Page 94 of Raise Hell

“You fuck her?”

“Nope,” I shake my head, staring hard at the chipped wood paneling on the wall. We need to get someone in to fix that, this building is a historical landmark. “At least, not yet.”

I don’t question the impulse that makes me lie to him. We don’t hesitate to keep our sexual conquests from each other. If anything, it’s considered bad form to withhold the details.

There aren’t supposed to be secrets in Havoc House.

But what happened in the hazy darkness of that cave barely feels real, like something I dreamed or read about happening to someone else.

I’m not going to talk about it until I figure out what the hell it means that it happened.

Vaughn’s smile is a little malicious. “I would have thought Olivia Pratt was the type to give it up on the first date.”

“What can I say? Sometimes these things take time.”

His gaze moves over me, assessing. “You still think your plan is going to work?”

“It’s only been one date, I’ve got this.”

“I’m always ready to step in, if that’s what it takes.”

“You’ve said that.” I only realize as I look at him just how true that is. “More than once, actually. You know something about Olivia I don’t?”

“I just want to make sure the plan goes smoothly, for all our sakes.” He shrugs, but there is a tension in his shoulders. “The last thing we need is for you to figure out you’re in over your head when it’s too late to do anything about it.”

“Olivia isn’t going to be a problem.” I cross my arms over my chest as we stare each other down. “Are you?”

His lips tighten, but then he looks away. “Nope.”

Vaughn and I have been in a mostly friendly competition since the day I arrived at St. Bart’s. Being best friends hasn’t stopped us from also being rivals.

I wonder how much it bugs him that I’m the one Olivia latched herself onto.

Maybe he thinks it should have been him.

My voice is only mildly taunting. “You jealous?”

Vaughn blinks, and then the tension seems to drain from his body as he relaxes back against the sofa. “Always. Everyone knows that Drake Van Koch lives his life on easy street.”

If he can joke, then a disagreement isn’t that serious. The first thing that goes when Vaughn gets mad is his sense of humor.

Instead of heading upstairs, I stride into the living room and sit next to him on the couch.

“So what has your panties in a bunch?”

“Nothing.” Vaughn reaches for the lit joint balanced on an ashtray on the coffee table. He holds it out to me, but I wave him away. “It’s all the same shit in a different year. For some reason, I thought our senior year would be different.”

I can’t exactly fault him for that, considering I’ve been thinking the same thing since the semester started.

So I decide to ask him about what has been bugging me, even if I won’t share everything.

“You seem to remember more about Olivia than anyone else—” I stop, trying to decide the best way to phrase it. “You ever hear of her hooked up with any guys?”

“Not specifically. Why?”

“Any chance she could be a virgin?”

His grin widens. “She cockblocked you, huh?”

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