled away by other theater contacts again, which meant Finn was left with Frankie’s parents and Laverne. Teddy almost would have worried about his mother’s ability to meddle as badly as Erina, but any time he looked back at the group trailing behind them, Finn, Laverne, or all four were laughing.
“Who’s this now?” Erina said when it was their turn, bending to address Frankie’s short stature. “I thought my brother had a different date tonight.”
“Finn’s back there.” Frankie pointed behind them, and Finn waved with a light chuckle.
“And you are?” Erina asked again.
“I’m Frankie. You were amazing. Finn does my PT, and Teddy taught me a few dance steps, and I want to move like you someday,” she said in a rush. “If I can.”
Teddy saw the moment when Erina’s eyes fell to Frankie’s prosthetic beneath her dress.
She looked at Teddy with a wink. “Why, Teddy, that reminds me, I don’t think I ever told you about Mona, one of my fellow ballerinas at my last company.” She had her cell phone in case she wanted copies of any of the pictures taken and took a moment to scroll through it.
When she found what she was looking for, she turned the phone to show Frankie, though Teddy could make out the imagewell enough too. There was Erina in a yellow-and-orange tutu, beside a blond woman in a matching outfit who he took for Mona—who had a prosthetic leg.
Teddy had had no idea Erina worked with a dancer like that.
