“It doesn’t sound fine, and you look stressed. I’ve been looking for an excuse to come down there and speak to that dickhead Mark—”
“It’s just overwhelming, you know? The show is stressful enough without having Luca Vasvault as my skating partner.”
“But you’re used to working with celebrities.”
“I am, but not celebrities like him.” Not ones that only offered one-word answers or barely looked at me—and certainly not ones that made me feel likeIwas the problem. I put the car in reverse and moved off the driveway to head toward Lily’s house. The rhythmic hum of the engine and driving down familiar roads were a nice distraction from my spiraling thoughts.
Lily made a noise of agreement but continued, “Just treat him like any other celebrity.”
“That’s pretty impossible when he’s so cold and unapproachable.”
“Then tell him to stop being a grumpy arsehole.”
I released a frustrated groan and cast her a sidelong look. She knew I would never do that.
“Sorry, I’m trying here.” Her laughter filled the car, the sound easing some of the tension from my shoulders. “I bet your mum’s pleased.”
Lily knew the pressure my mum put on me, even if I had never told her the full extent of it. My mum had never been one of those parents involved with their kids’ friends, so Lily hadn’t seen it firsthand, but she knew. And without a present family of her own, Lily never pushed the point too much.
“I’m going to say something, and you can’t be mad.” Her tone held a teasing lilt.
“Do I want to know?” She turned in her seat in my peripheral vision, excitement radiating fromher.
“You’re finally dancing with an absolute god! I am so sick of them partnering you with has-been losers. Have youseenLuca? He is absolutely gorgeous and rumored to be a complete ride in the bedroom—”
“Funnily enough, I have seen him, as we’repartnered together.” I scrunched my face at the next part. “And his bedroom skills aren’t any of my concern, Lil. This is a professional relationship, remember?” We stopped at a set of traffic lights, and I glanced over as she adjusted her hair in the visor mirror. Her dark brown hair was pulled into a disheveled bun, a stark contrast to the neat ballet bun she had likely styled that morning.
“Matilda, I am telling you this as your best friend and because I love you,” she mumbled through the bobby pin she held in her mouth. “Don’t waste this opportunity because you’re too much of a prude.”
“Lily!” I huffed out a laugh as she pinned her hair. “Not only am I pretty sure he hates me, he’s also my colleague, so a big no-no,andhe has a line of beautiful women waiting to jump into his bed without me joining the queue.”
“Fuck them! You’re hot and need to stop being so morally pure all the time. Live a little. When was the last time you got a little fairy action?”
“Fairy action? Really?” The lights turned green, giving me an excellent excuse to look away.
“Yeah, sorry. That was gross.”
Admittedly, Lucawasgorgeous—like, not just a “double-take in the streets” type of handsome, but the kind of breathtaking that you couldn’t look away from. I bet he knew exactly what to do in the bedroom, too—if he was even half as confident and self-assured during sex as he was in everything else, I had no doubt he never left the job unfinished.
But we couldn’t and wouldn’t—it was laughable to even think aboutit.
“I don’t need any drama at the moment. The season is hard enough as it is without throwing sleeping with my co-star into the mix.” The street brightened as the village lights flickeredon.
“Babe, that is exactly what you need! You need to let loose and have some fun. And by fun, I mean riding a massivedi—”
“Do not finish that sentence,” I interrupted as I turned onto her road. It was a lovely cul-de-sac with tiny country cottages, and Lily had lived there since I’d known her. Her mother had taken off when she was a kid, so Lily had moved in with her “auntie” and childhood dance teacher, who had practically raised her. When her auntie passed, she’d left the cottage to Lily.
“You loveit.”
I mumbled in disgruntled but affectionate agreement.
“At least promise me you’ll be open-minded enough to actuallyenjoy yourself this season, hmm? You have the coolest job but are always so stressed that you never enjoyit.”
“It’s my job, Lily. It’s not supposed to be shits and giggles.”
“You are allowed to enjoy yourself at work, Matilda. Not everything is a tick-box exercise.” I didn’t mention how she was the pot calling the kettle black. Lily’s life revolved around opening her own dance studio—but I knew she had her reasons.
“I’ll try,” I promised.
