“What?” Renée asked, the concern evident in her voice.

Trihn must have really looked like shit to elicit that reaction from her. She normally had a casually playful tone full of sarcastic humor.

“Nothing,” Trihn said, quickly stashing her phone

“You can’t bullshit me. What did he say?” Renée took two steps toward Trihn and yanked the phone out of her hand. She read the message and then handed it back.

“Yeah, he can’t go,” Trihn said. She chewed on her lip and glanced away from her friend.

“Hey, if you’re not up for Intensive today, then you can head out. I can handle it,” she said consolingly.

“No, I’m fine.”

“Stop saying that. You’re clearly upset.”

“Renée, can we not?”

“Preston is your first boyfriend, and you put your heart on the line, inviting him to this. He probably doesn’t even know it, but I do.”

“Yeah, well, I feel stupid for being upset.” Trihn swiped at her eyes. God, now tears?

She took a deep breath. She would never have had tears like this if Renée hadn’t asked her about it. She could have held it together through dance, and then it all would have just gone away. It was always the worst when someone asked if she was okay. It was as if the minute someone cared, her walls would crumble.

“You’re not stupid.” Renée slid her arm around Trihn’s shoulders. “You’re just human. I know you wear your heart on your sleeve, no matter how serious or how much of a tough girl you are.”

Trihn shrugged. “Nothing I can do now. Let’s just go dance.”

She left Renée behind as she strolled to the barre.

Planting her feet in first position and resting her hand featherlight on the barre were the only things that Trihn let occupy her mind. She wasn’t going to think about Preston or vacation, which just meant a week without him, or anything else. She was just going to focus on her body lowering into a plié, the feel of her feet rising up onto pointe in a relevé, and the burn in her legs as she pushed her body to the limit.

THE SHOWER BEAT DOWN ON TRIHN’S HEAD, blocking out the pulse hammering against her temples. Ballet had temporarily alleviated the pain and disappointment of what had happened before class, but the anger had continued to simmer just under the surface, giving her a headache.

She shut off the shower and threw back two Tylenol she’d retrieved from her dance bag. She took a swig out of her mostly empty water bottle and waited for the miracle to set in.

“T, I’m heading out. Are you ready?” Renée called.

“Yeah, I’m coming.” She wound her hair up into a tight ponytail on top of her head and then slid into the clothes she had come in—loose-fit gray shorts, a white V-neck T-shirt¸ and black-and-silver slipper ballet flats.

With a deep breath, she set out for the exit with Renée. They both jumped when they found a figure standing in the foyer of the dance studio. It was late, way after-hours for anyone but a student to have access to the company.

“Sorry, we’re not open,” Renée called.

But as they drew closer, Trihn recognized the person in front of her. “It’s all right.”

They stopped in front of Preston. He had a worry line in between his eyebrows. His perfect lips were pursed with concern. She wanted to reach out and hug him, to try to comfort him for whatever he was feeling, but she didn’t move. She still keenly felt the sting of rejection.

“Hey. What are you doing here?” she asked.

“Came to see you.”

Trihn crossed her arms over her chest. “I thought you had to work.”

Renée coughed next to Trihn and then pushed her own hand out. “I’m Renée, Trihn’s friend.”

“Hi, Renée.” He shook her hand. “Nice to meet you.”

“You, too. Take care of my friend,” she said with a slight warning in her voice. “I’m just going to head out and leave you two alone.” Renée tossed keys on a blue keychain to Trihn. “Lock up after you leave.”

“Thanks. I will.”

Renée left them in a hurry, clearly feeling the wave of tension between them.

Had it really only been this morning when I woke up in his arms, desperate to never leave?

For some reason, as they stood apart now, it felt like a lifetime ago.

“So, this is your studio?” he asked.

She nodded.

“Can you show me around?” He smiled tentatively. “I want to see where you spend all your time.”

“Sure,” she whispered.

She didn’t exactly want to play like everything was fine. She was upset but not at him. She was more upset with herself for wanting him to go with her so badly when she had never wanted that before. She just didn’t know how to channel that anger.

He took her hand, and they walked around the studio through the open foyer, down the hallway where the administrative offices were, past the empty dressing rooms, and around to all the dance studios. She ended the tour in the studio she and Renée had just been working in.

Trihn walked Preston over to the far wall, which had floor-to-ceiling glass windows overlooking the New York City street below. He was so silent, and she wished she knew what he was thinking. She didn’t even know what he was doing here.

She couldn’t hold in all the emotions swirling through her any longer. “Why are you here?” she blurted.

“Do I need a reason to come see you?”

“You’ve never visited me at dance before.”

“Not true,” he said quickly.

“Not since that first night.”

“I know, but you sounded upset in your text, and then you never responded to my other messages.”

“I was in dance. I didn’t check them.”

“Or you were avoiding me,” he said.

It was a pretty astute assessment. She hadn’t wanted to think about anything, so she hadn’t checked her phone.

“Not on purpose.”

Preston’s fingers curled around her elbow, and he pulled her toward him. “You’re mad at me.”

“I’m not,” she insisted.

“You are.” His hands circled her waist, and then he planted a kiss on her forehead.

“No, I’m really not.” She sighed heavily.

The feel of him against her just strengthened her resolve. She wasn’t mad at him. She wanted him too much, in dangerous amounts. And him being here was showing her that clear as day.

“I’ve just never invited anyone to go with me on vacation before.”

He looked down at her with earnest. “You know I would go with you if I could get off work.”

“I know,” she insisted. “I just think I was so excited for you to come with me before I even asked you. I know we’ve only known each other for a couple of months, but what we have is so much more than I expected. I never really dated seriously before you. It just never felt right, but it does with you. So, I guess I got my hopes up that you would be able to go with me, and I understand your reasons for not going, but I can’t stop myself from feeling this way. Now, I’m babbling…”

Preston leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. She could feel the tension rolling off of her. She stopped thinking and let herself get caught up in his embrace.

“I know, Trihn,” he murmured against her lips. “I get it.”

“I don’t think you do.” She firmly pressed her mouth to his once more before confessing the truth that had been resting on her tongue, “I love you.”

“I love you,” she repeated.

The words had slipped out of her mouth with unstoppable conviction. She had known for weeks but hadn’t allowed herself to think the actual words.

This isn’t normal, is it? She wasn’t supposed to fall in love this quickly. She was strong and independent and didn’t need a man. But when she looked up into Preston’s bright blue eyes, she knew she was lost. She knew she loved him. There was no going back from this point.