Page 53 of Broken Princess

“Not a joke. Once everyone gets here, we’re tucked in for twenty-four hours, so I hope you don’t have any plans tomorrow.”

“So this is like a lockdown?”

“Without the expectation of nudity, unless you want to.” Someone says from the other side of the room.

“Well, uh…”

“She doesn’t want to.” Tabitha announces from her corner of the couch. She gets to her feet, coming to stand beside Dixon. “In fact, she took a wrong turn at the quad, got lost, and was just leaving.”

Frowning at the tone in her voice, I shake my head. Walking over to the spot where the guy is sitting, I say, “I’m not leaving. Someone is supposed to teach me how to play these games, so I don’t lose horribly when I go up against my sister.” I wiggle my fingers. “I can paint and draw with the finest of brush strokes, but it’s like I have gorilla paws when it comes to video game controllers.”

Dixon sits down, patting the seat beside him. When I sit, he slings his arm over my shoulder, giving me a comforting squeeze. “You’ve come to the right place. I promise this’ll be fun.”

“You gonna give me a pre-test or something?”

“Nope. The best way to learn is by doing.” He passes me a controller and someone else slides into the last empty space on the couch. “You’re in for the time of your life.”

Looking left and right, I see that I’m surrounded by hotties, and I feel nothing. Not even a smidge of desire. Shit, as soon as this is over, I need to figure out a way to break whatever weird hold Logan has over my libido. I’m sure it must have something to do with a mental block and him being my first. If I can push through my hate and screw him, surely I can go all the way with someone I like.

I try to keep up as they explain what each button does and how to pick up a weapon, shoot, duck and dodge. It’s weird and makes no sense, but after a while I start to get the hang of it.

“You don’t have to move the controller right or left. Just push the buttons.” Dixon laughs when I move my arms and hands as if steering a car.

I die in a blaze of glory and lower the controller. “Why do I feel like I’m sweating? This is like an upper body workout.”

“You’ll get used to it and learn to relax into your grip.” He says, restarting the game so I can try again.

If I thought tonight would be tame. I was wrong. The pizza and wings arrive, the drinks start flowing, and I realize that not everyone here came for the video games. A good chunk are, but this is still VDU, and any day is a good day for a party.

Someone’s even taken up the role as DJ. When a cup is shoved in my face, I look up to see the guy from earlier standing over me. It’s hard to see what’s in the cup without taking it.

Tabitha’s a few feet away, swaying back and forth to the music. Her eyes pop open when I ask, “Is this safe to drink?”

“Absolutely.” The guy says.

Sure, like I believe him. Dixon walks back over, takes the cup from his friend and hands me the unopened beer in his hand. “That shit’s like liquid gasoline. Trust me when I say you don’t want that.”

I tip my lips up, shaking my head at the guy. “Safe, huh?”

He laughs a deep warm sound and gives me a heart-stopping smile that I’m sure makes panties erupt. But still,nothing.

“Come on, try it. You won’t be disappointed with the buzz it gives you.”

Tabitha’s still watching us. “What do you think?” I ask her. “Will my liver explode if I drink this?”

She moves closer, taking the cup from Dixon and pouring some into her cup and passing the other half to me. “Only one way to find out.” She knocks her cup against mine and says, “Bottoms ups.”

We chug and holy hell; itislike something that could start a fire. Tabitha laughs as I sputter, trying to catch my breath. “Why aren’t you shooting flames out of your chest?”

Shrugging, she says, “Because I drink this shit all the time.” She slips her arm around me, and pulls me to the floor. “Let’s get you some water, lightweight.”

“No.” Digging my feet in, I say, “I think I’ll take another one of those and then we’ll see how long it takes to get my ass handed to me in one of these video games.” I crane my head looking behind me. “Hopefully longer than I think. I kinda like where it currently sits.” I ignore the obvious stares at said ass that I’m getting.

She smiles and walks over to the table with the drinks. “Jordanna Felding, I think you’ve got a death wish.”

I sure do, and she and her friends are the ones I’m wishing it on.

Twenty-One

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