Page 64 of Beneath the Surface

I nodded, in complete agreement, and he handed me aFriday the 13thhockey mask before swiping his own from his desk. We both pointedly avoided looking at the evidence board we’d put together yesterday. Other than the reminder he’d just given me about staying together, it felt like we were both pretending that this was a normal Halloween, that we were going to party like normal college students, and there definitely wasn’t a deranged stalker fucking with us.

“Ava’s coming with Cruz?” I asked as we headed down to the kitchen where the team was congregating.

Grayson glared into the distance. “Yeah. Like a fucking date. Her, with that asshole.”

“One of her sorority sisters asked me to go with her.” I kind of agreed with Gray, but at the same time, Cruz seemed like way less of an asshole lately, and I didn’t want to put myself in a position where I’d have to defend him to Grayson. Because Grayson was…vulnerable, deep down, underneath the front he put on, and I knew he’d been hurt when we’d inadvertently left him out before. I didn’t want him to feel that way again.

“Who?” He seized on the change of subject, thankfully, passing me a shot glass brimming with tequila. There wasn’t even any salt or lime, so I was gonna have to get this over with as quickly as possible.

“Fuck—Liv—Livy,” I gasped out in between coughing up my lungs. Maybe trying to reply a second after the alcohol burned a fiery path down my throat wasn’t the best idea.

“Oh yeah? She’s hot. But not…” He paused, nudging me with his elbow until I got the hint, moving with him into a quiet corner of the kitchen. “No one compares to Ava.”

“Yeah. I couldn’t— I know we’re not… This whole situation is so fucked up, but Ava’s the only girl I’m interested in.”

“Yeah.” Rubbing his hand over his mouth, he shook his head. “Me, too. And Cruz, I think. Three of us all wanting the same girl. It’s… I dunno. Different? I’ve had threesomes, yeah, but this is just…”

“Different,” I confirmed when he trailed off, seemingly lost for words. Different was an understatement. It was so fucking unusual that all three of us were into her and sometimes it felt as if she was just as into all of us, too. Then there’d been the moment when I’d been alone with her in my bedroom—it still made my dick hard to think about it, and we hadn’t even gone very far. Ava Hayes was fucking special, and I knew the three of us all saw it. She was beautiful, of course, but there was so much more to her. A quiet strength, a kindness, a resilience that drew me to her. And somehow, I didn’t see Cruz or Gray as a threat for her attention. It all felt…right. Despite all the shit we were going through.

“Another shot!” Miller shouted from across the kitchen, temporarily diverting our attention. “The party starts in fifteen minutes!”

I pushed through the crowds, the bass thumping through the house so loudly that I wouldn’t have been surprised if the cops were called. Then again, the locals were proud of the hockey team, and they generally behaved themselves—no one wanted to incur the wrath of my dad—so they could probably get away with it.

Exiting the house and stepping into the backyard, my breath caught in my throat as I took in the figures up ahead. Long, shimmering blonde hair, obscenely short shorts— It was like seeing double. Until I weaved around a dancing couple and sawthe girls in profile. Ava and Livy, almost identical from the back, but from the front…Ava’s beauty shone out of her, dimming everyone else in the room. Fucking hell, she was stunning. I vaguely recognized the horror movie outfit—Chucky? Or a highly sexualized version that made my dick jump, because it showcased her gorgeous skater’s physique and her beautiful face—those huge, pretty blue eyes, soft pouty lips, and delicately flushed cheeks.

I frowned when I realized Cruz was nowhere to be seen, and I pushed my way through the crowds, determined to reach Ava as quickly as possible. I was almost in reach when Livy noticed me, her expression brightening, her lips curving into a flirty smile as she batted her lashes, moving to block my way to Ava.

“Micah. You look so handsome.” She trailed a fingernail down my chest, and I did my best not to recoil. I should’ve put my mask on, instead of having it pushed up on the top of my head. Maybe she wouldn’t have recognized me.

“Uh, thanks. I like your costume,” I said politely.

“Will you dance with me?” She wound her arms around my neck, and I stiffened. A throat cleared behind us.

“Sorry, Livy, I need to borrow Micah for a minute. You don’t mind, do you? I’ll bring him right back.”

I almost smiled at the way Ava spoke through gritted teeth, tugging me away from Livy, but I bit it back, willingly going with the only girl at this party that I wanted.

She led me back into the house and through the kitchen, and after glancing both ways to make sure no one was paying us any attention, pulled me into the pantry. A dim light came on as we entered.

“Where’s Cruz?” I asked. “We’re supposed to be staying together in twos.”

She arched a brow. “Like you and Grayson were?”

“Uh…” I didn’t have an answer to that. “I don’t want you alone tonight.”

“I know.” Stepping closer to me, she smiled, her lashes fluttering, but not in the obvious, artificial way I’d just experienced with Livy. “Cruz was getting us drinks. He had me in his sight the whole time. He saw you and me together, and I have no doubt he’s gone to annoy Gray right now.”

I laughed. “Poor Gray. Or poor Cruz. I can’t decide.” Meeting her gaze, I decided to sayfuck it, because who knew what would happen tonight? The two of us were here right now, and the way she was looking at me with her pupils dilated and lips parted…

I wrapped my arm around her waist, drawing her body against mine, and lowered my head to kiss her.

“Micah,” she breathed against my lips, and after that, there was no more talking for a long time, as we lost ourselves in each other.

When we drew apart for air, my dick was painfully hard, tenting my sweats, and both of us were breathless. She glanced up at me, gave me a fucking sinful smile, and then lowered herself to her knees, her hands going to my waistband.

“Is this okay?”

“Yes! Fuck, yes,” I gasped. Was this actually happening? Was Ava Hayes actually about to?—

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