Page 99 of All Bets Are Off

I’m not sure how much time passes but I startle when the door is ripped open and Brielle storms from the room with her face all flushed. Either she doesn’t see me, or just doesn’t care, because she barely spares me a glance before she heads back to the ball.

I hear a loud thud from inside the closet and when I step inside I find Ash leaning over, head pressed against the wall and fists clenched. When I move closer to him, he looks up, locking eyes with me, and whatever he sees on my face has him turning around and slumping back against the wall.

His breathing is heavy and forced as he holds my stare and waits for me to say something. What did I come in here for again? I had so many things I wanted to say, but now I can’t think of anything except for the slick look of his lips as he looks at me. His face is just as flushed as Bri’s and my mind conjures up the image of the two of them together, writhing as one. An image that has me twitching in my slacks. I shake my head to try and force myself to focus as he just continues to watch me.

Closing the distance between us usually feels natural, but now there is this lingering tension that does nothing but fuck with my head. What is that feeling?

Finally he breaks the silence, unable to stay in this building pressure. “We need to talk.” His voice is husky and darker than usual, as if he is suffering from trying to retrain himself. Does he want to go after her? Is he desperate for another taste? I know I am.

My eyes drop to his mouth, his very obviously wet mouth, and before I can stop myself, I raise my hand and swipe my thumb across his glossy lips. I feet his hot breath on the pad as I let it linger, just for a second, before I pull it back and suck it into my mouth. Her taste explodes onto my tongue, sweet and inviting, just like I knew it would be, but there is another taste. One I’ve never craved because I didn’t know I needed to, and it’s only when our eyes lock that I realize what it is. It’s him. Ashton. My best friend. His taste blurs together with hers on my tongue as I swallow it from my thumb.

My heart pounds inside of my chest as the air between us grows thick. I shift a little on my feet and my thigh brushes across something hard in his pants. I drop my gaze and note his erection straining beneath the fabric.

I have to gulp a few times and clear my throat before I can say, “That’s the best thing I’ve ever tasted.” My voice comes out hoarse and strained and his eyes drop to my own mouth, as if contemplating his next move. His erection brushes against me again and I find myself asking, “Who’s that for?”

Control and rational thought is slowly slipping away from and when his palm covers my chest I feel like I might explode. “Elias,” he sighs my name like a plea he’s been whispering for years, but just as I am about to take one final step forward, he gently pushes us apart.

“Something happened, we need to find the others.”

Panic overtakes me as whatever spell had just come over me is broken. Ashton’s face is both apologetic and serious as I cough and take a step back. “Let me guess, you found something.” I aim for my voice to sound casual and mildly interested, but it still comes out croaky and unlike mine.

He is still staring at me with a wary look on his face as he straightens the sleeves of his tux and clears his throat. He nods, his teeth sinking into his bottom lip. “Yeah, I found something.” Something in his tone breaks me, makes my worst nightmares feel like they’re coming true.

I squeeze his bicep, such a familiar action that seems to have a new depth as we lock eyes for a moment longer and I lead him out of the closet. My hand drops back to my side as we head back into the party to find the other two.

It’s easy to spot them as they stand heads over the crowd, and as soon as they see us coming they begin to move together to meet us. We form a tight circle next to an empty table but I still pitch my voice low as I say, “The twin’s house. We have things to discuss.” They both give clipped nods, unease marring their expressions.

The four of us head out, but just as we reach the door to exit a fiery brunette cuts us off. I curse. I should have known our luck was going to run out. Vanessa is her brother’s twin. Same damn temperament, only a hell of a lot smarter. I’d rather fight Hudson than her any day. Little firecracker scares even me sometimes.

Hudson steps forward, wrapping his arms around his sister and spinning her. “Missed you, Sis.” He grins and places a wet kiss on her cheek. She groans as she pushes him away.

“Where the hell do you four think you’re going? Dinner hasn’t even been served yet.”

Hudson ignores her question, instead pointing across the room. “Oh look, Brielle is over there.”

“Brielle?” she asks, excitement perking up her tone as she turns to follow where Hud is pointing. She forgets about her question to us as she takes off toward Bri.

“Hurry before she realizes it was a distraction,” Hudson whispers.

“An effective one,” I murmur, shuffling toward the door, but all four of us drag our feet. Brielle hasn’t noticed the arrival of her best friend yet. I can’t explain why, but I need to see how she reacts to her. If even V can’t reach her, I can’t bear to think what that means.

Brielle turns around just as Vanessa gets within arms’ reach of her and she squeals, jumping forward on her friend and wrapping her arms around her neck. The two laugh wildly as they beam at each other, not a care in the world at the stares they receive. Carson watches the scene, a look of disdain on his face and my fist tightens at my side.

Relief, jealousy, and rage create a bitter maelstrom in my gut as each feeling fights for dominance.

“Let’s go,” Ashton whispers, pulling at my arm. I shake the rampant thoughts off before they can consume me and push forward, leaving the girls behind. We split off into two groups, Zaide and Hudson nodding to us before handing their tag to the valet. Ash keeps his grip on my arm, and I find myself thankful for it as it keeps me grounded.

“Did you drive?” he asks, steering me towards where I see his car already waiting in the valet line.

“Driver,” I answer, nodding my head at his car in question.

He smirks as a valet tosses him his keys and he slips him a hundred as he walks by. “I told them to keep it close by,” he explains, starting to walk to the driver’s side of the car. I shake my head, my eyes dropping down the length of his body. I never realized how good he looked in a suit.

My steps falter and I jerk back in place. Why the fuck am I staring at my best friend’s ass?

“You coming?” he calls. I shake myself off and move to the open door, nodding my thanks to the valet holding it.

I force myself to take deep breaths and stare out the window. I think the stress of everything with Brielle is starting to fray my senses. I’m slowly losing it.

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