Page 24 of Scattered Glitter

“How did you do that?”

“It’s called magic, Trouble,” he murmurs with a grin, flicking his wrist again. This time, the ace of hearts splits in two, each half dissolving into a cascade of glowing embers that float briefly in the air before vanishing altogether. His hand is empty as if nothing was ever there.“And maybe,” he adds, winking as the last ember fades into the dark. “If you stick around, I’ll teach you a thing or two.”

His words make my heart pound even harder. I’m not sure what I’m feeling, but I know I want more of it.

More of him.

I’ve never felt this way around anyone, and it scares meas much as it excites me. I’m not sure what I’ve gotten myself into, but I don’t care.

“Wanna play a game, Trouble?”

I raise an eyebrow, intrigued. “What kind of game?”

“Truth or dare.”

“Really?”I chuckle, rolling my eyes. “Isn’t that a bit… middle school?”

“Not the way I play it.” He leans in closer, lowering his voice like he’s about to share a secret. “I dare you to ring that doorbell.” He nods toward a house on the corner, the lights off, the windows dark.

I glance at the house, then back at him, feeling the adrenaline start to pump through my veins again. “You think that’s gonna scare me?”

“Let’s find out.” He smirks, crossing his arms over his chest.

I jog over to the house, my heart pounding as I slam my finger onto the doorbell and hold it down, listening to the loud chime echo inside. There’s a brief, tense moment of silence before I turn and sprint back to Ace, who’s laughing as we duck behind a bush, but nothing happens. No light goes on, and no one comes to answer the door, so we straighten back up.

“That was easy.” I grin. “Your turn. I dare you to steal that gigantic garden gnome…” I point to the flowerbed at the house across the street, “… and put it on the other side of the road.”

“You’re on.” He laughs, shooting me a look as if to say,that’s all you’ve got?

Oh, you wait…

“And put your underwear on top of his head,” I quickly add.

“My underwear, huh?” he questions, that familiarmischievous glint lighting up his eyes. “You’re upping the stakes, Trouble.”

“Unless you’re scared,” I challenge, crossing my arms.

He chuckles, shaking his head. “Scared? Not even close.”

Then, he turns his back to me and starts undoing his jeans. With one swift motion, he pulls them down with his underwear, revealing his perfectly toned ass as he slips both of them off. I bite my lip, my heart skipping a beat as I get an unintended but very nice view.

As if he can sense my gaze, Ace glances over his shoulder, catching me mid-checkout. His lips curl into a smug grin. He winks at me before pulling his jeans back up and casually stuffing his boxers into his pocket. He turns back to me like it’s no big deal. My cheeks flush, and I have to work hard to stifle a laugh.

“Enjoy the view?” he teases, clearly loving every second of this.

“Get moving, show-off.”

With a laugh, Ace darts across the street, moving quickly but stealthily. I watch, still biting my lip to keep from laughing, as he crouches next to the gigantic garden gnome, easily lifting it from the flowerbed like it weighs nothing. The sheer size of the thing is ridiculous—it’s at least three feet tall with a goofy grin plastered on its ceramic face.

Just as he’s about to complete the dare, the front door of the house I just rang the doorbell on swings open, and a light flickers on inside.

My breath catches, adrenaline spiking as Ace glances back at me.

Without missing a beat, he jams his underwear on top of the gnome’s head and plops the gnome right in the middle of the sidewalk before sprinting back toward me, his laughter filling the quiet night. By the time he slides in next to me behind the bush, we’re both breathless, grinning like idiots.

“You actually did it!” I struggle to hold back my laughter as we peek over the bush at the confused homeowner standing on the porch in his pajamas, staring out at the gnome in pure bewilderment.

“Told you I wasn’t scared.”

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