“I went to see her right after I left you that morning.”
His mouth flattened into a thin line. “I wish you’d involved me in this decision.”
“I had to get to her quickly, before the gossip sites influenced her.” She blew out a breath and crossed her arms. “Some of them are saying we’re secretly married.”
A PA ran over to them, out of breath. “I have a message from Jordy. He said it’s taken care of, and you owe him.”
Gina’s pulse thudded. “What?” When the young woman began to repeat herself, Gina waved a hand to stop her. “No, I heard you. He fixed the footage?”
The PA shrugged. “Sorry, that was all he told me.”
Nodding, Gina murmured her thanks. The adrenaline roller coaster and the havoc this evening had played on her emotions left her exhausted, but she still had one more dance, and it had to be perfect.
“Well, that’s taken care of,” Stone said in a mild voice.
“Yeah.” Gina glanced around, but there were too many people here for what she had in mind. Grabbing Stone’s hand, she pulled him down the hallway to the loading dock where people snuck out to smoke.
For once, it was empty. The second the door closed behind them, she grabbed his face and yanked him down for a searing kiss.
“I miss you,” she whispered against his lips. “Come over tonight? Tash always goes out after the episode taping.”
He pressed his forehead to hers and closed his eyes. A second later, he nodded. “Okay.”
“I know we have things to talk about.” She kissed him again. “Now’s not the time or place. But we’ll talk. I promise.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Sounds ominous.”
She let out a desperate laugh. “It’s not. This week has fucked with my emotions. I can’t sort them all out.”
He kissed the top of her head and reached for the door. “We’ll do it together.”
Twenty-Four
The four members of Team Ice Cold stood in the dark in the middle of the ballroom, waiting for the commercial break to end. The audience was hushed, excited to see the final team dance. Just a few yards away, Meli sat at the judges’ table.
As soon as the first bars of music played, Gina’s mind cleared. As always, the dance took over, washing away all her hopes and fears about Meli,The Dance Off,and Stone.
The beat dropped. Team Ice Cold bopped around in sync, spinning and sliding. Then they launched into the lifts, leading up to the final move—the throw.
Since Stone was so strong, and Lauren was used to flying through the air on skates, Kevin and Gina had choreographed a routine that combined acrobatics, Latin dance moves, and hip-hop to go with Meli’s most famous club songs.
Gina and Lauren spun out from the guys, danced a few steps together, and swapped partners. Kevin lifted Gina, Stone lifted Lauren, and right before the song ended, they tossed the women to each other.
It wasn’t a difficult throw. They hadn’t had time to practice anything more impressive. But in mid-air, Lauren and Gina high-fived.Their guys caught them, spun them in a circle, and they all landed in a triumphant pose.
Gina was proud of their dance. Lauren was an asshole backstage, but a professional as soon as she hit the dance floor. And Stone had worked harder than ever this week to learn both dances and make up for losing time to his injury.
This time, Gina was prepared to hear Meli’s critique.
“I loved it.” Meli tossed her notes down on the table. “I could go on about the details—you guys nailed the musicality and the vibe of the music, and took it to the next level—but really, I just loved it. I thought it was perfect. And I’m so impressed. I could never do lifts like that!”
Gina almost passed out. Only Stone squeezing her shoulders reminded her to breathe.
Team Ice Cold received a perfect score.
During the elimination, Gina couldn’t stop grinning.
“You’re supposed to look worried,” Stone whispered in her ear.
