Page 16 of The Bully's Dare

My heart pounds in my chest. I feel her fingers on the band of my shorts and I shift awkwardly to help her get me out of them. The anticipation of her sweet mouth has me wound tight. I glance towards the flickering light of the bonfire to make sure no one’s watching us—but no. They all seem occupied, snapping open fresh beers around the bonfire.

A couple seconds pass and the buzz of anticipation turns into a fizzle of fear. Did the rip tide sweep her out?

But then I see her—a dark figure rising from the water. She emerges on the shore, climbing to her feet.

And she has my swim shorts in her hand.

My heart sinks like a stone in the deep.

I watch as she gets on shore, stands, and then turns back to me. Her fingers curl in a wave.

I groan. “Fuck—”

7

Donovan

Kenzi and I can’t stop laughing as we make our escape.

“You’re the worst,” I tell her as I drive the golf cart back.

“Aw,” Kenzi rakes her fingers through my hair. “You’re the worst, too.”

Jason’s trunks flap in the wind, hanging off of the golf cart antenna as we drive back to the marina.

It’s going to be a long, naked walk back home for Jason King.

8

Donovan

Jason—the considerate guy—has a six-pack in the back of his golf cart.

We celebrate our win by splitting a beer between us. We sneak into the TV room, which is…exactly as a it sounds. A room with a TV and a couch. It’s attached to the dock master’s office, and it comes in handy for the boat-owners who don’t have cable.

I give Kenzi the remote and she settles on VH1. The music videos provide good background noise as I make her unfold her prank in full detail.

“I’ve got to hand it to you,” I tell her, “you’ve got a devious streak.”

She cackles and takes a swig from the bottle. “That’s me. Miss Horrible.”

I shake my head. “I can’t believe he bought it.”

“I’m pretty sure he’s accustomed to women throwing themselves at his feet.”

I screw the corner of my mouth. “You’ve got that right. He thinks he’s going to have sex with you.”

She blinks at me. “What?”

“He said…” and I clear my throat now for a dramatic retelling, and point ahead, my voice a growl: “That girl there. I’m going to fuck her this summer.”

Kenzi screws up her nose. “Gross. Like he’s going to throw me over his shoulder, caveman style, and take me to his cave?”

“He probably has a shag-cave. Where susceptible women get the all-encompassing honor to getting railed by Jason King.”

Kenzi chuckles and puts her bottle to her lips, but her eyes stare into the far-off.

I call her out: “You’re thinking about it, aren’t you?”

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