Page 117 of Flirty Dancing

When the hug ended, Mateo pulled away, opening his mouth to say something, but then the back door wrenched open and they heard Dominik screeching.

“NOBODY MOVE! ABBY HODGE SHOOK MY HAND!” He appeared in the greenroom, grinning from ear to ear. “Mateo, why do you get to have such cool friends? I can’t believe she’s here! Oh my God, is Abby Hodge going to bewatchingus tonight? I amliterallydying.”

But Mateo barely seemed to notice Dominik’s theatrics. He bumped shoulders with Archer. “Thanks. I’m happy too.”

“ARCHER!” Archer was walking across the center green Saturday afternoon when the shriek reached him.

He turned. It was Lynn, barreling toward him, holding her hat with one hand. Sasha followed behind, towing their suitcases. Archer’s smile was so broad it hurt his face. “Lynnie!”

She threw herself into Archer’s arms. “Hiiiii! I missed you so much!”

“I missed you too!” He hugged her hard. “I can’t believe you’re actually here!”

“Me neither, especially after hearing about it all summer!”

Sasha puffed up to them, sweat already sliding down her temple in the heat. “Hey, Archer,” she said, with a hug of her own.

“Hi, Sasha. Wow, you two look gorgeous!”

They were both wearing long, flowing pastel summer dresses and wide-brimmed hats.

“Oh, these old things?” Lynn declared with a wink.

Archer knew Lynn had done a special shopping trip to pick out some memorable outfits for their sure-to-be-memorable weekend.

“Where’s your cabin?” Archer asked.

“One-oh-five, I think?” Lynn said, digging in her bag for the keys.

“Ooh, a nice one! Right down by the water!”

Sasha frowned at Lynn. “I hope you didn’t spend too much, love.”

Lynn booped her on the nose. “Don’t you worry about that.”

Archer pointed them down the right path. “I’m on my way to grab some food before the show, but your cabin is that way.”

“Yes, we should go get settled in, but we’ll see you at the theater! Which show is tonight again?”

“From the Heart, the contemporary one. Then tomorrow is the big finale.”

“And when do we get to meet Mateo?” she asked with a grin. “Not to mention Caleb! And I really need to meet Dominik. And Betty.”

Archer laughed. “Maybe if you’re good, I can give you a backstage tour between shows.”

“Yes!” Lynn whooped. “Perfect. We’ll be on our best behavior.”

“I mean it, Lynn! No one knows about me and Mateo.”

“It’s still a secret?” she said, sharing a look with Sasha.

“It’s better this way,” Archer explained. “We’re waiting until we get back to the city. No drama if no one knows. It all has to go perfectly tomorrow.”

Lynn mimed zipping her lips closed. “Promise.”

After the first show, Lynn and Sasha waited in their seats as instructed while the rest of the crowd shuffled out.

“Hey!” Archer popped out onto the stage and waved them up the stairs. “Come on up!”

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