Page 79 of Going for Gold (Sweet Cravings 3)

He leaned forward and pressed his forehead against mine. "Ask me again tomorrow night."

I sighed. "I'm making it seem like all I care about is sex, but that's not it. I just feel so close to you already. It's more than just physical for me."

"It's more for me too." He put his hand on the side of my face and placed a soft kiss on my lips. "I'm..." he shook his head and pressed his lips together. "Alina, you've completely consumed me."

That was exactly what I was feeling. He was all I could think about. Like I lived and dreamed Bryce. I wasn't even sure if I was falling in love with him, or if I had already crossed the line into love. But I couldn't tell him that. It was way too soon. I didn't want to freak him out. Instead I stood up on my tiptoes and kissed him.

He immediately pushed my back against the wall, pressing himself against me again. When he pulled back I was completely out of breath.

"You should get some sleep," he said. "We have a big day tomorrow."

I wasn't even sure if he was talking about the dance against Brazil or all the sex we were going to have afterwards. All I knew was that I didn't want to say goodnight like this, with me not saying anything back to him after he had just opened up to me. "If you do have a layover in Philly, I don't think I'm going to be able to let you get back on that plane," I blurted out. It was the first thing I could think of that wasn't, "I'm in love with you, Bryce."

He smiled. "That's good, because I'm not going to want to get on it anyway."

Chapter 32

Sunday

Alina

Kristen and I arrived at the arena a few minutes before her scheduled rehearsal time on stage. Practicing in the studio was one thing, but getting a feel for the actual stage before the performance was key. Or at least, that's what Tim told us.

A security guard kept us away from the stage while the clock ticked down to our fifteen minute time slot. They didn't want us interrupting or getting a peek at another girl's dance before the actual event.

"Your turn," said the security guard. He opened the door and stepped aside.

Gabriela walked out. Her lips turned into a cruel smile when she saw us. "Losing to me twice isn't enough for you girls?" Then she paused and waited for Chris to come through the door too. "Actually, I guess it's three times now. He was your boyfriend, right?"

Seeing them together made me lightheaded. All the blood must have been rushing to my balled fists.

"Fuck you," said Kristen. "Chris, you're a cheating asshole. And Gabriela, you're a stupid bitch. You two are perfect for each other."

"We're also both gold medalists. Something you two know nothing about."

"Just wait a few hours when you're looking up at me on the gold medal podium. Then we'll see who's laughing." Kristen pushed past Gabriela and Chris, bumping both of them with her shoulders. I followed and the security guard closed the door behind us.

"God, I fucking hate both of them," I said. "Thank you so much for volunteering to do this. Seeing you beat her is going to be the best moment of my life. Well...until the after party with Bryce." Just the thought of it sent chills down my spine.

"Believe me, I'll enjoy beating that bitch just as much as you. Now, lets..." Kristen stopped dead in her tracks when we pulled back the curtain to look at the stage. "Holy shit."

"Holy shit is right," I muttered. For some reason I had expected the arena to be the size of my high school auditorium. It was about thirty times as big.

Pyrotechnics guys and stage hands worked feverishly on various curtains and flags and contraptions while camera crews were testing the HD cameras around the perimeter of the stage. The front of the stage was curved outwards, and then there was a catwalk that led to a circular platform with a few steps up to a raised portion. From the brief practice I had, I knew that the raised part could rotate. We made sure to incorporate that into the routine. The judges table was directly in front of that. Beyond that, there were thousands of rows of tiered seating. I could barely see up to the back row, but the huge flat screens above the stage and on the walls ensured all the spectators would have a perfect view of the performances.

"This is going to be awesome," said Kristen.

Or terrifying. "Ready to do your rehearsal?"

"Yup, let's do it." Kristen pulled out the pair of sparkly blue heels Tim had picked out for the dance and put them on. I had a matching pair, and based on our practicing in them to break them in, I knew they weren't going to be easy to dance in.

I pulled my phone out of my bag and waited for Kristen to get her shoes on and take her starting position behind the curtains. She stuck her hand through to give me a thumbs up and I hit play. The songs that Tim had spliced together started playing. It probably would have been better if all the backup dancers had been here too, but Tim said wardrobe needed them all morning to get their outfits just so.

Kristen burst through the curtains with so much confidence and rocked the first few moves. Gabriela doesn't stand a chance.

I sat back and enjoyed the performance. It was flawless.

And then she went to dismount the rotating platform.

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