Page 11 of Only When We Fall

Pink Hair bites her lip. “Well, Kai?”

I lean back, arms stretched along the top of the beanbag, wearing my best slow grin. “You think I’d play if I was going to back out?”

She grins, tapping her chin like she’s weighing up her options. “Kiss or dare?”

“Dare,” I say.

“Ooh, brave,” she coos. Then her eyes narrow just slightly. “I dare you to pick someone in the circle and kiss themproperly.Tongue, hands, the works. Thirty seconds minimum. We want movie scene.”

“Movie scene?” I repeat. “Okay.”

I glance around the circle, slow and deliberate, because I know they’re watching. Waiting. I let my gaze land on Alex. She’s already smirking like she knew I’d choose her.

I don’t say anything. I just shift forward, closing the space between us with that same lazy confidence I always fall back on. I grin, my hands falling either side of her hips, caging her in. She grips my shirt as our mouths crash together. It’s not a movie scene unless she meant porn, because this is hungry and hot. Thirty seconds isn’t enough as she lies further back into the bean bag, pulling me with her. It’s only when Pink Hair announces the time is way past, that we break apart, breathless and panting.

I swipe my thumb across my mouth, settling back in place like I’m bored again.

“Next,” I say, and the bottle spins.

When it lands on Alex, I can’t pretend I’m not excited at the prospect she may pick me for something more. And when she chooses to dare, I’m practically grinning from ear to ear. “Choose someone in the circle to suck on that nipple piercing,” I say confidently, my eyes landing on the outline of her piercings. “Thirty seconds on each.”

She laughs. It’s throaty and sexy. “All you had to do was ask,” she says, arching a brow.

The circle goes wild, laughing, screeching, buzzing with excitement that the game just took a twist. I wait, watching as she slowly lifts her top. Braless, yet they sit there perfectly pert and begging for my mouth. I lean over her, keeping my eyes fixed on hers as I flick my tongue over her nipple. Her cheeks instantly pink, she’s turned on, and when I suck the bar into my mouth, her head falls back in pleasure. I swirl my tongue around the metal, occasionally tugging it between my teeth and dragging breathy moans from her. I do the same to the other, and I swear, ten more seconds and she’d have orgasmed rightthere. As I pull back, she catches my mouth in another hungry kiss.

“Shit, man,” I hear someone mutter from the circle. “These two need to find a room.”

I grin, pulling back. “Just say the word and I’ll show you to mine,” I tell her.

“Patience,” she whispers. “I like the game too much.”

The bottle spins again, this time landing on a guy to my left. Alex smirks when he chooses kiss. He stands, holding his hand out to her which she takes, her eyes occasionally flicking to mine as he sweeps his hands along her jaw, tilting her head back enough to get the right angle as his mouth closes over hers. They kiss like a movie scene, slow, sexy, calm. Some of the girls in the circle swoon. When they finally break away, it’s my eyes she seeks out. A small smirk is still tugging at her lips as she drops beside me, her knee brushing mine.

A song comes on, blaring from the speakers, breaking the chilled vibe. “What the fuck?” I ask out loud to no one in particular. It’s not from the playlist I’d put on at the start of the night. Alex slides closer, bringing my attention back to her.

“Wanna know who kissed better?” she asks, her tone teasing as she scrapes her teeth over her lower lip.

I grin, placing a finger under her chin and tilting her head back so we’re eye to eye, almost lip to lip. “I don’t need to ask,” I whisper, stealing another hungry kiss.

When we come up for air, the rest of the circle have broken away and we laugh. “How about you show me that room now?” she asks, “You can show me what else that magical tongue can do.”

Chapter Four

Emmie

We’re laughing hysterically as the song ends and Noah wipes his sweaty face on his jumper sleeve.“I didn’t think it through when I picked that one,” he pants.“I thinkN-Trance - Set You Freeis liberating,” I say.“If you’re fifty,” Zara cuts in, and we all dissolve into fresh laughter.

“Don’t think I’ve forgotten your song,” Landon warns, his eyes locked on mine.My smile falters. “No,” I say firmly as he taps away on the iPad hooked up to the speaker system.The bass drops.“Oh God,” I groan as the opening bars ofCan’t Get You Out of My Headfill the room.

“Pact’s a pact,” Zara sing-songs, shoving me gently forward.“I can’t dance to this!”“You should’ve thought about that,” she grins.

Landon climbs onto the kitchen island and offers me his hand. “Madam,” he says in a terrible French accent. “May I have thisdance?”I can’t help it; I giggle as I place my hand in his and he pulls me up.

People are watching now, but for once, I don’t shrink from it. I’m not feeling judged, in fact, as I glance around the room, I see everyone is smiling, with a few dancing to the beat.Landon starts robot dancing and I match him, laughing until my cheeks ache. He twirls me beneath his arm, and I spin, light-headed and giddy.Voices around us start to sing along, hands clapping in time, but I only hear the pounding in my chest and the music vibrating in my bones as I lose myself to this moment.

As the song nears the end, Landon grabs my waist and dips me. I tip my head back, one leg kicking in the air. Everything flips upside down, the ceiling, the lights, the crowd –

And then I see him.

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