Page 17 of Loving Her

“I don’t know if she could do it! Maybe twenty years ago… like, she definitely had fun at Coyote Ugly back in her day, the stories are legendary,” Ruby said. “But now? She’s really turned into a PTA mom, God bless her. But hey, she came out for this party, and she’s drinking, so who knows.”

Kate broke off her steamy makeout session with Philip and tossed her mane of black curls over her shoulder. “Next up,” she called, pulling her skirt down as she twisted back around to sit next to her blushing dare partner.

Dante leaned forward and pulled his card, which resulted in him standing up and belting out a rendition of Jessie J’sPrice Tagthat had everyone who’d been dancing around their booth cheering.

Daniel’s other groomsman, Stephen—who was a thoroughly Midwestern boy from Eau Claire, Wisconsin—had to affect a French accent and convince a pair of Jersey girls at the bar that he was actually French. He half-won the dare.

Rose drew a card that instructed her to drink a blowjob shot like she was actually giving one, and to the shock of everyone but Ruby, who muttered, “Coyote Ugly,” under her breath, she actually did it. Loudly. And in such a skillful way that there wasn’t a drop of whipped cream in her long black hair.

Her husband Jim posed like a Charlie’s Angel with two frat guys he found on the dance floor.

A bridesmaid, Lisa, was instructed to swap clothes with someone. She chose Philip, who looked fetching in his new tan bandage dress. Lisa was just delighted that the green-striped button down and chinos she got in return didn’t smell like Axe body spray but rather Tom Ford Tobacco Vanille.

Sasha was impressed with how the evening had turned around. They were having genuine fun now, not just sitting around drinking and making stilted conversation. And all of the dares had been largely just silly stunts. She relaxed into the cushions of the booth, ready for her turn to arrive.

She let down her guard too soon.

A soft gasp escaped Ruby’s mouth as she drew her card and read it. Her eyes were wide, and though the icy blue lighting of Crystalline made it difficult to tell for sure, Sasha thought she might be blushing. She frowned. What ridiculous task could have gotten Ruby this flustered? Sasha leaned over to read the pink card.

Make out with someone in front of everyone like no one is watching.

A cold river of dread ran through Sasha. There was no way Ruby was going to make out with ‘someone.’ It would be Sasha, it could only be Sasha, because they were supposed to be dating. And this wasn’t something that had been part of any of their PDA practice. The hugs, the cheek kisses, the comfortable side by side snuggles on couches, they were getting better at that. But making out? That hadn’t even been on thetable. Sasha’s mouth went dry.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Ruby swallow hard and lean forward to grab two tequila shots out of the tray. Neither of them liked tequila at all, but Sasha was not about to turn a shot of it down, not with what was written on that little card. To her surprise, however, instead of handing her one of the glasses, Ruby downed both shots, one after another, as the whole party gaped at her.

Kate raised one perfect eyebrow. “Twoshots? Just what does that little card say, Best Gal?” She leaned over and snatched the card out of Ruby’s hand, scanning it quickly. “Ooh! Spicy. At least you’ve got a built-in dare partner right here with you, though!” She flashed a big smile at Sasha and handed her a tequila shot. “Bottoms up.”

Numbly, Sasha shot back the tequila, grimacing at the grassy taste of it. She looked over at Ruby, who was smiling nervously at her. “Rubes, we don’t?—”

“Kiss, kiss, kiss,” Dante began to chant, an excess of champagne having made him seemingly oblivious to the fact that he was cheering on his little sister to make out with another woman in front of him. Sasha closed her eyes.

Kissing Ruby was something she’d dreamed about for so long. But this scenario had never come to mind. She’d imagined something private and intimate, sweet and romantic. She hadthought about how Ruby’s lips would feel, how her mouth would taste. Now, their first kiss would be in front of Ruby’s siblings and a bunch of strangers, in the middle of a too-trendy nightclub neither of them had chosen or particularly liked, and it would taste like grass and vegetables and alcohol.

A soft weight settled in her lap, arms encircled her neck, and Sasha’s eyes flew open. Ruby’s big blue eyes, for once unsheltered by her thick-rimmed glasses, were wide and apprehensive, and she was biting her lip. “OK?”

Sasha licked her lips, wishing she’d had a moment to put on lip balm, chew a mint, something. But it was too late for any of that. “OK.”

Her world narrowed to Ruby’s face getting close to hers, her eyelids fluttering shut, mascara-black lashes fanning out over her cheeks. Their noses touched, slipped past each other, and then Ruby’s lips met Sasha’s just as Sasha closed her eyes.

Fireworks.

On the back of Sasha’s eyelids, golden sparkles and red explosions were going off as Ruby’s soft, warm lips parted, her tongue flicking out to trace along Sasha’s bottom lip. Sasha let her mouth fall open, let Ruby’s tongue in to explore. She felt Ruby’s hands move to slip up the back of her neck, into the short bristle of her hair, cupping the back of her head.

Sasha’s hands were at Ruby’s waist, and she twisted her fingers into the fabric there, soft stretch cotton winding around her fingertips as she pulled. She pulled a harsh breath in through her nose as Ruby’s kiss deepened, becoming more demanding. All of the noise of the club around them melted away into a gentle fog of static, Sasha could only really hear Ruby’s soft little whimpers and hitching breaths, the tiny ticking sounds of the hot, wet kisses. Ruby’s hands on the back of her head were strong and confident, and the thick curtain of her long red hair fell all around them, tickling Sasha’s arms.

She was utterly lost and absorbed in the kiss, and didn’t think twice about letting her hand slide up under Ruby’s top, to glide along the soft warmth of the skin there?—

Ruby jerked back then, breaking the kiss off and staring at Sasha with an unreadable expression.

“Well,” Kate said, clearing her throat. “Thank you for the show, ladies.”

Without a word or smile or anything to give Sasha any idea of what she was thinking, Ruby slipped out of her lap and back into her seat in the booth, her face almost a mask. Only a smudge of lipstick at the corner of her mouth reflected anything of what had just gone on. Sasha touched her own lips, wondering if they were tinted with remnants of Ruby’s crimson lip paint.

Around them, everyone was joking a little uncomfortably, and nobody seemed inclined to pick a card and resume the game. The night, possibly, was drawing to a close after their little show. Sasha squirmed in her seat, unsure if that’s what she wanted or not. Because going back to the Fierelli house and sharing that bed with Ruby, even with the bolster between them, that was just not going to be the same anymore, not like it had been the last few nights.

Something… everything had just changed. She knew it had. And she had no idea where things would or could possibly go from here, but she had a sinking feeling she might have just let herself in for a world of hurt.

Ruby had let her mouth and brain function on autopilot for the last hour or so of the party. She was focused on that kiss, absolutely lost in the intoxicating memory of it.

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