Page 157 of Counter Bet

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We sit cuddled up on the couch, a movie playing on the tv when Dallas returns home from work.

“Ben?” her voice carries down the hallway before she steps into the living room, dropping her bag on the floor.

She blinks.

“Hi.” I wave, then giggle as Ben nips my neck with his teeth.

“Oh, my God!” she whispers, a huge smile spreading across her face before she runs over and throws herself on top of us. “I can’t believe this! I thought for a moment there that you wouldn’t take her back, Ben.”

He scoffs, winking at me as Dallas sits up next to me. “As if I ever stood a chance against her.”

I blush, nudging him with my shoulder. “You did put up quite the fight.”

Dallas pulls me in for a kiss.

“I had to make you work for it,” Ben grins.

Dallas breaks away, laughing. “You’re such a dick.”

I pull her back in for a kiss, swiping my tongue along her bottom

lip. Her clothes and hair smell of Italian food.

Ben presses a kiss to the top of my head and stands up. He gestures to the kitchen. “I’m getting a drink. Do you girls want anything?”

“I’ll have a beer,” Dallas says, leaning her head on my shoulder

I shake my head no.

She grabs my hand, threading her fingers through mine. We sit in silence.

“Are you okay?” I ask, burying my nose in her hair.

“Yes. Everything is perfect now.”

I smile. “Nothing is ever coming between us again.”

“Never again!” Ben smiles at us from the doorway.

Dallas pats the seat on my other side. “Sit down.”

Ben hands her the beer she asked for and takes a seat next to me, resting his arm on the back of the couch.

“What are we watching?” Dallas asks, turning up the volume.

I wink. “Cruel Intentions.”

Amused, she quirks an eyebrow. It’s a 90’s movie about a bet to seduce an innocent virgin.

“Fitting, don’t you think?”

Dallas bursts out laughing. “You have a twisted sense of humor.”

I shrug. “We have to learn to laugh about it sooner or later.”

Ben hums as he twirls a strand of my hair around his finger. “Ryan Phillippe’s character dies in the end, doesn’t he?”

I treat him to one of my rare glares and elbow him hard. “I said there was a resemblance to our story. Aresemblance, Ben.”

His eyes sparkle with mirth.

When the credits play, I reach for the remote, switch the movie off, and stand up, stretching my arms overhead. I bend down and kiss Ben and then Dallas. I kiss them slow and unhurriedly, pouring all of my intentions into it.

My hopes. My dreams.

I leave a trail of clothing on the floor as I walk to the stairs and glance over my shoulder, catching them with their mouths hanging open. I twirl my lace panties in the air. “What are you waiting for?”

Before they have a chance to respond, I sprint naked up the stairs, and the sound of our laughter embeds itself in the walls as they take chase, their footsteps thundering behind me.

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