Page 36 of The Step Dare

“You know I’m kidding. You just like to pretend you’re not as great as you are. You forget I know you.” He moves to sit on theedge of the bed, which is probably safer since we’re not going to do this again. “I should probably go to my room.”

“Yeah, you’re a bed hog.”

He cocks a brow at me. “Do you know you? The way you can hardly stay still while awake? It’s the same thing when you’re sleeping.”

We laugh together before Taylor stands.

“Are you sure we’re good? That that’s what you wanted and you felt comfortable the whole time?”

“We’re always good, Bren. I’m glad you were there with me…my first time with a guy. That made it even better.”

“Of course. I make everything better,” I say, but really, my chest feels a little funny. I watch as Taylor grabs his things and heads for my bedroom door.

“Night, Bren.”

“Night,” I reply, and then Taylor slips out of my bedroom. “You could have at least taken the used condoms with you!” I call out and hear him laugh.

11

Taylor

“Idon’t getit,” Lance says. “I thought we had a great night, and then she tells me she’s not vibing with me.”

After my last class of the day, I bumped into Lance and Ash, and they invited me to hang with them at the student center. I was planning to do some deliveries before heading home, but it’s been a minute, and it’d be nice to catch up with the guys. And I’m glad I did, since apparently, Lance isn’t having the best day.

“I’m just glad you’re dating again,” Ash says. “You took so long to recover after Shannon.”

“I know, right? I don’t know that I would have been able to push myself if it hadn’t been for you and the guys, but now I’m starting to think, ‘Why even bother?’”

Ash winces. “You get very attached very quickly. I think because you and Shannon fell hard within a couple of dates, you expect it to be like that again, and that’s not how it works. Taylor, back me up here.”

“I don’t think I can have much of an opinion on this. I haven’t been on a date since…it would have been last spring.”

“Really?” Ash says. “Like you haven’t even had some fun?”

“Uh…”

That’s not what I was saying, but I should’ve known that if anyone would probe, it’d be Alpha Theta Mu’s resident whiz.

He and Lance perk right up.

“Oh, do tell,” Lance says. “Who’s the mystery girl?”

I chuckle nervously because I sure as hell can’t tell them about what my life looks like right now.

About what Bren and I did at the start of the summer and continued through the cruise.

And then the other week when Bren and I were going at Dax’s ass, which was an unbelievably good time. Fun, frisky, and both were great at making me feel comfortable and then like some kind of sex god. And the way Brenner’s eyes were fixed on me throughout, like he was so impressed with how I topped… I still get a semi just thinking about that night.

“There’s no mystery girl,” I say with a laugh.

I’m sure I could trust Lance and Ash with this, but it’s not really anyone else’s business, and I’ve enjoyed this being my thing and Brenner’s—assuming Brenner’s big mouth can keep any of this quiet, that is.

And now I’m thinking about that mouth again…and all the things it can do to me.

“We’ll ask nicely once more,” Ash says, “and then we’ll just ask Brenner and he’ll tell us more than you’d ever want us to know.”

Ash winks. I know he’s just playing. He’d never go behind my back, any more than Brenner would say something I genuinely didn’t want anyone to know.

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