Page 95 of I Don't Need Your Love

“You’re doing great,” I encourage with a smile. “You’re just not getting the timing right.”

“Maybe I’m just not cut out to lift you,” he says with a frown. “Maybe we should scrap this and you can have a solo dance.”

My eyes widen. “No way. Everyone knows you’re the star of this sequence.”

He stares at me. “You kidding? You’re the star.”

“Uh, do you think girls will stare at you during the routine, or me?”

“Who cares about girls? All I care about are the judges.”

“And as the only guy, they’ll be fixated on you,” I point out.

“Not when you’re the best dancer on the team—” He snaps his lips shut and shakes his head. “Are we arguing again?”

I lift my shoulders. “Looks like it.”

“Well, I have to say it calmed me down a little,” he admits. “I don’t know what it is, but I like arguing with you, even when I don’t. Does that make sense?”

“Does anything you say make sense?” I tease. “Let’s try again.”

This time, he manages to lift me high in the air, but only after he stopped dancing abruptly so he could put his hands on my waist. It made the move look sloppy and very unprofessional.

“Progress!” I tell him with a smile. “See how strong you are, Mr. Magical Biceps? I told you that you can do the lift. We just have to work on the timing.”

Even though he’s beyond frustrated, he laughs. “Mr. Magical Biceps?”

“Do you prefer Twinkle Toes?”

“My toes are anything but twinkly today.”

“Well, I can’t say your magical biceps have come out to play, either.”

That makes him laugh harder, which causes me to laugh, too. “Let’s try again,” I say.

I spin away from him and then bolt over, just as I’ve done many, many,manytimes before. But this time, a look of confidence I’ve never seen on him before completely takes over, and when he grabs hold of my waist, I fly in the air like a beautiful, graceful bird. I stretch out my arms above me and extend my legs as far as they can go.

Ryder keeps me in the air for as long as he’s supposed to, and then he flips me over and gently lowers me to the ground.

“I did it?” he asks, face holding nothing but shock and bewilderment. “Carly, I did it!”

“You did it, Ryder! I can’t believe you did it.” I launch myself at him.

He gathers me in his arms and hugs me close, burying his face in my neck. It feels so good to be in his arms like this. I’ve hugged guys in the past, but it never felt like this. So…perfect. I don’t think I ever want to let go. I should have hugged him earlier if I knew it felt this good.

“It’s all because of you, Captain,” he says as he lifts his head from my neck. His face is so bright, I swear he swallowed a star. I don’t think he’s ever looked more gorgeous. “You lifted my mood and made me more confident,” he continues. “You’re—”

I stand on my tiptoes and press my lips to his.

But when I realize what I just did, I yank away, my cheeks hotter than a boiling egg. “Sorry,” I stammer, avoiding his eyes. “I didn’t mean—”

He steps closer and wraps an arm around me, hauling me to his chest. With heated eyes, he leans forward and closes his lips over mine.

I’m a little shocked at first, but my arms fall to my sides as I welcome his kiss. He closes his second arm around me, pulling me even closer to his body, until he and I are practically fused together. Our lips move over each other’s urgently, but they slow down as we savor this moment, and each other. My hands slide up his chest and toward his neck, then further upward until my fingers tangle in his hair. I clutch onto the strands as the kiss grows more intense, and his hands tighten on my waist, though not enough to hurt me. It’s the perfect amount of pressure.

When our lips come apart, my eyes flutter open. I stare into Ryder’s eyes, noticing how many emotions float around in there.He’s not trying to hide them like he usually does. He’s bare and open, allowing me to see the happiness and hope, but also the agony and heartache he carries around.

His chest rises and falls wildly, matching my own. We don’t take our eyes off each other, not for what feels like a million years.