Page 5 of Unwrap Me After Dark
Liam pulls ahead, and something dark and ugly twists in my gut. I hate losing. Always have. Without thinking, my hand shoots out, grabbing his ankle and yanking backward. The move sends him under, breaking his rhythm.
He surfaces sputtering, rage clear in every line of his face. “You fucking cheater!” he shouts, shoving a wave of water at my face.
I laugh, the sound sharp and mocking. “All’s fair in love and war, baby bro.” That came out weird. It’s not like love has anything to do with us.
Liam lunges at me. His hands connect with my shoulders, pushing me under. I grab his waist, pulling him down with me. We grapple beneath the surface, a tangle of limbs and bubbles, before breaking apart and surfacing for air.
“You’re such an asshole,” he spits, water streaming down his face. His blue eyes are electric with anger, his chest heaving.
“And you’re a sore loser.” I shove another wave at him.
He retaliates, and suddenly we’re engaged in the kind of water fight we haven’t had since we were teenagers—splashing, dunking, wrestling in the cold lake water. There’s an undercurrent of genuine anger beneath the surface play, years of resentment fueling each shove and splash.
I get behind him, locking my arm around his neck in a loose hold. “Give up?” I taunt, my lips close to his ear.
He struggles against me, his back pressed against my chest. “Get off me!” The movement of his body against mine triggers something unexpected—a flash of heat that has nothing to do with exertion and everything to do with the slick slide of skin on skin.
I release him, aware of the dangerous territory we’re treading. Liam turns to face me, confusion replacing the anger in his expression. For a second, neither of us moves, just treading water and staring at each other, something unspoken passing between us.
Then Liam breaks the moment, turning toward shore. “I’m done with this bullshit.”
I watch him cut through the water, every splash radiating his anger. The distance between us grows with each powerful stroke he takes.
Damn it. I didn’t mean for this to escalate.
I follow him to shore. By the time I reach the shallow water, Liam is already storming up the path towards our cabin.
I grab my discarded clothes from the rock where I left them, not bothering to dress. Stuffing my feet into my shoes, I ignore the sand that grinds between my toes.
I chase after my infuriating stepbrother, watching the water stream down his back as he wades out of the lake. His swim trunks cling to his ass, leaving little to the imagination. I avert my gaze, disturbed by the direction of my thoughts.
“Running away again?” I call after him, falling back on antagonism like a safety net. “That’s your solution to everything, isn’t it?”
He whirls around, water droplets flying from his hair. “My solution? Rich coming from the guy who couldn’t handle one semester of real college before dropping out to play football at some third-rate university.”
The jab hits its mark. My jaw tightens. “At least I know how to have fun. When’s the last time you did anything besides study and judge everyone around you?”
“There’s more to life than your definition of ‘fun,’ Tyler.” He makes air quotes with his fingers, his tone dripping with disdain. “Some of us have actual goals beyond getting drunk and fucking anything that moves.”
“Is that what you think I do?” I close the distance between us in three quick strides.
“I don’t think it. I know it.” He stands his ground, chin lifted. “You’re so predictable it’s pathetic.”
The trail has become narrower between the pine trees, and now we’re surrounded by them. I move in closer, causing Liam to step back until his back is against a tree.
“This is why you always lose,” I sneer. “You’re too soft. Always have been. Hiding behind your books and your morals because you’re too afraid to actually live.”
Something snaps in his expression. His hands connect with my chest, shoving me backward with unexpected force. “Shut the fuck up.”
I recover quickly, stepping right back into his space. “Make me.”
The air between us crackles with tension. Liam’s chest heaves, water still dripping from his hair down his face. His eyes flick to my mouth, then back up, so quickly I almost miss it. But I don’t. And suddenly I’m hyper-aware of our proximity, of the fact that we’re both wearing nothing but swim trunks that cling to our bodies like second skins.
And then I notice something else—the unmistakable bulge in Liam’s trunks. He’s hard. My stepbrother is fucking hard from fighting with me.
A wicked grin spreads across my face as I let my gaze drop to his crotch, then back up to his eyes. “Well, well, well. What have we here?”
Liam’s face flushes deep red. “Shut the fuck up,” he repeats, his voice strained. “It’s not because of you.”
