Page 3 of This Is War: All's Fair Duet
Her mouth opens in shock—or is it dismay?—and she begins to shake her head.
“What? Wait, what’s going on?” she breathes out, her gaze bouncing from me to the guy who has bound us together for who the hell knows how long.
“Here ya go. This is yours.” A bottle of rum is shoved into my hand by one of the frat brothers who gives Rya a leering once-over before addressing me again. “I hope you and your new friend enjoy it!”
Just then, Trip’s booming laugh fills the room, amplified by the way it echoes off the high ceiling of the basement. “I present you lucky people with our Friend and a Fifth challenge.” His gaze drifts around the room. “Twelve couples, twelve bottles of alcohol. No trading. No talking, except to your booze buddy. You figure out who drinks how much. You’re stuck together until the bottle is empty.Figure out what that might entail on your own. Best of luck to you.” His eyes twinkle with mischief. “Get to know each other. Have some fun.” He sweeps his gaze around the room, checking in with each of us. “And no cheating. We’ll know if you break one of the rules.”
“How?” some redhead asks as she edges away from the guy she’s strapped to, like she’d bolt if she could.
“Cameras, love. We’ll be watching.” Trip’s lips twitch as he surveys the room for more questions.
A short guy tied to a willowy brunette raises his hand. “What’s in it for us?”
He throws his head back and laughs. “What? The pretty girl you get to spend the evening with isn’t enough?” I kinda gotta agree with Trip here. What a pussy.Make the best of it, man. You’re stuck with a hot girl. Oh no!The Tri-Beta president grins big as he nods. “There is indeed a prize, but you won’t find out what it is until it’s over. It’ll go to the pair who finishes fastest without breaking the rules or passing out.” With that, he eyes the other fraternity brothers, and every single one of them turns and heads up the stairs, leaving us down here to our own devices.
Rya’s unsteady sigh at my side grabs my attention, and I nudge her with my arm. “Hey. You’re okay. We’ll be fine. What’s your name?”As if I didn’t already know.
Her teeth scrape over her plump pink bottom lip. I’m not letting on that I’m privy to anything about her or her boyfriend, even though I’ve been paying attention to the two of them for a while now, letting their happiness poison my insides. Fucking Logan gets everything he wants. But maybe not for long.
“Rya,” she says after a pause, but then surprises me by giving me a once-over, the corners of her mouth lifting into a smile.
She’d actually do well to be cautious, but it doesn’t really affect my course of action either way. “Pretty name. A little unusual. I like that.” I glance over her shoulder for a split second, connecting with Logan’s eyes. He’s not happy. I almost start cracking up at what an understatement that thought is. The man is straight going off the deep end, anger and frustration battling for supremacy. I shoot him a fierce smile, which is met with a clenching of his teeth and a shake of his head. A soft chuckle leaves my lips as I bring my gaze back to Logan’s girl. “Rya, I think you and I are going to have a lot of fun tonight.”
Her smile widens. “I hope so! I’m a little nervous about the alcohol. I don’t drink much.”
“Don’t worry. We’ll figure it out.” I shoot her a wink meant to charm her. “It shouldn’t be too bad or they wouldn’t have us do it, right?”
As Trip reaches the top of the stairs, the overhead lights go out, the music goes up, and the door slams shut, leaving us with the dimmest glow coming from an undetermined location. There’s some mumbling from the group, but no one is talking specifically to anyone else. No breaking of the rules yet.
Rya makes a little squeak of protest in the sudden darkness and clutches at me with her unbound hand. I smirk, lifting my own to trap it against my chest. Hers is so fucking soft. An image of her jerking off my stepbrother pops into my head, but a moment later, I manage to block that out, instead imagining her touching my dick. I wonder if she knows how to give good head. Doesn’t matter. I’ll teach her. And Logan will wonder where she picked up her new skills.
From across the room, Logan’s voice is barely audible. He’s in panic mode, though, that much I can tell. I don’t know if he can see us, but if he can, he probably won’t like this. I duck my head close to Rya’s ear. “Come over here with me. Let’s sit and get to know each other.”
She stares up into my eyes, then down at the ties that bind us. “Sounds good.”
I bring us over to an empty space at the side of the room and take her hand in mine. She has no real choice but to sink down onto the floor with me, the wall at our backs.
She draws her legs up and hugs them with her free arm, gesturing to the alcohol with a jut of her chin. “Should we open the bottle? What kind of liquor is that?”
“You read my mind. And it’s rum.” Without thinking, I move to open the bottle, but her arm comes up right along with mine. “Oops, sorry. Didn’t mean to yank you around.”
I can barely make out her expression enough to witness her nose as it wrinkles. “No problem. We’re attached at the wrist. Go ahead and get it open.”
Uncapping the bottle, I take a whiff. “Seems like decent enough stuff. I’m actually surprised they didn’t give us shitty liquor.” Taking a swig of the rum, I let it roll around in my mouth before I swallow. “One shot down.” I tip the bottle back to my mouth. “Two.” I blow out a hard breath, then wet my lips. “Damn.”
In the pitch-dark space between us, I sense the nervous energy still spilling off her. “Give me the bottle. I can help. I never said I wouldn’t drink some of it.” Her voice is hesitant. Unsure. But also kinda raspy and sexy.
I chuckle. “You’ve gotta be a lightweight. We don’t have a chance in hell at winning. Not without taking you out of here and directly to the ER to pump your stomach.”
Her eyes flash at me, revealing a feisty side to her I wouldn’t have guessed existed, and she huffs out, “Gimme the bottle. I want some.” When I don’t immediatelycomply, she shifts toward me, stretching her arm across my body to make a grab for the bottle in my right hand. At the last second, I move it out of her reach, and she falters, unsteady in the dark. Her breasts smash against my chest, and her free hand lands on my lower abs. A little whimper falls from her lips, but she doesn’t move. In fact, her fingers flex, digging into my skin.
Well, well, well. My eyes narrow on her, not that we can see each other very well, and her bowed head slowly tips up. She stares into my eyes, horror-struck. I think hers must be green or blue, because I can sorta see the irises when the dim light hits her just right. Wetting my bottom lip, I murmur, “Sorry, I was going to hand it to you, but you freaked me out, lunging for it.”
“Oh my god, I’m sorry.” She lurches backward, pulling her body away from mine.
“No harm done. Here.” I hold the bottle out to her, and she takes it, albeit gingerly, from my hands.
“How many shots do you suppose are in this bottle?” Rya tips it to her lips, sipping carefully.
