And we began.
We moved together, our timing aligning perfectly. The skate opened with the most important part—theDirty Dancing–style lift. The ice was freezing on my legs, but I ignored it. Moments after the skate started, my hands were on her waist and she was in the air, hovering above me. The bright glow of the studio lights illuminated her face as she smiled.
We weren’t even a millisecond out of time—the lift wasperfect.
As I lowered Matilda and she pressed against me, I couldn’t think of anything other than how perfect her body felt against mine.
But then she rolled, and I stood, taking her hands, guiding her up and forward into the following sequence.
Our blades etched precise, slashing lines across the ice, muted beneath the strains of violin music. I matched Matilda’s twirls with solid, sharp strokes. Her skirt fluttered with each movement, catching the light and making the crystals sparkle. I couldn’t take my eyes offher.
She had never looked more alive.
Everything blurred into a sheet of sparkling white, leaving the two of us dancing as one, moving as one. The music swelled, and our movements grew faster. We spun across the ice, building to our final position.
I stopped a second before Matilda did, facing the crowd. She dug her blades into the ice, sending up a spray of shards before twisting and free-falling into my waiting arms. I caught her, dipping her body backward in a lover’s embrace. Our breaths mingled, and her eyes sparkled withjoy.
And I pressed my lips to hers.
Luca kissed me.He. Kissed.Me.
In front of the crowd. On nationalTV.
My brain had a tough time forming coherent thoughts. It played the kiss on repeat, the warmth of Luca’s lips against mine, and how it felt likefinallythey were exactly where they were supposed tobe.
I didn’t care about the potential fallout or the repercussions. The only thing that mattered was how incredible it felt to know Luca wantedme.
We’d smashed our performance; it was our best yet. Not only did we score the highest of that week, with thirty-two out of forty, but it was also the highest of the season sofar.
However, I couldn’t attribute the buzz of anticipation pulsing through my veins to the score alone.
As soon as we stepped off the ice and took off our boots, we were separated by the crew backstage. But I spotted Luca a few minutes later near the exit, both sets of skates in hand. My toes curled, a warm heat coursing through my lower belly as I took in his flushed face and heated eyes.
Luca and I had grown closer over the past few weeks, but I wassure he would never take it any further. And yet…the kiss had felt real. I’d seen it in his eyes the second before our lips touched. I knew he felt the same pull to me as I did to him—the late-night dinners, the rehearsals, the trips to the beach, the almost-kiss.
And it feltgoodto be kissed and wanted by someone who I could be myself with. He didn’t want me because I’d served him a version of me that I thought he would want;he had kissed me forme.
I weaved through the crowd and made my way toward him. Just as I reached him, the corner of his mouth curved up ever so slightly—
Something caught his attention behind my shoulder. A flicker of frustration danced across his face as his eyes flashed with something.
I spun to see who was behind me, and Jack was standing there, beaming.
“I fucking told you that an on-screen kiss would work! My phone has been blowing up with the media wanting to get you two on shows and newspapers,” Jack declared, tapping on his phone incessantly.
Luca’s eyes locked with mine, and he grimaced.
Oh mygod.
My stomach dropped, and a burning heat spread up my neck and across my face.
Any remaining lust from our kiss vanished, replaced with embarrassment. My heart sank as I grappled with the glaringly obvious fact.
He had kissed me for publicity.
Laughter bubbled out of me, but it was bitter.
How could I have been sostupid? He hadn’t kissed me because he liked the real me; he’d done it to ensure the public continued rooting for us. And I couldn’t even blame him. Sure, wehadn’t agreed to the kiss, but wehaddecided that we’d flirt to cause a stir.
