Page 37 of The Step Dare

“There’s no girl,” I insist, since I can be honest about that.

Ash’s expression turns suspicious. “So someone’s been playing the field. Learning Brenner’s tricks?”

He’s more on the nose than he could possibly know. “You could say that. I’ve just been having fun.”

Lance’s jaw drops. “Seriously? You like, don’t even talk and girls are throwing themselves at you? I have to get like seven rejections before one finally says yes.”

“Seven?” I ask. “That seems like a lot.”

“I get nervous,” he says, somewhat defensively.

“Yeah,” Ash says, “because you’re already thinking about heading down the aisle with them, and they’re just wanting what’s in your pants.”

“I’m not that bad,” Lance says. “I just don’t get the whole hooking up. I’m more of a relationship guy. I like sex when you know the person. When you get them and they get you, so it’s not just the mechanics, like you’re trying to simulate something hot from porn. You can make a cheesy-ass joke during or be a little goofy, and it’s fun. There’s an intimacy to it. And look who I’m telling this to. The guy who gets to fuck around with his stepbrother-boyfriend every night.”

“Every night? Seriously?” Ash says, his expression twisting up. “Sometimes we have to wait until the morning.”

His lips tug into a mischievous smirk as Lance glares at him. It’s clear that Lance is jealous of Ash’s setup with his stepbro, and I must admit, I feel a twinge of envy too. It’s much worse having to go home to your future stepbro you can’t fuck no matter how much you may want to.

“I get it,” I tell Lance. “There’s something nice about knowing a person who really gets you in a way other people don’t. It’s definitely not the same as a one-night stand, which can be fun. But it’s not the same.”

That’s how it is with Brenner. We’ve been friends for so long, I can’t imagine anyone getting me more than he does. And it doesn’t hurt that he has plenty of experience pleasuring guys.

Yeah…I definitely haven’t minded benefiting from that either.

Lance and Ash exchange a look.

“What’d I say?” I ask.

“For a guy who doesn’t talk much,” Ash says, “I feel like you’re saying a lot today.”

“Huh?”

“It sounded like you were playing the field,” Lance says, “but now it sounds like she’s someone you either dated in the past or maybe a friend.”

Fuck, I really have said too much.

“It’s just—”

“You don’t have to share anything,” Ash says. “Trust me, I’m the last to judge, since Col and I kept our relationship a secret from even our best friends in the house before we said anything. Just be glad it’s not something like you and Brenner hooking up.”

They share a glance, enjoying a laugh, which buys me time to gulp and stiffen my expression to not give anything away.

Fortunately, the conversation shifts to school and then my mom’s Pinterest boards with her plans for her wedding, and I get their opinions before heading out to do some deliveries.

After I’ve made my daily goal in tips, I return to the apartment, where I find Mila, Atlas, and Brenner on the sofa, shouting to each other as they battle a boss. The place stresses me out less since we’ve had a chance to get most everything set up. Although, we’re still waiting on some new furniture and artwork to make the place look more like a home and less like Dorms 2.0.

Mila mashes her thumbs on the buttons of her controller as she directs Brenner to, “Strike! The head! The head!”

“Where the hell do you think I’m trying to hit him?” Brenner asks.

Despite feeling a hint of jealousy when Bren first introduced me to Mila, it’s worse now that they’re buddies. It was one thing if he just wanted to hook up with her, another if he wants her to replace his best friend.

“Hey, man,” Brenner says. “That new artwork came earlier if you want to help me put it up in a bit.”

“Sure.”

“What the fuck?” Atlas says. “We could have helped you with that.”

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