Page 96 of These Pucking Boys: Part Two

“Yeah, he went with Lachy and Ryan to the basement to get more booze.”

On cue, Jake comes up the stairs that I didn’t notice before, carrying a few bottles in his hands. Lachy and Ryan follow him, their costumes back on as if they never took them off.

Jake sets his load on the bar counter and walks over. “Hey, babe. What are you doing here?”

Okay, so we’re pretending we didn’t come into the room together.

“I got lost.”

He pulls me into a hug and kisses my neck, sending shivers down my body. “I’m sorry. There was no time to warn you.”

“It’s okay.”

“Hey, T-man, if the girls find out June was in here, they’ll be pissed,” one of the guys says, but I can’t see who from my position.

“Especially Wendy,” Malcolm mutters.

“Dude, that was rude,” Banksy retorts.

“Sorry. I just don’t want my balls busted, that’s all,” the first guy replies.

“It’s okay. I’ll go.” I step away from Jake.

“I’ll join you in a bit.” He cups my cheek, then kisses me.

“It’s fine. Truly.”

Before I go, I make eye contact with Ryan and Lachy. Both stare back at me with a tinge of remorse. I’m certain they would rather follow me, but that wouldn’t be suspicious at all.

When I leave Malcolm’s office, my phone pings with a text message. It’s from Jake.

JAKE: I had to tell the guys we wanted a break from the party. That’s why we were in here.

LACHY: Then they all declared it was the best idea of the evening.

RYAN: It turned into a thing.

JAKE: I tried texting you from the basement, but there was no reception.

I keep walking as I text.

ME: Don’t worry about me. I can survive the party on my own.

“June, there you are. I’ve been looking all over for you.”

I freeze on the spot and face Wendy, who’s flanked by Fiona and Maya. “You were?”

“What happened to you?” Fiona looks me up and down.

“What do you mean?” I look at my dress and realize I skipped a button, and the front is crooked.

“You look like you were having a little too much fun.” Wendy arches a brow.

My face starts to burn. Shit. And here I thought I could simply return to the party and no one would notice a thing. Worst of all, all the guys saw me like this. Let’s hope they were too drunk to notice my wardrobe malfunction.

“Uh…”

Maya smiles tightly. “It’s a party, Wendy. Aren’t we supposed to have fun?”

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