I win
MOST PEOPLE ARE AWAY FOR THE SUMMER, SO TONIGHT’S GATHERING isn’t a banger. It’s just Will, Beck, a few other guys from the team. A few cheerleaders. Some local girls Beckett met in Hastings, and some guys we played pool with at Malone’s. All in all, twenty, twenty-five people. Certainly can’t be enough to piss off the homeowners’ association, but I do feel a bit like a hall monitor as I wander around cautioning everyone to keep it down and making sure nothing gets too out of hand.
Like this pool game of chicken that somehow just became topless.
“Hey, tops on,” I reprimand the redhead whose bikini top is suddenly at her waist. “This is a family establishment.”
Winking, she covers up a pair of very nice tits and reties the strings of her bikini. “Sorry, daddy.”
Damned if my dick doesn’t perk up at that.
I don’t think I have a daddy kink, but I do enjoy being the boss in the bedroom. Not in an aggressively dominant way; I’d never ask a woman to crawl on the floor toward me or some shit. But calling the shots does get me off.
“I can’t believe Kenji bailed on the competition,” Fatima is saying when I join the small group. She’s standing with Will, Beck, and Dixon, who I’m shocked decided to grace us with her presence.
“Kenji ditched you?” I ask Diana, raising a brow. “He finally saw the light? Good for him.”
She gives me the finger. “Had nothing to do with me and how wonderful I am. He got a new job.” She dismisses me from her gaze, those green eyes shifting hopefully to Will. “Any chance you want to be my ballroom dance partner?”
He almost spits out his beer laughing. “No. Never.”
“Please? I’ll split half the prize money if we win.”
“Wait, were you not going to split it with my man Kenji?” I demand.
That earns me a scowl. “Of course I was. I’m just trying to make it sound like I’m sweetening the deal.”
“Yeah, not happening,” Will tells her. “There is nothing I enjoy less than dancing.”
At his steadfast refusal, she turns her attention to Beckett, batting her eyelashes.
“Nope. I’m going to Australia.” He shudders. “Thank God for that because I can’t say no to hot women. I would’ve done it if I were here.”
“Cancel the trip,” she begs.
“No.”
Diana pouts and takes a sip of the nauseatingly pink liquid in her glass. When she saw we only had beer in the cooler and a few bottles of whiskey for shots, she ran back upstairs and returned with a bottle of the pink stuff. That’s literally what the brand is called—the Pink Stuff. According to the girls, it’s the hot new wine cooler on the block, but I haven’t tried it and don’t intend to. I don’t feel like hurling tonight.
While she drinks, I eye her expectantly.
“What?” she says over the rim of her glass.
“You’re not going to ask me to be your partner?”
Rather than answer, Diana starts to laugh.
“What’s so funny?”
“You thought I would actually ask you.” She’s still giggling as she takes another sip. “That’s cute.”
Man, my ego is usually rock-solid, but Diana’s damn good at poking holes in it.
Which reminds me of the stunt she pulled yesterday.
“By the way, that wasn’t cool,” I grumble. “Banishing me from the group chat.”
“That wasn’t me,” she lies, then smiles smugly and takes Fatima’s hand. “Babe, let’s go dance.”
“I saw it was you!” I growl at her retreating back. “Stop gaslighting me!”
I ignore Will’s and Beckett’s laughter at my expense and decide to go mingle with people who aren’t traitors.
It’s the perfect summer night. Hardly any breeze. No humidity. Just warm air, a bright moon, and good people. Well, mostly good people. Diana doesn’t count.
As it nears midnight, I turn down the music again, but none of the couples dancing on the grass seem to notice. Diana’s body moves sensually against Beckett, whose hands are all over her. I watch in amusement. She’s into the dancing, and he’s into her.
I guess I see the appeal. Sure, she might have the devil’s tongue and a vendetta against me that isn’t at all justified, but she’s irrefutably beautiful. Her baggy, striped tee has slid down, exposing her bare shoulder. Pale hair falls between her shoulder blades as she throws her head back, lost in the sultry R&B track quietly playing in the night air.
My gaze fixes on Dixon’s little denim shorts that reveal the bottom of her ass cheeks, then travel south, over her tanned legs, defined calves, and bare feet. Her toenails are painted pink. It’s cute.
Will, who’s next to me shoving half a slice of pizza in his mouth, follows my gaze. Appreciation flickers across his face as he watches Diana and Beckett. His eyes track the sinful path of Beck’s hands as they curve over Dixon’s ass.
I smirk at him. “Aw, did you guys just find the meat in your sandwich tonight?”
He balks. “Jesus. Of course not.”
“Right. I guess you can’t really go there. Gigi would kill you.”
“One hundred percent.” He polishes off the rest of the slice and reaches for the beer on the table.
Joey and Ray, a couple local guys we met at Malone’s, come up to tell me they’re heading out. They clap my back and bump my fist before disappearing toward the path. I hope they don’t get lost on their way off the property. Last thing I need is for one of my neighbors to find a pair of dudes passed out in the bushes tomorrow morning.
At midnight, the party dwindles even further. The only people remaining are Will, Beck, Dixon, and two of her friends—Lily and Gia. The pool lights switch off, bathing us in darkness, but we’re not deterred. The girls chat on a pair of lounge chairs, while the guys and I sit on the pool deck, feet in the water. We’re talking about our Frozen Four win in the spring, reliving the winning shot courtesy of Case Colson.
“Damn, when he released that bullet.” Beckett shudders. “I almost came in my jock.”
“Fucking beauty,” Will agrees.
“Do you think we have a shot at back-to-back championship wins?” muses Beck.
“With me, Ryder, and Colson on the team?” I retort. “Of course.”
“Gee, thanks,” Will says dryly. “Don’t I feel valuable.”
I reach over to pat his shoulder. “Don’t sell yourself short. You’re almost as good as us.”
He gives me the finger.
It’s true, though. Will and Beck are great players, but neither one is headed for the NHL. Going pro isn’t their life plan like it is with me or Ryder or even Colson.
“With his parents in the next bed!”
“Ew. No.”
Diana and Lily’s conversation has the three of us exchanging grins.
“Yup. And I’m not talking about a suite with adjoining rooms. I’m talking same room. Two double beds. Mom and Dad in one bed. Todd and his girlfriend, full-on sex in the other bed.”
“I think I’m going to throw up.”
I twist around to stare at the girls. “What the hell kind of weird-ass shit are you discussing?”
“You wouldn’t understand,” Dixon replies, dismissing me in typical Diana fashion.
“I don’t think I want to,” Beckett says frankly.
“It’s one of the secrets someone revealed on Fling or Forever last night,” Gia explains. “The craziest shit comes out during their drinking games.”
“Did you see they put that drinking game on the app?” Gia tells her friends, her expression shining with enthusiasm. I swear, women get excited about the wildest things.
“Really?” Lily is equally elated as she snatches her phone from the table between the loungers. She and Gia proceed to huddle over the screen happily.
“Okay, we have to play this,” Gia declares. “We can split into two teams like they do on FoF.”
Lily brightens. “Oooh, boys against girls.”
And that’s how the guys and I are coerced into playing a party game. It’s super simple. A command pops up on the screen, and the player who’s up has sixty seconds to complete the task, which is either a truth or a dare. If they do it successfully, they win the point. If they fail, the other team gets the point.
“So…we’re playing truth or dare,” Will says, amused.
“There’s no time limit in truth or dare.” Gia’s tone is haughty.
“You’re right,” Beckett says solemnly. “This is completely different.”
We’re seated around one of the tables, the girls on the opposite side of us. I’m surprised Dixon is allowing this. I half expected her to say something dramatic, like how she’d rather eat glass while bathing in a tub of spiders than play a party game with me. But there she is, sitting carelessly in her chair, blond hair swept over one shoulder, green eyes dancing.
Lily is up first. She stands and waits for Gia to flash the phone screen at her. The first command is written in big, bold letters, and the timer starts the moment it appears. Sixty seconds begin to count down.
ACT OUT YOUR FAVORITE SEXUAL POSITION WITH SOMEONE ON THE OPPOSITE TEAM
“Easy,” she says, grinning as she yanks Beckett out of his chair. “Doggy-style.”
We’re all laughing as she bends over the table and Beck steps up behind her, hands clasping around her hips.
“Girl, you finished that in four seconds.” Gia sounds impressed.
Lily shrugs. “I know what I like.”
I snicker.
The app keeps score, and the girls’ team now has one point on us. I’m not worried about falling behind, seeing as how this game doesn’t require much effort or concentration. Most of the commands are similar to the first one. Act out something naughty. Reveal something sexy. Do something wild. Beckett is tasked with pouring whiskey over one of Gia’s ass cheeks and licking it off. Diana and Will have to jump into the pool fully clothed, the first one in getting the point. I win a point against Diana when I swallow a whiskey shot before she does, while she gags because apparently she can’t stomach the taste of whiskey.
Beckett then has to tell his best joke to our opponents and get at least one laugh for the point. His contribution is solid. “What do you call a pool boy that doesn’t fuck the lady of the house?”
“What?” Diana says warily.
“Will.”
“That’s not a joke! It’s a statement of fact!” Diana sputters, but Gia ruins it for the women by guffawing.
“Traitor,” Diana accuses her.
“It was funny,” protests Gia.
Lily’s next command pops up.
DRINK IF YOU’VE EVER KISSED SOMEONE OF THE SAME SEX.
TEAM WITH MOST DRINKERS WINS THE POINT.
For the women, Lily and Gia both drink. For us, Beckett lifts his bottle to his lips. When Diana raises a brow at him, he simply winks. He’s got Lily on his lap now, while he runs a hand over her bare thigh. Still in nothing but her bikini, she claimed she was cold and required his body heat.
I note that Will didn’t drink. Which means he’s either lying or all his illicit extracurriculars with Beckett involve a hands-off approach.
“Your turn,” Gia tells me, and I refocus my attention on the phone.
TELL A PLAYER OF THE OPPOSING TEAM’S CHOICE THEIR SEXIEST FEATURE.
“Do Diana,” Lily says with a chortle.
The countdown starts, and I make a big show of studying Diana’s face. Tilting my head, squinting, taking a good, hard look.
“Oh, fuck off,” she grumbles. “We all know you’re going to say something sleazy, like my—”
“Your smile.”
Her suspicion is palpable. “Are you serious?”
“You have a really pretty smile.” My voice suddenly sounds a little gruff to my ears.
“The prompt was sexiest feature, not prettiest,” Gia gloats. “You guys don’t score the point.”
“Oh, in that case, I love her ass.”
“And there he is,” Diana says, sighing.
After a few more rounds, the game is tied. There’s only one turn left: Dixon’s. And the determined gleam in her eyes makes me smother a laugh. Of course she’s insanely competitive. I wouldn’t expect anything less.
“Ready?” Gia says.
“Give it to me.” Diana turns her attention toward the screen.
KISS A PLAYER OF THE OPPOSING TEAM’S CHOICE FOR AT LEAST 20 SECONDS.
“Shane!” Will and Beckett say in unison, then exchange grins.
Diana stares at them in horror. “How could you?”
The countdown on the screen reads fifty-six seconds.
“Ticktock,” I taunt, tapping the imaginary watch on my wrist.
“Just go and kiss him,” Lily urges Diana. “He’s hot.”
“I’d rather eat crushed seashells.”
See? Drama queen.
“That’s oddly specific,” Will remarks, staring at her.
“Forty-five seconds…” Beckett says in a singsong voice.
As Diana remains frozen in her seat, I glance at the other two girls, smirking. “Go ahead and give us the W already. She ain’t gonna do it. It goes against everything she believes in.”
“I can’t believe Fling or Forever has turned on me,” Diana declares. So melodramatic, this one.
The countdown is at thirty-eight seconds.
“Told you,” I brag. “She won’t do it. She knows she’ll enjoy it too much.”
Her eyes flare. “Oh, you wish. If my tongue was in your mouth, only one of us would be enjoying it.”
“Yeah. You.”
At that, I unleash the dragon. Diana jumps out of her chair and marches over to mine. I blink, and suddenly she’s straddling me.
She makes herself comfortable on my lap, and my hands instinctively cup her ass to steady her. A tingle runs down my spine the moment I make contact.
Licking her lips, Diana brings her mouth to mine and kisses me. When our lips touch, a jolt rolls through my body. And then her tongue slides out to touch mine, and fire rushes up and burns in my blood. My heartbeat pounds in my fingertips as I drag them beneath her shirt and run them over the smooth skin of her lower back. She moans softly in response. Her tongue lightly swirls over mine, teasing me, until I make a hoarse sound of desperation.
I don’t know what the hell is going on right now, but I want more. I want to know how every inch of her tastes.
But more doesn’t happen.
“And time!” Lily declares, and she and Gia start cheering that the girls scored their point.
Me, I’m too busy trying to comprehend how one kiss with Diana Dixon got me this hard.
“Lindley,” she whispers, her palm stroking up my bare arm.
I pull back, my head a little foggy. I can’t take my gaze off her. Her green eyes are like a drug.
I swallow. I can’t find my voice. My dick is a hard spike, and there’s no disguising it. I know she feels it pressing against her thigh.
“Yeah?” My throat is hoarse.
She brings her mouth close to my ear. “I win.”
