Bad Intentions: Chapter 16

My mom disappeared after the game, probably to find my dad and schmooze with the team sponsors. Eve and I talked to a few people and made our way outside to where my dad had parked his truck in the lot. It wasn’t there. We headed back inside to look for him. Eve fiddled with her phone as we made our way down toward the locker room and my dad’s office. I remembered the moment days before when I’d walked in on Cayden after his shower. I hadn’t realized it at the time, but that moment had changed my life.

“So, any news from California?” Eve wondered as we walked past a steady stream of players who’d already gotten changed and were leaving, no doubt anxious to get to Beckett’s party.

“No, nothing. At this rate, I might not even get in and then I won’t have to worry about telling my parents,” I muttered.

“It wouldn’t be the worst thing not to get in. You can go to HHU with me. We could be roommates!” Eve elbowed me. “Save money and live with your best friend, what could be better?”

“You know my mom would want me to live at home if I went to HHU, that’s the problem.”

Eve stopped beside me and crossed her arms over her chest. The silence felt heavy, like she wanted to say something but was holding herself back.

“What is it? Just spit it out already.”

“Well, you know that the whole rooming at HHU thing isn’t really the problem, right? The problem is not just telling your parents that you want to live on campus, even if they live nearby. The problem is being scared to tell them the truth about what you want for once. You won’t disappoint them, Lily. You’re the model daughter, a perfect student…it’s time you did something you want for you, and not for them.”

I let out a jagged laugh. “The fact that you’re saying that makes it very clear that we did not grow up in the same house. You don’t get it. They wouldn’t say anything…it’s not what they say or don’t say…it’s the look of disappointment, the expectations – all of it. It’s a lot harder to feel crushed under the weight of your parents’ failed dreams if you’re thousands of miles away.”

“But you love Hade Harbor, and me…and HHU is a great school. It sucks that you have to go across the country when a simple conversation might be easier.”

“It wouldn’t be simple, or easy.”

Eve sighed. “Yeah, well, maybe important things aren’t meant to be easy. Maybe fighting for them is what matters. If your parents knew how you felt, don’t you think they’d feel bad? By going away, you aren’t giving them a chance to understand you, either. It’s like you’re punishing them.”

“Don’t hold back, tell me how you really feel,” I muttered, feeling utterly and horribly called out. Was Eve right? Yes, and you know it. Still, it was hard to even imagine sitting down with my parents and telling them that I needed more freedom and less academic pressure. Running away felt a hell of a lot easier.

A loud whistle reached us from the end of the hall. I glanced up. Marcus headed toward us. “You girls ready for the party?”

“We’re not going. I’m looking for my dad.”

Marcus stopped before us, rocking back on his heels. “I’m sorry to tell you, Bug, but I think he went home for some post-game celebration time with your mom. He thinks you’re going to the party with Cayden.”

I blushed at Marcus’ suggestive smile.

“Shut up. Are you serious?” Eve turned to me, excitement leaping in her eyes. “Does that mean we’re going after all?”

“No – I mean, I don’t know.” My father never liked me going to parties. It wasn’t like he forbade me, more like he didn’t encourage it. I usually wasn’t invited, anyway, so it wasn’t a big deal.

“Anyway, I’m hitching a ride there myself. My bike’s in the shop. I think your ride is out back.” With that, Marcus saluted us and left.

Eve turned to me, her tone wheedling. “Please, please, please can we go. Even your dad gave the green light! That never happens!”

“To be fair, I never ask.” And I haven’t asked this time either. “How did this even happen?”

Eve’s pretty dark eyes narrowed. “You think Cayden did it?”

My mouth went dry. “Why would he?”

“He seemed pretty into the idea of you going to the party.”

“I don’t know why. It’s not like we hang out or talk to each other if we can avoid it.”

Eve and I walked down the hall toward the parking lot at the back.

“Do you think he likes you?” Eve ventured after a moment.

“What? No. Of course, he doesn’t. He doesn’t even know me, and I’m not the kind of girl guys get crushes on, am I?”

“Why not? You’re beautiful and smart—”

“And you have your best-friend glasses on. I love you, but I’m under no illusions about how I look. I’m nerdy and that’s fine. I’m not trying to be anything else.”

It was true. With my glasses, gawky limbs, abundance of freckles, and milk-bottle skin tone, I knew I wasn’t a contender for any beauty contests. Maybe my kind of pale, red-haired vibe might have been in style in 1800s England, but it certainly wasn’t popular in modern-day America. Eve was the opposite of me in every way and drew longing stares wherever she went. But with an overprotective brother like Asher, she got to act on the interest sent her way even less than I did.

The school had emptied out, and there was that creepy air of being somewhere you shouldn’t after hours. We pushed out of the big back doors and walked down the path leading to the parking lot. The cool night air made me shiver and I was grateful to be wearing jeans and an old hockey jersey from my dad’s Hellions days.

As we turned the corner into the parking lot, I came to an abrupt stop. Eve was telling me a funny story from the diner where she worked. She realized I’d stopped walking after a second and looked back.

“What’s up?”

I pointed, and she slowly turned and followed my gaze.

Two motorcycles sat at the curb, each with a rider. Beckett was well known for his toys, and the custom Harley was just another example of the fancy rides his parents lavished on him. Cayden sat astride the same bike that had shown up at the house the other day. He already had his helmet on, but I would have known it was him even without the visor up. I already recognized the shape of his long legs and broad shoulders.

“Finally. I know it’s cool to be fashionably late, but seeing as I’m the host, I really should get going,” Beckett drawled. He held out an extra helmet to Eve.

She stood frozen beside me.

“Get a move on, Cinderella,” he said to my best friend.

Cinderella? I’d never heard Eve called that as a nickname, and I’d had no idea that she and Beckett, the richest boy in school, were on nickname terms.

Eve huffed and rolled her eyes. “See you there.” She headed toward Beckett, leaving me alone with Cayden.

I walked toward him slowly, considering my options.

“I know what you’re thinking, Freckles, but it’s too far to walk and I won’t let you. Get on, or I’ll put you on.”

I scoffed. “Right, you’d love that, wouldn’t you?”

Cayden grinned. “Yeah, actually, I would. Let’s do that anyway.”

He made to get off the bike, and I rushed forward. The thought of being manhandled by him right now was more than I could deal with.

“Fine, whatever. Has anyone ever told you you’re a bully?”

I reached his side and lifted a leg to straddle the bike. Nearly falling, I had to grab on to his arm to steady myself.

“Never in such a sweet way,” Cayden murmured, twisting around to hand me the helmet. “Safety first, Lily.”

I took it and pulled it over my head. Ugh, it was horribly tight and claustrophobic.

“Where did the bike come from?” I wondered.

“Midnight Falls. I’ve had it a while. Now, sit closer,” Cayden commanded as I loosely put my hands on his waist.

He grabbed my arms and yanked them around his middle, sending me flush against his back, my legs spread wide to grip his hips.

“Hey, too close,” I hissed.

“No such thing. Hold on,” he told me over his shoulder before starting the bike.

It purred to life, and the vibration traveled through my legs. It was startlingly intimate. Damn, this was how it felt to sit on a motorcycle? No wonder people liked them. Cayden pulled away, his tires squealing on the pavement. Gradually, the annoyance of the helmet dropped away, and I was able to concentrate on the journey. Cayden drove well. He was confident, handling turns like a pro. I felt safe with him. It was an odd thing to realize. Just like when he’d showed up when I’d run right into trouble on our jog, I felt instinctively at ease.

We headed into the dark, leaving the bright town streets behind and riding along the winding coastal road that led to Beckett’s cliff-top mansion. Cayden accelerated, and a strangled cry left me as we surged forward. We were going much faster now, but the road was quiet. A sudden laugh bubbled up in my chest. It felt freeing, somehow, shooting through the darkness, a dangerous bike between my legs with an even more dangerous guy driving it.

I laughed, and Cayden glanced back at me. I couldn’t see his face through the visor. I didn’t have to, to feel his satisfaction. It radiated off him. He liked that I liked it. Somehow, in our short but dramatic acquaintance, I’d learned to read him just by being next to him.

I straightened up, and he slowed a little, seeming to read my mind. I took one hand off Cayden’s waist when we found a straight stretch of road and raised it over my head. It should have felt silly, but it didn’t. Squeezing Cayden’s hips and the bike harder between my thighs, I let go completely and brought both hands up. I felt like I was flying. He’d slowed down, letting me have my moment. I couldn’t figure this guy out. On one hand he was invading my privacy and threatening me, on the other he was protecting me and forcing me to live in a way I’d given up hoping for in Hade Harbor. The dangerous hockey player from the wrong side of the tracks, and the uptight, straight-A student, Coach’s daughter. There was no way we fit together, and yet right now, sitting on the back of his bike while he drove us through the forgiving dark, I felt understood in a way I rarely did.

“Okay, hold on, there’s some bends coming up,” Cayden yelled back over his shoulder.

I reached back around him, gripping handfuls of his jacket to hold on as he tilted us to turn a corner. My heart still pounded when we reached the driveway to Beckett’s place and roared past other partygoers and cars. People scattered, some even clapping when they saw the hero of tonight’s game arriving at the party.

He pulled to a stop, and the loud rumble of the engine died, quickly replaced by the music spilling out of the mansion.

I yanked my helmet off and got off the bike. Before I could take a proper step away, Cayden grabbed my wrist.

“Not so fast. Where do you think you’re going?”

“To the party. Reluctantly, I might add. I don’t know what kind of weird kick you get out of making me go somewhere I didn’t want to go, but it’s not going to work. I’m going home as early as I can, and you can’t stop me.” I crossed my arms over my chest and watched Cayden clipping both helmets onto his bike.

“Is that right?” He didn’t sound daunted in the least.

“That’s right,” I snapped.

“Lil!”

Eve’s shout was loud and close, and I welcomed it. I turned to her just as she skipped to my side.

“You survived!”

“So did you.” Threading my arm through hers, I stepped away from Cayden without another word, and we started up the stairs. Maybe tonight would be a good time to start drinking heavily?

“It wasn’t that bad,” Eve said.

“Hey, why wasn’t I aware of how close you and Beckett are?”

Eve blushed. “We’re not close at all. I don’t know why you think that.”

“He called you Cinderella.”

“Yeah, probably because I clean his house sometimes. Believe me, if this were the story, he’d be the evil stepmother, not the prince,” Eve muttered. Her tone was loaded with everything she wasn’t saying. There was definitely more there, but it seemed she wasn’t in the mood to share.

“Whatever. Where there are Ice Gods, there’s trouble—except your brother, of course,” I added quickly.

She laughed and rolled her eyes. “Believe me, I am aware of who my brother is to the general student body. He’s a dick, and a bully, and has broken more hearts than any guy has a right to, but…”

“He’s your brother,” I finished for her.

She sighed resignedly and nodded. “So, let’s go and get a birthday drink or something.”

“Sure,” I said easily.

Eve stopped dramatically in the middle of the hallway and stared at me. “Who are you, and where is the real Lily?”

“I can have one drink. Yesterday was my birthday, after all,” I added. What I didn’t say was that I was probably going to need a drink to get through tonight with my sanity intact. Cayden had maneuvered me here for a reason, and there was little to no chance I’d be getting out of here without finding out why.

An hour later, and I might have actually been having fun at a school party. Maybe the sun would rise in the west, too; that was how upside down everything felt.

We were talking to some kids from art class and having a great time. The Ice Gods had disappeared somewhere to hold court with their gushing fans, the music was good, the snacks were amazing, there was a real live personal chef in the kitchen, and the one cocktail I’d had had mellowed me out a fraction and stopped my head from swiveling and looking for Cayden every two minutes.

“Let’s walk around, I need some fresh air,” Eve muttered later, when the crowd in the huge sitting room became too much to bear.

The air inside was heavy and damp, and I longed to feel the cool autumn breeze on my face. I followed Eve out back. The swimming pool was uncovered, and the blue was tempting, despite the chill in the air.

“Come on, let’s see if there’s anyone in the pool house,” Eve said, taking off before I could stop her.

I followed reluctantly. If there was anywhere that Cayden and the Ice Gods would be, it was in there. I had no idea why Eve was eager to run into them, but then, she’d hadn’t had the problems with them that I had. Well, the problems I’d had with one of them. Before Cayden West’s arrival at our school, I’d been invisible to the Ice Gods and most of the student body. I didn’t really know how to feel about the fact that a lot more people knew my name now. I didn’t know how to feel about the reality of being someone, instead of no one, at school.

Inside the pool house the music was quieter, and there was a hum of conversation. As soon as we stepped through the door, I knew it was a mistake to come here.

The Ice Gods sat around the cozy couch area, and several of the rest of the team were dotted about, talking to puck bunnies. Selena sat on the couch between Cayden and Marcus. Marcus flirted with her, flashing his megawatt smile, while Cayden inspected his bottle label like it was the most interesting thing in the world. His whole body seemed to jerk when he saw me standing in the doorway.

Was I upset that he hadn’t sought me out? Of course not. That was crazy. I wasn’t trying to set a new record for some kind of accelerated Stockholm syndrome. Cayden was a threat; he was using the secrets he’d stolen from me to twist me into doing whatever he wanted. More importantly, he was dangerous. Ellen, the girl from his old town, had seemed terrified of him. What was his deal? What kind of guy had my father let into his house while we were sleeping?

“Evie, isn’t it time you started home?” Asher called to his sister, watching her with dark eyes.

Winter, who lounged in a chair by the daybed, deeply engrossed in her phone, snorted loudly. It was a surprising sound, considering the bored blonde never seemed to be listening.

“Got something to say, DeLaurie?” Asher tossed at her.

“She’s your twin, last time I checked, not your little sister. Stop treating her like she’s five.” Winter’s arctic tone was legendary. Tonight, hearing it employed against an Ice God was kind of amazing, and on Eve’s behalf, no less.

“What’s it got to do with you, rich girl? We all know you wouldn’t be here without Daddy’s permission, would you?” Asher’s tone was half teasing, half lethal.

Winter’s eyes flashed with annoyance at the jibe. She looked stumped for a split second, a rare moment of vulnerability. Then her pretty pink lips curled into a cruel smile. “At least I have a daddy, Asher. Leave your sister alone and stop trying to be her dad. Maybe you should look for a non-blood relation you can get to call you Daddy.”

“What, like you?” Asher’s face was hard now; cold amusement and glittering malice lighting up his eyes.

I didn’t know how the hell Winter was holding that terrifying glower. She was made of tougher stuff than I was, that was for sure.

“You wish, Martino. I don’t slum it. I have vibrators worth more than you.” With that last scathing remark, Winter pushed herself to her feet and tossed her hair back over her shoulder, once again the picture of nonchalant nihilism.

She made to step past Asher just as he extended a long leg to block her path. A muscle ticked in his stubbled jaw. “You’ll pay for that, you spoiled little brat.”

Winter’s creamy cheeks heated, a rare sight. She folded her arms across her chest and stared Asher down. “Whatever. Are you done? Selena, I’m going. This party sucks.” She smiled at Asher. “There isn’t a single person here worth staying for.”

“Ouch!” Marcus shouted at Winter’s retreating back, once Asher finally lifted his leg and allowed her past. “What crawled up her ass…except your wishful thinking, Ash.” He laughed at his own joke.

I tore my eyes from Eve’s brother, who stewed silently, taking long pulls from his open bottle. Josh appeared at my side. The player who loved my dad a little too much.

“Hey, Lily. How’s it going?”

“Fine. You? Congratulations on the game, by the way.”

Josh grinned, his light-brown hair flopping over his eyes. “Yeah, it was a great one. I mean, I didn’t really do much but—”

“It’s a team effort, my dad always says. The team is only as strong as its weakest player and all that.”

Cayden snorted loudly from his seat, making us both turn to look at him. He stood and stretched his arms over his head, and his black T-shirt rode up his flat, muscle-packed abdomen. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from that tantalizing sliver of skin, and worst of all, Cayden caught me looking and only grinned harder. He sauntered toward us, like he had all the time in the world, somehow managing to stand next to me so that Josh had to take a step back.

“I know you aren’t up on sports, Freckles, but it isn’t very nice to call someone the weakest player to their face.”

My mouth dropped open, and I spun to Josh, sticking my hand out to grab his arm. “Oh my God, I didn’t mean it like that. I was just saying random stuff. I really didn’t,” I rambled.

Josh laughed, and I couldn’t tell if he was upset or not.

“It’s cool. I know what you meant. Anyway, the star of the game is undisputed.” He turned to Cayden, the light of hero worship shining in his eyes. He held out his hand to slap Cayden’s. “You were awesome, man.”

Cayden ignored the outstretched hand, his gaze fixed on the place where Josh’s arm brushed mine. After a long, tense moment, Josh dropped his hand and cleared his throat.

“This is boring, you guys! Let’s play a game,” Selena proclaimed loudly from the couch.

Josh turned to the attention-starved queen bee. “Like what?”

“Like…truth or dare,” Selena said, a wicked smile coating her red lips.

“Pass,” I said immediately and searched for Eve.

She was deep in conversation with a couple of puck bunnies I recognized from her diner job.

“To everyone’s relief, I’m sure,” Selena jabbed at me. She laughed. “No offense, but have you even ever had a first kiss, Bug? No one wants to kiss someone that clueless.”

At her words, my eyes skittered to Cayden’s. The kiss in the bathroom played over and over in my mind, an endless loop I couldn’t escape. It was the most shocking, sexy and terrifying thing that had ever happened to me.

I took a step back from the group, and my back came up against an unmovable object. It was Cayden’s arm. He’d braced it on the counter behind me when I wasn’t looking. Now, I was trapped between him and Josh.

“What’s wrong, Lily? Running away again?” His low murmur was for me and me alone.

My eyes drifted to Selena’s. She watched me carefully, waiting for an opening to pounce. She didn’t like how close Cayden was standing to me, that was for sure. Something twisted inside me enjoyed the way her eyes narrowed when I stepped closer to him. Sure, maybe I couldn’t blow holes in her self-esteem like she managed to do to me, but I could still make her hurt, even just a little bit.

Cayden had tilted his face down to watch me. The smell of him filled my nose as I got closer.

“If I am?” I hummed.

His eyes immediately narrowed, and a faint, amused grin passed over his lips. “Then you leave me no choice but to chase. Just like you want me to…”

I forgot about Selena for a moment and looked up at him. “Stop thinking you know me just because you read a few pages of my thoughts. You don’t know me, Cayden.”

“Keep telling yourself that.”

“Come on, if you play, I’ll play, Lil,” Josh interrupted from beside us.

Cayden shot him a dark look I wouldn’t want to be on the other end of.

“Okay, whatever,” I muttered, stepping forward toward Josh.

Josh was safe. Josh smelled normal and didn’t make my heart pound like I was having an attack.

Selena had organized people into a loose circle. Beckett smoked by an open window and seemed uninterested in playing.

Eve moved to the circle and tugged me down beside her. “You really want to play?”

“I don’t care. I’ve never played before. Maybe it’s a rite of passage.” I gave her a crooked smile.

“You’ve never played truth or dare? Do you live under a rock, Bug? Ha! I guess that tracks.” Selena cackled.

That girl was asking for a slap tonight.

I shrugged, and she only laughed harder, raising her voice to reach everyone. Cayden had settled in a chair, more or less in the game, and Josh had sat beside me.

“Bug’s never played truth or dare!” She turned to me. “I can safely say everyone here has, so I guess that makes you a truth or dare virgin.”

“Not all of us enjoy playing silly little kid’s games at parties,” a deep voice broke in. It was Cayden. His judgmental words quieted the snide comments about me going around the circle.

I risked a glance at him. Was he saying he’d never played either?

He watched me with a look that I couldn’t decipher. I quickly averted my eyes.

“Whatever,” Selena rallied. She sat, making sure to flash a large amount of bare thigh, and grinned evilly. “Who’s going first? I will! It’s only right that the new guy goes first! Cayden, truth or dare.”

He stared flatly at Selena for a moment. “Truth.”

Selena tapped her lip and then grinned. “Is there any girl who has caught your eye at HHH yet?”

Cayden inclined his head. “There is.”

Selena sat up straighter. “Who?”

Cayden raised an eyebrow at her. “That’s two questions, isn’t it? Don’t tell me you don’t know how to play your own game.”

Selena flushed and took a drink of her cocktail. “Whatever. It’s your turn.”

Cayden looked around the circle, and his gaze landed on me. Nerves writhed in the pit of my belly. He was going to pick on me, I just knew it. I stared down, trying to avoid the inevitable.

“Lily, truth or dare.”

What the fuck was the best option to go with right now?

“Truth,” I blurted quickly. I was genuinely afraid of what dare Cayden’s twisted mind could come up with.

Cayden smiled, and I immediately knew I’d chosen wrong.

He set down his drink and leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees. “Are you a virgin?”

I stared at him, shocked that he’d gone right to my weakest point. A few whistles sounded around the circle.

“Damn, West came to play! We’re only two questions in, too” Marcus laughed.

My face heated to the point where I thought it might pop like an overinflated balloon.

Selena sighed and folded her arms over her chest. “That’s such an obvious question. Look how embarrassed she is. The answer is yes, clearly.”

Fucking hell, how had I ended up here, being asked about my pathetic lack of a sex life in front of all four Ice Gods and half the team?

“I choose dare. I want to change,” I blurted out quickly. I just couldn’t bring myself to confirm the blindingly obvious in front of so many people. Of course, they all knew, but it was different to confirm it and try and not to seem like an embarrassed mess who was about to burst into tears.

“You can’t do that,” Selena protested.

“Fine. I dare you to bring me another drink,” Cayden said, sitting back and looking at me expectantly.

“That’s it?” Selena screeched.

I rose quickly and went to the bar. I grabbed a bottle that matched the one Cayden was drinking, hoping to get this whole thing over before he changed his mind.

“I wasn’t finished.” His voice drifted over to me.

I froze in place at the bar, aware of everyone’s eyes on my back.

“I dare you to bring me another drink, on your knees.”

I turned slowly around, my eyes meeting Cayden’s.

“Meaning?”

“Meaning,” he smirked and set down his empty bottle. “Crawl to me, Freckles.”

Silence met that order, until Selena tittered awkwardly. “Oh, I get it. You mean crawl, because she’s a bug, right?”

Is he being serious? But I knew he was, just like I knew I had no choice but to do what he wanted or answer the humiliating truth. You could just run away. No, not this time. There was a satisfied look in Cayden’s eyes as he watched me. What an asshole. He was determined to embarrass me somehow. He didn’t expect me to do it.

A sudden sense of rebellion washed through me. I was so over being the good girl and trying to live up to everyone’s impossible expectations. Not this time.

Cayden’s eyes never left me as I sank to my knees.

Beckett whistled from the corner, stubbing out his cigarette. “This is getting interesting.”

Murmurs of shock rippled through the group as I fixed the open bottle in one hand and started toward him on all fours. I could feel the disbelief radiating from our observers, but my eyes were held prisoner by Cayden’s. He leaned forward like he wanted to lunge at me. His hands were closed in tight fists, his jaw hard.

He didn’t want me to really do it, I realized suddenly. He didn’t like everyone seeing. He was just fucking with me, like always.

I nearly grinned then, feeling like I had the power between us for the first time.

The bottle in my hand wobbled slightly, and I had to stop and grip it tighter. I belatedly realized that it wasn’t even beer, it was some fancy craft kombucha. He didn’t even have the excuse of being buzzed to torture me.

“Don’t spill a drop, Lillian, or you’ll have to lick it up,” Cayden ground out.

Josh whistled. “Is it getting hot in here, or is it just me?”

I reached Cayden and sat back on my heels, raising the bottle to him, my arm brushing his knee. The dark expression in his eyes stole my breath. His fingers slid along mine when he took the bottle from me.

“Okay, enough of this! Lily, it’s your turn,” Selena nagged.

I turned around and sat back in the circle. Everyone was looking at me, and for the first time ever, I was fresh out of embarrassment.

“Selena, truth or dare?” I said immediately.

She smirked. “Dare, darling. There’s nothing I won’t do.”

Marcus caught my eye across the circle, subtly tilting his head toward Selena.

“Kiss Marcus for ten seconds.” There, that was a classic dare, or so I thought.

Marcus flashed me a sly thumbs-up. Selena seemed annoyed for a second, no doubt feeling that kissing another guy was a wrench in her plan to get with Cayden, but plastered on a smile.

“Okay, that’s a dare I can do.”

She got down on all fours and crawled across the circle. She moved with exaggerated sexiness, slinking like a big cat parody, and several team players laughed. She reached Marcus and shot a glance at Cayden. He was staring at his phone and ignoring the entire thing.

When she got close enough, stretching it out for attention, she stopped in front of Marcus. He grinned and shocked her by reaching out and grabbing her long ponytail, wrapping it like a rope around his fist.

“Stop fucking around. I’m waiting.” He yanked her head to his and kissed her hard.

She nearly fell over, her hands scrambling for purchase on his legs. He kissed her ruthlessly, and I couldn’t look away. Everyone watched, stunned, as they made out with reckless abandon for a whole ten seconds.

Right on time, Marcus pulled back and dropped her hair so suddenly, she nearly fell. Selena panted, her eyes unfocused, her lips red and puffy.

She looked like she was ready for round two, but Marcus’ cold laugh froze her in place.

“Man, that’s what all the hype was about? What a disappointment,” he said and smirked as he settled back and nodded across the circle. “Don’t get your panties in a twist and stop holding up the game.”

His dismissive words sent Selena spinning around and plopping down in her space. She breathed hard, and embarrassment stained her cheeks. I didn’t like to see any girl humiliated by any of the Ice Gods, but there was something satisfying about seeing Selena knocked down a peg, considering how often she’d laid into me.

“Whatever. It’s my turn?” She shot glittering eyes to me. “Lily, truth or dare.”

“I’ve already gone!”

“Let someone else have a go,” Eve protested.

“No. It’s my choice, and I choose Bug.” Selena raised her chin mulishly.

I fought an internal sigh. “Okay, whatever. I choose dare.”

She smiled, and her gaze traveled over to Cayden. She was obviously pissed I’d made her kiss another guy in front of her crush, and that he’d gone and embarrassed her as well.

“Kiss Josh–full make-out–thirty seconds.”

I jerked, surprised by her words. My eyes met Cayden’s. His were carefully blank, but there was darkness lurking there that I couldn’t examine too closely. That way lay madness.

Josh elbowed me gently. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

“Yes, she does! You can’t just keep changing the rules for her,” Selena protested hotly.

“It’s fine, whatever.” I twisted to the side to face Josh. “Let’s just kiss.”

He swallowed hard, his expression turning serious and a little nervous. “You won’t tell Coach about this, right?”

I rolled my eyes. “Of course not.”

He nodded with relief and leaned in. “Good. Okay, here I go,” he muttered.

His breath was minty and not unpleasant. His lips passed over mine a couple of times before they pressed more firmly against my mouth.

It wasn’t a bad kiss. It felt just like shaking hands. It was impersonal and tepid. Absolutely nothing happened inside me at the touch of Josh’s lips. Nothing like what had happened when Cayden touched me. Until this very moment, my second-ever kiss, I’d had no idea that the way I’d felt inside when Cayden had kissed me wasn’t normal. It wasn’t even close to normal, I realized, as Josh kissed me lightly. I wasn’t lost. I wasn’t hot. I didn’t want to sway into him. My body was as unresponsive as a dead fish.

“And that’s thirty seconds!” Eve called as soon as she could.

“Thirty seconds of the most boring, virgin kiss I’ve ever seen,” Selena grumbled loudly.

I leaned away, my skin prickling with the feeling of eyes on me. It was Cayden. He bored a hole into the side of my face. I didn’t dare turn and meet his eyes.

The game moved on, and thankfully, I wasn’t called again. Only ten minutes later, one of the Ice God’s minions appeared at the door of the pool house and announced that it was cake time. Cake time? Right, this was both a birthday party and a victory party. Beckett had actually gotten us a cake? I looked over at him as he sat quietly in the corner, smoking again, seeming to be in a funk. I didn’t get the guy at all, but then, I didn’t really get any guy, especially not the Ice Gods.

We all got up to go back to the main house. Josh talked in my ear as we left the pool house.

“I mean, if you want,” he was saying.

I could feel Cayden watching me. He drifted closer. It was like my whole body was attuned to his. I could feel as he approached without even looking.

“Sorry, what?” I asked Josh, suddenly aware that he had asked me something.

“I said we could go to the movies sometime, if you wanted,” he repeated. His ears had turned red at the tips.

Was he asking me out? I didn’t know what the hell to say to that. After the lukewarm kiss we’d shared, I never expected that he’d ask me out.

“I—” I started and never got further.

As we skirted the pool, a hand landed on my hip. I spun, trying to see who was touching me. Then the hand shoved, and I fell.