Page 99 of The Pretender

I scrunch my nose. Moonshine fucks me up. I can drink beer and can even shoot liquor and stay sober, but moonshine... knocks me on my ass. The last time I drank it, I passed out on the back stoop of the guys’ house and Aspen had to drag me across the courtyard, without the guys knowing and asking where the fuck I had been. Drew would have not been pleased but that’s okay because Drew is not the boss of me.

“Cool,” I tell him. “But Maverick will have beer, right?”

Sebastian cuts me a look of disgust. “Yeah, but it tastes like old socks.”

“Of course,” I add, cocking a hip out and dropping my shoulder. “I was just wondering. I like to chase my moonshine with beer.”

Be cool, Vee. Remember who you are.

Sebastian looks impressed. “Whatever you want, dude.”

“So, uh, how many honeys are going to be here? I could use some of that Gorilla Grip cooch. My dick has been hella dry lately.” I shake the crotch of my baggy jeans and watch as Sebastian’s eyes widen, before pocketing his wallet.

“Uh, no girls are invited to Wednesday night poker, but we could always go out and celebrate later.”

Is that what I’m asking? To celebrate later with a bunch of girls?

“We can find chicks for you to, you know—” he waves his hand at me. “—to handle that.”

Oh my gosh. How in the hell am I going to get through this night? Uncle Pe only taught me the basics and watching Teen Wolf wasn’t very helpful, since I just found myself staring at the sharp teeth and hard bodies. Not only am I going to sit through an exclusive poker game, but now we’re going to celebrate with a bunch of girls who think I have a dick.

“Good,” I say, clearing my throat. “We might need to bounce out a little early then.”

Sebastian’s eyes narrow.

Fuck. He knows. There’s no way he doesn’t know. He’s going to out me in front of everyone at this game. What the hell was I thinking? I’m so done at this school. I am so stupid!

“Don’t bail on me, T. First, we win some money and then we’ll celebrate. Got it?”

I breathe a huge sigh of relief. I don’t know if he’s just playing a game with me or if he truly doesn’t know.

“You know I got your back, brother.”

* * *

“You’re either in,or you’re out, Tweener. Make a decision or go giggle with the girls next door.”

I glance up at Rowan, who is beyond serious about this so-called friendly game of poker. At least that’s what Sebastian called it when he convinced me that I would have a great time, making a couple extra grand at the Wednesday night poker game. But as I sit here, not knowing what in the hell I’m looking at, I’m thinking Sebastian downplayed, not only the complexity of the game, but the fact this was, in fact, not a friendly game.

“Relax. Tweener is new.”

I tip my chin at Maverick like I’ve seen Sebastian do in the past. Out of all the guys, Maverick looks the least relaxed, but I guess I shouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth. If he hasn’t thrown me out yet, maybe he won’t. I doubt Sebastian will have much sympathy if they figure out my game.

I’m not here to play poker. I’m only here to keep up the ruse. Sebastian Carrington, my nemesis, expects his friend to click with his other friends. So here I am, in a wig that my uncle lent me and a makeup job that I’m proud of. I might not have the best eyeliner or the prettiest highlights on my cheeks, but it’s simple, underplayed, and looks very manly, if I do say so myself.

Not knowing what card I should lay down, I look up at Sebastian who has this stupid grin on his face. Ugh. Why must the demon look like an angel?

“You might want to wipe that fucking smile off your face,” says Maverick, his expression stern and no longer hospitable. “Because if he goes belly up, you’re not leaving here until you cover his debt.”

I cringe. Sebastian covered the two thousand dollar buy-in too. I might not want the shithead to win next week’s subscriber war, but that doesn’t mean I want Maverick to shank him in a dark alley. Out of all Sebastian’s friends, Maverick looks the most unstable. Rumor has it he will grant any favor asked of him, but in return, you will owe him a favor that he will claim at a later date. It all sounds really sketchy, so as much as I want to ruin Sebastian, I don’t want him to go out when he's doing something sweet for a change.

“You know what you need, Mav?”

Oh hell. I know that look. Any time Sebastian’s head cocks to the side and that ridiculous damn dimple pops, he’s up to no good.

“What you need is a bad fuck or a mediocre blow job. Wait, no, I got it!” He shuffles in his chair excitedly and winks at me. It’s hard to keep a straight face. “A sloppy rim job! That would loosen you up.”

Maverick doesn’t look up from his cards, and Sebastian takes that as his cue to keep talking. “See, you don’t need a good dick sucking, just a simple, mediocre, wet the tip and fondle the balls until you’re so frustrated you come, just so you can send the pretty little thing home. You need to loosen up, Mav. Accept that people aren’t perfect and need to learn.”

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