Page 90 of Boots, Bucket Lists & Bad Ideas
She doesn’t get to do this bucket list without me.
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JADE
BONDAGE CUFFS.
Wooden paddle.
Nipple Clamps.
This is ridiculous.
I stare down at my suitcase packed full of adult toys I have no business owning, let alone putting in a bag to take on a work trip.
My bucket list book lies next to the suitcase full of all the exciting things a teenager can dream up when the world is so big and unexplored, when every new experience offers a hundred more.
I pick it up and sit on my bed, finally getting it to myself. At one time, I knew the entries by heart. Knew the drawings and their meanings.
They were thrilling.
They were exciting.
They weremine.
Now, they’ve turned into a group event I don’t want to be a part of. One that Hart tossed me into because he’s, he’s—Hart-fucking-Wilde.
I let out a long sigh and scrub my hands over my face.
He’s the one who got me fired up for this. For pointing out, I couldn’t check off every damn thing on the bucket list without him. I never wanted to do it without him. He forced me into it, but my anger drove me into The Crimson Hollow.
This isn’t me. These toys aren’t me. Well, they aren’t me unless I’m sharing them with someone I trust and love. Not someone like Bronx.
A knock raps on my front door.
“Good morning,” Natalie calls out.
“In here.” I zip up the bag full of toys and slide it on the floor beside my bed before my sister pops around the corner of the bedroom.
She scans the room, pausing at my bags, before leaning against the doorframe, hands tucked into the pockets of her cargo. An oversized shirt hangs loosely over her tank top, its sleeves falling past her elbow.
“I’m surprised to see you packed.”
“I lost the bet.”
She raises an eyebrow, a grin tugging at the corner of her mouth. “You’re not one to not put up a fight.”
“Is that why they sent you?”
She steps into the room and flops down on the bed next to my suitcase. “You bet. The rest of them are waiting outside for a gunshot.”
I laugh, zipping my last bag closed. “Sorry to disappoint.”
“I’m not disappointed.” She grabs one of my bags and swings it over her shoulder with ease, then winks. “You’re coming. This will be fun.”
I stare at her, narrowing my eyes. “You just want me there because you got dragged out of your element.”
“It’s true.” She shrugs, unbothered, and reaches for another bag. “If I’m forced to go, so are you.”
