“Thanks.”

He laid his cup down, then went over and turned on the Christmas tree lights before taking a seat on the sofa next to her.

“Looks good there,” he said.

She stared up at the dancing angel, still so surprised he’d thought of her when he’d bought it. She didn’t know what to make of it—or of him. Or of their relationship.

Dammit. There was that word again, the one she so religiously avoided.

“Yeah, it looks good.”

“You and I should spend Christmas together.”

She nearly choked on her sip of coffee. She shifted to face him. “What?”

“You said you weren’t going home, and your parents won’t be coming here. We should spend Christmas together.”

Christmas together? She waited for the panic to clutch her around the throat.

Nothing came. It always did when some guy asked her for anything that felt remotely like a commitment. And spending a holiday together was a commitment. It was a relationship.

But Trick wasn’t just some guy. He was becoming more than that.

She waited again for the terror, the need to end things, to run as far and as fast as she could.

Nothing. Still, she was going to have to handle this whole thing delicately.

“I told you Greta’s coming for Christmas.”

“Yeah. So we’ll all hang out. I’ll cook a turkey. She can adore this awesome tree.”

He made it sound so simple. It wasn’t. Not to her, anyway. “I’ll give it some thought.”

“You do that.”

“Okay, well, I should go.”

“You don’t want to stay?” He moved over and slid his arms around her waist. “I thought we’d have dinner and you might want to hang out. I could cook for you. Then rub your feet later.”

He waggled his brows, the invitation quite clear.

He was almost the perfect man, which meant there had to be something lurking under the exterior. Some bomb he’d drop later to break her heart. She didn’t trust her own instincts, not after the nightmare she’d endured the last time.

She laid her palms on his chest. “Tempting as that sounds, the only time I have to do laundry and grocery shopping and clean my apartment is on the weekend. So, sadly, duty calls.”

He took a step back. “Gotcha. Some other time.”

“Definitely.”

He didn’t even pout when he didn’t get his way or she couldn’t spend time with him.

See? Too perfect.

She gathered her things and put on her coat.

“I ordered a taxi for you,” he said. “Should be outside waiting for you.”

“Thanks.”

He tugged on the lapels of her coat, drawing her toward him so he could kiss her. She fell into the kiss, against the heat of his body as he swept his hands inside her coat.

She could so easily get lost in him, in the way his lips moved over hers, and forget all her rules about not letting her heart get involved. But her steely resolve had protected her all these years, and for a good reason.

She pulled back. “I guess I’ll see you after your game Monday?”

“Yup. Don’t work too hard.” He rubbed his thumb over her bottom lip, and that steely resolve melted a little. Inhaling a shaky breath, she moved away from him and grabbed her bag.

He walked her to the door. “Be careful out there.”

“I will. Bye.”

She went downstairs and, just as Trick said, there was a taxi waiting for her. She climbed in and gave the driver her address, then leaned back, already wishing she was still with Trick.

She’d had fun with him the past couple of days. He was sexy, romantic, and fun. A lethal combination. She didn’t know what she was going to do. Normally when she started to feel things for a guy, she knew the next step—end things.

This time, though, it was different, because the thought of walking away from Trick and never seeing him again made her heart hurt.

She was in deep trouble.

Chapter Nine

Stella got into position and waited for the music cue, her body tense, but her entire being focused. When the music started, she felt it enter her soul, her limbs moving in time to the strains of the recorded orchestra. Her body had memorized every note, her soul embedded in this role.

This was what she loved the most about dance, the way she could embody a role, letting the music carry her away. After months of practice, she could dance this part with her eyes closed. She knew where she needed to be. She knew every movement, every leap, each turn, and where her partner was going to be so when she threw herself into the air, he would be there to catch her. Because dance was always about trust, especially when you were relying on someone else to be there for you. They had all been working so hard, and it was finally coming together, especially this oh-so-important opening scene. She felt this scene in her bones, dreamed about it at night, made each step in her head when she stood in line at the grocery store.