Page 27 of Unfolding Ethan

I laughed at the surprised expression of him and Katherine as she mouthed ‘I want details.’ I spun the bottle and watched when others got their round. Liam had to remove his shirt for a dare and let Laura, one of Ryan’s friends, do tequila shots from his abs. I laughed and nudged Ethan’s leg, pointing at his ex-best-friend.We could do that sometime.

This time, the bottle landed on me and I decided to say, “Dare.”

Carter was on the other end and he smirked when he said, “Kiss me for one minute straight.”

I could feel Ethan tense behind me and as much as I liked hanging out with Carter, I didn’t want to kiss him. His brown eyes looked over my shoulder and his smirk widened.Jerk.

I shook my head. “Sorry, Carter. I would rather choose seven minutes in heaven.”

His smirk dropped, and he stared at me when others laughed at the scene. He pursed his lips and my breath hitched when he said, “Fine, it’s either kissing me or seven minutes in heaven with Liam.”

Uh-oh.

From the corner of my eye, I knew Liam was tense and even though Katherine and Ryan tried to talk with Carter to give another dare or Ethan for seven minutes in heaven—I love Katherine—he didn’t budge.

I sighed and stood up. “Fine, fine, I will go with Liam, come on.”

I could feel the hair on my neck rising feeling Ethan’s scorching gaze when Liam followed me to another room and shut the door behind us. There was an awkward silence between us, so I cleared my throat and sat down on the chair because I was sure as hell not going to sit on the bed, which looked like it had been occupied for two weeks straight without the sheets ever being washed.

“Why didn’t you kiss Carter?” was Liam’s first question when he sat down on the bean bag, which was quite smaller compared to his broad frame.

“All he wants is to get in my pants, and I don’t want to kiss the guy who had his tongue down someone else’s throat moments ago.”

He looked away, a red blush creeping up his neck, and I wanted to know what he was thinking. I shuffled in my seat and crossed my arms.

“But you’d rather be with the guy who pushed you in the pool?” he asked, his gray eyes fixing on me.

A lump formed in my throat. “D-don’t say that, Liam.”

He knew he had me when my voice cracked. He stood up, walking toward me, and I wanted to get out of this room as fast as I could. Get away from his piercing gaze. His frame loomed over me and I held my breath when he leaned down, looking straight at me.

He clenched his jaw. “I pushed you in the pool, Kiara. You should hate me.”

“I do hate you . . . but for other reasons.”

Liam curled his hands in a fist, his eyes thundering with brewing storm. “Don’t say that. You—I . . .just don’t say that. You should talk to Ethan about it.”

A humorless chuckle escaped my lips. “And tell him what, Liam? I can’t hurt him like that. It would be much better if he didn’t know. And you know whatwillhappen if you tell him.”

He held my hands, the callouses of his palm brushing over my knuckles. “Please, Kiara. What do you want me to do, beg you? You have to tell him, or I am standing up right now to go and tell him about it.”

My heart dropped down to my stomach and I snatched away my hands and walked away from him. “You wouldn’t,” a whisper left my lips and I forced my hands from trembling.

I turned to watch him stand, a cold expression masking his face. “I will, Kiara. I will tell him everything, and I don’t care what happens after that. Hedeservesto know that.”

I hated myself when a warm tear escaped my eye, my heart thundering wildly against my ribs and my lips quivering. “Please don’t, Liam. I-it’s not your place to tell him.”

His eyes trailed down my cheek, following the path of the tear, and met my glassy eyes. “You promised me that day in the car. You told me you will tell him.”

I shook my head, wiping the tears. “I promised you I’d tell him. Not when. You can’t do that.”

“Always the smart one, aren’t you, Kiara?” he asked, anger lacing his voice. “I am telling him.”

I blinked and watched him walk toward the door. A sob tore out from my lips and I rushed to the bathroom, locking myself in when I thought what would happen if Ethan knew everything about me. He would hate me. He would never trust me and call me a liar. Another sob heaved out of me, and I watched myself crumble in front of the mirror, streaks of mascara trailing down my cheeks. I didn’t want anyone to hear me cry, so I turned on the water tap, washing away any streaks of makeup and the burning tears.

I could hear the muffled and angry voices and continued washing away my tears. My eyes turned red and my skin turned a light shade of pink as I wiped away the last streaks of any makeup. My face was dull and devoid of any emotion when the loud knock on the bathroom door made me jump.

“Kiara!” Ethan shouted over the music. “Are you in there? Let me see you.”

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