“That definitely hurt,” I add under my breath.
“It’s okay,” he repeats easily. “I had to dance with Bailey my whole life. She’s done much worse.”
That pulls a laugh out of me. And now I also picture Ryan dancing with Bailey. In the middle of the living room, loud music blasting through the speakers like neighbours don't exist, Ryan spinning her and picking her up. Even only imagining it makes me smile.
Around us the music continues to drift through the room, but then the opening notes ofUntil I Found Youdrift through the speakers.
“Oh my God,” I gasp. “I freaking love this song.”
“I know,” Ryan says, chuckling under his breath.
Jesus. The same guy who couldn’t remember our WiFi password for two years, somehow remembers all this stuff?
I look at him. “You remember that too?”
“I remember everything about you, Mads.”
This guy is seriously messing with my heartbeat. It starts beating way too fast for a slow dance.
I can’t look away from his eyes. We drift a little closer. His fingers trace slow circles at my waist and gaze drops, slowly. From the necklace at my collarbone, to my lips. And I’msuddenly very grateful he’s holding me, because my knees feel like cooked spaghetti.
“You know,” he murmurs, his breath warm near my neck, “if you keep looking at me like that…” He pauses. “…I might forget we’re pretending.”
My stomach does a backflip.
Around us, people are still swaying across the dance floor, but everything feels distant somehow—blurred at the edges. All I can really see ishim. Soft light catches in his hair, the disco lights dancing on his skin, his green eyes darker than usual, focused entirely on me.
What is going on between us? I’m almost afraid to eventhinkit, but it's impossible to deny anymore. There is more between us than just fake.
My heartbeat stutters hard enough that I’m almost sure he can feel it, but neither of us moves away. I probably should. But instead, I tilt my chin up slightly and my fingers slide into the hair at the back of his neck before I can stop myself.
Ryan’s breath catches. And then he leans in. Slowly and carefully. Like he’s giving me every possible chance to stop this.
But I don’t. I actually rise on my toes slightly, because even though I’m wearing heels, he’s still taller. And I move closer to his face.
His hand moves from my waist slowly to the back of my neck, then higher, brushing lightly along my jaw, his thumb grazing my cheek. My stomach flips so hard it’s almost embarrassing. His eyes flick from mine to my lips. And, apparently forgetting all self-control, I do the same. Eyes. Lips. Eyes again. He leans in just a couple inches and I’m about to press my lips—
The music cuts off. The lights snap brighter. A loud, fast song crashes through the speakers and reality slams back into the room.
We step back at the exact same time. Ryan runs a hand through his hair, looking a little thrown off, while I immediately smooth down my dress.
Were we actually just about tokiss?!
For a second we just stare at each other, both breathing a little too fast.
“Well,” I say quickly. “Good dance.”
He lets out a quiet laugh, more amused than shaken. “Yeah. Good dance.”
“Let’s—uh—find the others,” I add, already turning before my brain can catch up with the rest of me. As we walk away, my skin still feels warm where his hands were.
What the hell. What the hell. What the hell!!!
We make our way over to the bleachers, where Kiara and Noah are now joined by Mel and Liam. They’re all mid-gossip, drinks in hand, fully settled into People-Watching Mode.
“—I’m telling you,” Kiara is saying as we approach, “I just saw Stacie walking away with Brandon. Like, toward the back doors.”
Noah raises an eyebrow. “That doesn’t automatically mean they’re hooking up.”
