Page 82 of The Dixon Rule

I grin. “We’ll do the cha cha for the audition. I think you’ll take to it better.”

Shane glares at me.

“What’s going on here?” a throaty voice inquires.

We look up at Veronika’s approach. Our resident femme fatale is wearing a filmy, white cover-up over a very indecent leopard-print bikini, her unnaturally red hair loose around her shoulders.

She wags her finger mischievously. “You two have been spending a lot of time together. Is there romance in the air?”

“Oh my God, never. But we are entering a dance competition together.”

“No, we’re not,” Shane denies immediately. His expression is a warning.

I see how it is. He’s ashamed of our rhythmic connection.

“What?” I shrug at him. “They’re going to see us practicing anyway. We’ll be holding a lot of gym sessions.”

“Oooh, sounds kinky,” Veronika says.

I smother a laugh.

“Well, enjoy,” she chirps before wandering toward her usual chair and umbrella. It’s the one with a direct line of sight to the path, so she can see all the comings and goings of Meadow Hill.

“Anyway, back to this,” Shane grumbles, holding up his phone. “I’m not doing more than one dance.”

“We’re doing three, and this isn’t a negotiation.” I tip my head. “What’s the problem, Lindley? You don’t think you can hack it?”

“Oh, you know I can.”

“Exactly. Which is why we’re doing three dances. I’m going for a swim now. You can sulk in private.”

I dive into the deep end, enjoying the sensation of the cold water engulfing my body. For the first time in days, I feel confident again. Strong. It’s like everything with Percy never happened. Just a fading nightmare I never have to revisit. Soon the bruise will fade entirely, and there’ll be no remnants left of that horrible night.

A sense of calm washes over me as I swim laps. I zone out, focusing on propelling my body through the water, welcoming the burn in my muscles. When I stop to catch my breath in the shallow end, I notice a few more neighbors have arrived. I love summers in Meadow Hill. There’s a real sense of community here.

I backstroke toward the deep end, where I heave myself out of the water so I can say hi to Priya, who sits at a table with Marnie and Dave.

“It’s a college student,” Dave is saying.

“Who’s a college student?” I ask curiously, catching the tail end of their conversation. Water drips off my body as I approach the table. I glance over my shoulder. “Hey, Lindley, fetch me a towel?”

“Say please,” he calls out.

“No,” I call back.

Priya looks amused. “Wait, do we like him now?” She speaks a little too loudly.

“I knew it!” Shane, who’s strolling toward us with my towel, glowers at me. “I knew you instigated a shunning program.”

“I did not instigate a shunning program,” I lie.

“Did she?” Shane asks Priya.

“Doctor-patient confidentiality,” she answers smugly.

“Marnie?” he demands.

I glance at Marnie, winking. With a straight face, she says, “You’re imagining it, honey. Nobody is shunning you.”

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