“I love how easily you blush, baby. Even when you’ve just shown off your wild side while I fucked the hell out of you. I especially love the way you blush all the way to your pussy when I make you come.”

Lisa’s face turned an even deeper shade of pink, but her blue pools twinkled with delight. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. Maybe you should take me home and remind me what that’s like.”

A hearty laugh burst from my chest, and I hugged her tight, burying my head in the crook of her neck. “Damn, I love you.”

Lisa froze, and another chuckle slipped through my lips.

“You love me?” she gasped.

I raised my head and stared into her gorgeous eyes. “How could you think otherwise, baby? I told you, you are everything to me. You’re my best friend, the love of my life, and as soon as I can get you to agree, you’ll be my wife. When my boys do their fucking job, you’ll be the mother of my children. The person I grow old with, and the one I’ll love for eternity.”

Lisa’s eyes welled with tears, and I panicked for half a second. Then her mouth spread into a blinding smile, and she threw her arms around my neck before kissing me like she’d been starving, and I was her favorite meal.

“Whoa, baby,” I rasped after a few minutes. “If you don’t stop, I’m gonna fuck you again right here, and I’d rather get you home where I can worship your body uninterrupted.”

“I love you, too!” she blurted.

My lips curved, and I brushed my nose over hers before murmuring, “I know, sweetheart.”

8

Hale

The finale had arrived, and I was nervous as hell. Which was ridiculous because I hadn’t felt that way since the very first episode. I stood backstage, jittery and shifting my weight from side to side.

A warm hand slipped into mine, and suddenly, a calm descended, and I felt like I could do anything. “We’re going to kill it,” Lisa said confidently. “I don’t think we could be any more prepared.” Then she squeezed my hand and quipped, “We practiced more than we had sex this week, babe. And since you’re insatiable, that’s saying a heck of a lot.”

I laughed and pulled her close, brushing my lips over her forehead. “Yeah, I’m the one who’s insatiable,” I muttered. “Sure. If that's what you want to tell yourself.”

She giggled and bumped her hip into mine. “Okay, maybe it's equal.”

Our names were called before I could respond, and we began to walk up the steps to the platform where we would start our dance. Halfway up, Lisa tugged on my hand to stop for a moment. I looked back at her, and she was pale, white-knuckling the railing as she squeezed her eyes shut and took deep breaths.

“Lisa? Baby? Are you alright?” I asked, worry consuming me.

She took another deep breath, then nodded as color returned to her face and tension seeped from her body. “I guess I’m a little more nervous than I thought,” she mumbled.

“We don’t have to go out there,” I insisted, already moving to go back down the steps.

“No way, Hale. We worked our tails off for this, and your family is in the audience. And Granger already showed me the outfit they’re going to make you wear if you lose. Trust me, you want to win.”

She smiled as she said the last part, and her laughter was easy, making me a little less frantic. “Are you sure?”

“Absolutely.” She practically dragged me up the rest of the way to the platform, and we took our starting pose.

We’d been allowed to pick any dance we wanted for the final show, and we had decided to take the audience back to the magic of the first episode and perform a contemporary piece. Our song was “Rewrite the Stars” from The Greatest Showman.

The choreography had several complicated lifts, leaps, and spins. It had taken me a little longer to learn because Lisa had decided to step it up several notches. I hadn’t been as confident that I could master the dance, but she’d proven me wrong as usual. However, I was one-hundred-percent sure I wouldn’t have conquered it if I’d had anyone else as a partner.

The passion in the music and lyrics was palpable as we glided through the steps. It was absolute magic, and I knew everyone in the studio could feel it carrying us away.

Everything was perfect until the last lift. I felt Lisa trembling, but she didn’t jeopardize the trick. When I set her on her feet, she stumbled slightly, although not enough that anyone but me would notice. Despite the brilliant smile on her face, her expression was strained, and her skin had bleached of color. Luckily, we only had a few more bars of music before we hit our final pose.

Tags: Fiona Davenport Romance
Source: readsnovelonline.net