Page 62 of The Friend Zone

“Come on, man,” Tucker clasps him on the shoulder. “We all know you’re still holding a candle to your ex. But this is a party game and jealousy is out of place. Besides, you and Bay are no longer together. Chill out, will you?”

Topher levels the Cove Knights’ goalie with a withering glare. “Stay out of this, Tuck.”

To my surprise, Ryker intervenes. “That was a legit spin. Arguing about it makes you look like a douche, man. If anyone should have a complaint, it’s me since Bay is my girlfriend. Guess what? I’m confident enough in my relationship that I don’t feel threatened about a kiss during a game.”

Topher’s malicious smile is aimed at me. “You talk about her like she’s your property. Bay, I’m surprised you let him treat you like that.”

I shake my head. “You have some nerve, Topher. Most of the people in this room have seen you getting drunk at partiesand go off on jealous rants if you ever saw me speaking to another guy. If you’re looking for someone who treated me like a commodity, look in the mirror. Now if you’re done being a douche, we can continue to play.”

I turn to look at Cole, who hasn’t moved an inch from his spot on the couch on my right. I almost expect him to agree with Topher, to say that he didn’t spin the bottle correctly.

The more he stares at me with an unreadable expression in his dark blue eyes, the more uneasy butterflies flutter their wings in the pit of my stomach.

My ex isn’t done being an asshole. “Come on, Bay. I’m not jealous. I was just trying to save you from the embarrassment of being rejected again. Last time he had the chance to kiss you, Cole looked like he would rather have kissed me than you. I was just protecting your feelings, sexy girl.”

How could I ever fall for such an evil, manipulative jerk? He’s preying on my insecurities to cause problems between me and Cole. As if my best friend and I didn’t already have enough problems.

Cole gets up from his seat, taking a step toward the space at the center of the cluster of couches. His fists are clenched at his sides, the muscle in his jaw jumping like it always does when he’s nervous or angry. “It’s just a game,” his deep voice causes my pulse to quicken. “Let’s do this. Unless you don’t want to, Bay.”

This is the thing.

I don’t know what’s going on between me and Cole. Why hasn’t he said more than a couple of words to me for weeks. Maybe I shouldn’t want to kiss him. But the truth is that I’m dying to know how it feels to kiss Cole Marshall.

If this is my only chance to do it, I’m not going to let it slip through my fingers by hesitating.

“Yeah, it’s a game.” It feels like anything but a game. “Let’s do it.” I stand up and walk up to him, stopping close, but not close enough for our bodies to touch.

Everyone is looking at us and I’m hyper aware of Jagger’s hazel eyes tracking my every movement.

For some fucked up reason, that fact makes my pulse rush even faster.

He moves first.

His big, slightly rough hand comes up to cup my jaw as he dips his blond head.

There’s a second right before his lips touch mine, when I almost get lost in the dark blue depths of Cole’s eyes.

This is my best friend, the guy I trust the most. The one I didn’t realize I was crushing on until I saw how my feelings for my ex had changed.

I’ve been thinking about kissing him for months, even though I know that he doesn’t feel the way I do. He cares, like he told Ryker. But I doubt Cole meant it the way Ryker interpreted it. Cole doesn’t feel attracted to me, he?—

His lips touch mine and my mind goes blank.

The vortex of frantic thoughts that was raging in my head a second ago melts like snow under the sun.

Cole’s lips are warm.

That’s the first thing I notice. They’re also impossibly soft as they apply a light, gentle pressure on mine.

My heart is beating so fast that I think it might explode any second now.

I’ve almost forgotten that I need to breathe until he moves his lips over mine, increasing the pressure on his second and third pass.

My lips part on instinct as I’m clinging to the hope that he isn’t going to step away from me so soon.

He doesn’t.

Cole takes my invitation to deepen the kiss. His mouth presses harder on mine, his tongue entering my mouth.

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