Page 14 of The Bookworm

She grabs my hand and leads me to the living room, where a few people are standing around the couches and jumping up and down to the music with their hands over their drinks to keep from spilling them.

Merrit and I enjoy dancing together for hours while the party rages on. After a while, people start dwindling out to go to the next Friday night party or to start a bonfire somewhere in the woods. When everyone but Sawyer, Merrit, and me are gone, the three of us sit down in the living room and lean back on the couch.

“I've never been this tipsy before.” Merrit laughs, looking at me with an eager smile. I've watched her all night long, and she's had one and a half beers, so I can't imagine she's very drunk at all. “I've only ever had sips of my dad's booze. I feel like I could pass out in bed any second. How do people stay up and drink past this point?”

“Merrit, it's just past midnight. You have to stay up,” I say, laughing to myself as I sip on another beer. I'm on my third and hardly feeling it, so I'm nowhere near ready to go to sleep.

“There will be plenty of time for you to go to bed early when you're old and gray,” Sawyer continues, sitting up and looking at both of us with a grin. “The night is young. Let's do something else.”

“Mario Kart?” Merrit asks, her voice is excited enough that a swell of adoration grows in my chest.

“So we can destroy you again?” Sawyer teases, setting his drink down on the coffee table and running toward the closet in the hallway where we keep a few board games like Monopoly and Uno. He comes back with a deck of playing cards in his hands and sits down on the opposite side of the table as us. “You ever play poker?”

“I've never really understood it,” Merrit says, wrinkling her nose. “My dad's a big gambler, and he tried to teach me how to read cards once. That didn't end well.”

“Well, in this version of the game, we're all losers,” Sawyer declares, a smirk growing. I have a sinking feeling in my stomach before he says anything else, already making assumptions about where he's going with it. “How about we play strip poker?”

He looks at Merrit, then back at me with an eyebrow raised. I know this is a test. I've seen the way Sawyer looks at her, and how she looks at him the same way. There's a mutual attraction there, and Sawyer wants to push my boundaries to see what I'll allow. Does he want me to give my blessing so that he can make a move on her?

Maybe it's the booze, but I'm willing to see where my own boundaries are too. “That could be fun.” I look at Merrit to wait for her response as well.

She's hesitant at first, but she looks between us, and a smile grows on her lips as she rolls her eyes. “Okay, but you guys have to teach me how to play poker first. Otherwise, I might as well just get naked now.”

Sawyer raises an eyebrow and opens his mouth like he's going to suggest she just do that, but then he thinks better of it.

We teach her how to play Blackjack because it's one of the easiest ones a tipsy person can understand. When she has a solid grasp of the rules, Sawyer deals each of us a card. He deals Merrit a 10 and a 7, making her total 17. Basic odds should tell her that the chance of her hitting again and going over 21 are high enough that she needs to stay.

“Hit me,” Merrit says with a laugh, leaning back on the couch and smirking at the two of us. Sawyer looks at her excitedly as he flips over a Jack and brings her total to 27.

“That's a bust,” Sawyer says, looking between us. “Strip.”

Her cheeks redden, and I can feel the heat of her embarrassment radiating off her. I almost want to tell her she doesn't have to do anything if she doesn't want to, but before I can open my mouth, she's kicking off one of her shoes and looking at us mischievously.

“I bet that's exactly what you guys wanted me to take off,” she jokes, looking back at the table.

Sawyer does look disappointed she didn't throw her top to the side immediately. Honestly, I'm a little bummed about it too.

Sawyer turns his attention to me, and I choose to hit, considering I only had a cumulative total of 9. He gives me a King of Spades, and since I’ve reached 19, I choose to stay. Sawyer looks at us and flips the card he has hidden under the three to reveal an ace. That would make his total either 4 or 14. Either way, I win the round.

“You know what that means,” Merrit says to him, raising an eyebrow.

Sawyer follows in her footsteps and kicks one shoe off. “I'm not going to take it easy on you guys now.”

We continue through a few hands, all of which Merrit loses miserably. She starts with her shoes and socks, kicking them aside with small giggles. Then she takes off her shirt and jeans and is left with nothing but her bra and panties. Sawyer can't take his eyes off her, and I can't blame him. I struggle to do it myself.

Most of the wins are equally balanced between Sawyer and me, so by the time Merrit is about to have to choose between her bra and her panties, both of us at least still have our jeans and shirts on.

Sawyer watches her carefully as she chooses which to expose. Looking at him, I can see how excited he is, and there's a strange tension in the atmosphere. Seeing that she'll be completely naked in front of both of us soon enough, the embarrassment starts to set in, and the excitement is less apparent on her face.

“Honestly, you're so bad at this it's no fun,” Sawyer says, standing and taking his shirt off to toss it aside before unbuttoning his jeans. Merrit laughs as he strips down to his underwear to join her in solidarity. “Now you're not alone.”

Sawyer has an erection that I can see pressing at the front of his briefs, and I can't help but wonder what he's thinking right now.

“You're so generous,” Merrit jokes as she slides out of her panties and kicks them to the side. Sawyer's jaw drops, and it takes him a moment to turn his attention back to the cards.

As nobody would be surprised, Merrit loses another hand, and her bra is the last article of clothing to go. Now, she's sitting on the couch right next to me, completely naked with Sawyer unable to take his eyes off her breasts. Her nipples are hard, either from arousal or the chill in the room. My cock presses against the zipper of my jeans, and I would give anything to free it right now.

“Come here,” I say to Merrit, patting my lap to gesture for her to come sit with me.

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