CHAPTER NINE

"When did you start dancing?" he asks, his deep voice next to my ear.

"When I began preschool, my mom enrolled me in a toddler dance academy, and my love for it grew from there."

"Is your mom a dancer?” Gavin’s hands skate down my arms, causing goose bumps.

I giggle and press closer to him. Being in his arms feels better than I could have imagined.

"That’s two questions, but no, she isn’t. She's a model and travels a lot, too." The last thing I want

to think about is my absentee mother, but he asked and, truly, I want Gavin to know me.

"Did I upset you?" he asks, turning me so that I’m facing him.

I hastily shake my head, pressing it against his shoulder as his hand strokes up and down my back.

"No, she wasn’t around a lot when I was growing up, though. I actually haven’t talked to her in a long time."

Deftly, Gavin lifts my face with a finger under my chin and gazes into my eyes.

"I understand, but if she doesn’t appreciate you then it’s her loss, Sophia, not yours."

My heart skips