Page 144 of Just Like Home

He nodded. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”

In the darkness, the two of them took the stage. They’d given Amelia a seat of honor in the wings to watch her uncle, and the little girl beamed so brightly he could see her smile in the dark.

Behind him, one of the football players whistled, followed by the low murmur of the crowd.

He reached a hand toward Charlotte, their opening pose, and she took it, then smiled up at him. “Just pretend we’re alone.”

He grinned. “But there are children watching.”

She stifled a giggle, confirming what he already knew—this was the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

The lights slowly came up as the music for “Perfect” began, and Cole glanced at his niece and winked.

All for you, Amelia.

He should probably thank her, actually. Without this little deal he’d made with his niece, would he have ever gotten past himself long enough to discover what a treasure Charlotte was?

A cheer from the back pulled him to reality, and Charlotte stepped into his arms. They moved exactly the way they’d practiced, gliding around the stage in perfect unison. He watched as she became someone else but still remained uniquely Charlotte, turning herself over to the music, to his leading, to the performance, in a way he would never master.

That simple box step she’d taught him during their first rehearsal had been transformed into so much more, and now, as he spun her, a strong hand on her waist, he almost didn’t have to think about the moves.

She circled around him, her blue dress flowing behind her as she did. Then, she was back in his arms, and they swayed in perfect unison. The dance gave him a moment to hold her body to his, then she backed away as the music swelled, and he lifted her with such ease that it was as if he’d been made to help her soar.

The audience cheered.

He set her down and the dance ended, and without thinking he leaned in and kissed her so fully the cheers turned rowdy.Hotchke.

He’d forgotten where they were.

He pulled away to find her face lit in a bright smile. “That wasn’t what we rehearsed.”

He laughed as they left the stage. “Sorry. I got carried away.”

She threw herself in his arms and he caught her, held her, inhaled her.

“I have another dance,” she said. “I’ll talk to you after.”

She raced off, leaving him standing dumbly as another dance class lined up for their entrance.

After a few more numbers, it was time for Connor and Amelia’s dance.

Now it was his turn to watch.

The pair took the stage, and Cole found a spot in the wings where he could watch without disturbing anyone. Before the lights came up, Amelia glanced at him and winked.

He smiled back at her.

He knew he couldn’t take all the credit for getting her out there, but it made him feel good to think he’d done a little something to help.

Michael Bublé’s smooth voice rang out through the auditorium as a song called “Daddy’s Little Girl” began.

This town knew Connor, and they knew what he and Amelia had been through. Cole was pretty sure that as the dance went on there wasn’t a dry eye in the place. Even he had trouble keeping it together. What the audience didn’t know, however, was that this was most likely the first moment of connection Amelia had had with her dad since her mother died.

And that made the whole thing more than special—it made it powerful.

Cole never knew a dance could do that.

Connor moved well, but the number was meant to highlight his daughter—and that he did flawlessly.

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