Page 33 of Cruel Elite (Princes of Ravenlake Academy 3)

“Then do it,” he challenges.

I glance over at Penny, and she lays a hand on my shoulder. “It’s fine. I’ll do it.”

An electric current seems to radiate from where her hand is touching me.

Finn sets the entire thing up. He has Penny lay down on a coffee table, pours salt in a line on the flat expanse of her stomach, and then puts a lime wedge in her mouth.

Then, he hands me a shot.

“Lick, shot, lime.”

“I know how to do it,” I snap, yanking the shot out of his hand.

Penny shimmies her hips, readjusting her position on the table.

The tension tightens.

I place my hands on either side of her hips and lean over her. She smells like cinnamon and citrus.

I take a deep breath before swiping my tongue along the salty line on her stomach.

Her midsection clenches, holding in a laugh, and I linger there for another second, savoring my nearness to her.

Then, at the crowd’s prompting of “Shot! Shot! Shot!”, I stand up and toss back the shot.

It burns down my throat, making me wince, but before the pain can set in, I move up to Penny’s head and lean down.

This time, our eyes meet.

Her irises are almost as green as the lime in her mouth, and as I dig my teeth into the lime wedge, our lips brush. Just barely.

But it’s enough.

Her eyes widen, and I feel myself begin to harden.

I suck on the lime and grab Penny’s hand to help her up.

She slides off the table and bumps into me, our hips colliding—which does nothing to help the situation brewing in my jeans.

We sit down, watching as the game devolves into wilder and wilder dares, none of which involve us.

The entire time, I feel heat rolling off of Penny’s body next to mine. A few times, I glance over and catch her watching me, her long lashes batting against her cheeks, her full lips slightly parted, almost expectant.

By the time the crowd begins demanding Seven Minutes in Heaven, the tension between us is a physical thing.

Pairings are selected, and no surprise, Finn pairs me with Penny.

I don’t wait to see what happens with the others.

I just grab Penny’s hand and pull her towards the storage room in the back corner.

A nightlight plugged into the outlet casts the two of us in a red glow.

Penny tucks a strand of hair behind her ear and looks up at me, her eyes impossibly large and probing.

“We don’t have to do anything if you don’t want.”

I lean down and press my lips to hers, silencing her.

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