Page 32 of Ice Cold Rival

I wasveryfamiliar with the couch.

“Yeah. Yes, of course.” I cleared my throat because I was spiraling. “Thanks, man.”

I could feel Kenzie’s eyes on me, and I just knew she was laughing at my distress. On the inside. Because she was too polite to openly laugh at someone.

Cole nodded at Kenzie with his usual good humor. “Nice to meet you. Hope we didn’t scare you away.”

Her tension drained away, and for the first time, I had to fight the rising jealousy of Cole’s easy charm. I was charming. I could be charming like that if I wanted to.

Cole disappeared up the steps, and Kenzie shrugged out from under my arm. “Well, that was fun.”

“Are you okay? You didn’t say much.”

“It was a lot to process, but I’m fine. Eva was really nice outside and warned me there would be a bunch of man-children in here playing with their ducks.” She started giggling before she could get the end of the sentence out. “Think we convinced them?”

I gazed up the stairs after Cole. “Maybe. Cole won’t say anything, even if he suspects. Eva definitely will, but Sunny came through for us there with the distraction. On the plus side, we won’t have to do as much work spreading the word if Marco is involved. Half the school will know by the end of brunch.”

Kenzie sank down on the couch with a groan. “What about you? Are you okay? You looked absolutely panicked there for a second.”

I frowned at the back of her head, then circled the couch to sit next to her. “Not my best performance, I’ll admit, but panic is a little harsh.”

She leaned forward and squinted at me. “What’s with the expression then?”

Under no circumstances could I let her know why I’d panicked.

I held out my arms, then draped one behind her. “Rude. This is just my face. No panic whatsoever.”

Kenzie crossed her arms. “I know what I saw.”

Guilt pricked me at the frustration on her face. She’d spent her last relationship being consistently gaslit, and I didn’t want to play those mind games. Still, the truth was dangerous with us sitting inches apart alone in the living room. My workout shorts didn’t do much to hide my body’s reaction to her closeness, so all she had to do was look down and she’d get a pretty good idea of the thoughts circling in my head.

“Trust me. It’s better if you don’t know,” I tried.

She raised a brow. “Kumquat.”

My jaw dropped. “You’re invoking the safe word because I don’t want to explain?”

“Yes. Against all odds, I trust you. When you won’t talk to me, I get this sticky ball of fear in my gut because I clearly can’t depend on my instincts to tell me who’s safe. What if I’m wrong again?”

The mention of Kane and his bullshit reminded me I’d invited her here to let her know about the new facet of his smear campaign—and my role in potentially pulling the same shit using her to knock him down.

Now didn’t seem like the right time for the reveal. “You’re not wrong.”

“Then tell me.”

“Fine, you want to know what’s going on in my head?” I leaned into her space, gratified when she didn’t back down, even with my lips nearly touching hers. “I’m imagining throwing my fake girlfriend over my shoulder and carrying her up to my very real bed where I’d play out her fantasies one by one until I replaced every memory she had of her asshole ex.”

Her breath caught, and heat flared in her eyes like when she’d first caught sight of me. I could get addicted to seeing the need there. Maybe I already was.

12

Yes, please. The words stuck in my throat along with most of my air and all my common sense.

I’d tried to forget this version of Reece because I was embarrassed about the way it ended, but also because I didn’t want to torture myself with memories of an experience I’d never have again. He flirted with me relentlessly, but it always felt playful, as if he were teasing me.

But this… this was pure fire.

“Satisfied?” he asked.

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