The Step Dare (Peach State Stepbros #3)

Chapter 1

1

Taylor

Late summer

B ren rests his elbows on the pool deck, his abs naturally flexing as he glances up, the sun reflecting off his sunglasses and glistening on the sunscreen across his tanned flesh. The bronze of his skin is the perfect backdrop for the tats on his chest and arms—each with a meaning.

Each with a story of when he finally decided to get it.

The face of the tiger on his right pec, for strength.

The poetic scene on his forearm, displaying his creativity.

And a few others just because he was in the mood, his impulsivity.

We’re a few feet from each other, waist-deep in the swimming pool of the cruise ship. Brenner takes a sip of his giant-ass rum punch, then says, “This is the fucking life. I can’t believe how long we’ve known each other, and you’ve never invited me on one of these cruises before.”

Mom and I have always taken our little trips together. A sort of ritual we made since she divorced my dad. Little vacations to get away from it all, but apparently this past year, I made them sound fun enough that my buddy asked if he could tag along on our seven-day Caribbean getaway. I must admit, it’s been even more fun than usual since now we can hit up the bars. I’m also not the outgoing, charismatic person Bren is, so I meet a hell of a lot more people whenever he’s around, which is always nice. I’ve never been much of a talker. Maybe that’s why I like being around him so much—he can do the talking for the both of us.

“I’ve been telling you for years that cruises are great. You should have trusted me.”

“Yeah, well, I was telling you something else was great, and how long was it before you let me try that on you?”

Kinda glad my cheeks are a little sun-kissed because he might give me hell if he noticed I’m blushing about the fun we shared a few months ago.

Dare you.

I knew what I was doing when I said that. I was already curious, but something about that night made me want it. Not just because I wanted my dick sucked, but because Brenner gets a little edgy when he doesn’t get any action, and I figured, two birds, one stone-hard cock.

I imagined it would feel good—a mouth around my dick. I knew he would be amazing at it, which is an understatement. What I wasn’t expecting was to not be able to look at Bren’s face without taking an extra minute to admire those sexy lips.

“Speaking of which”—he glances at my crotch—“I’m getting a little hungry.”

Since that time at the dorms, he’s blown me a few other times. And I’ve let him come on my chest or abs. All in good fun. Bren doesn’t make things complicated. He knows me and gets that I just want to vibe it out and see where it leads.

I’m queer…based on my attraction to my best friend. Probably bi. Which wasn’t something I was expecting to discover last spring. I’ve noticed hot guys in my life. Hell, I knew Bren was hot, but not I-want-to-get-sucked-off-by-him hot. Until then, I’d only messed around with girls, and always had fun, so I assumed I was straight. I’m still figuring this shit out, though. Whatever it is, doesn’t really matter. Bren’s bi, and I’ve never cared about anything other than he’s my friend. He’s like that with me too. Doesn’t give a shit about whatever this means. Never pushes or asks me to explain what I’m starting to realize about myself. He’s a good friend like that.

“So you wanna stop by the burger bar?” I ask, which makes him cringe.

“Burgers?” He wades through the water toward me. “I know you were still identifying as straight at the beginning of last year, but you have to know that’s not slang for anything.”

I snicker.

“I’d rather hit up the milkshake stand,” he says.

I don’t even want to say this. Fuck, I try to bite my tongue because I know what he’s suggesting, but I can’t help pointing out the obvious. “There’s no milkshake stand on the boat.”

“But we can make one real quick, if you’re interested.”

“Quick? Is that what I am?”

“You sure as hell were that first time.” Even with his sunglasses on, I know the expression he’s making—narrowed eyes as he revels in the playful dig. It’s one of the things I like about us—we can roast each other, but we know where the lines are.

“Is that why you keep coming back for more?” I ask.

Bren shrugs. “Someone has to do the hard work of training the noobs.”

“You’re a real saint, aren’t you?”

“I am. And I think you’re almost ready.”

Once again, I know better, but I can’t resist seeing where this leads. “Almost ready for what?”

He holds out his giant-ass cup so the straw’s just inches from my lips. “Come on. I’ve tried yours. Don’t you wanna try mine?”

A smile tugs at my lips, but his words tug at something else within me.

That familiar burst of curiosity.

It’s something I’ve definitely thought about…especially when he gets his cock out. Wondering what he would taste like…wanting him to feel that same pleasure he’s helped me feel.

“I don’t know that I’m ready for that,” I confess. “But I’d be curious to play around with it some.”

“Really?” he asks, and I nod. “Do I need to dare you?” he teases, but his expression is deadly serious before I hear, “Tay!”

I love my mom, but right now, it’s the most annoying voice in the world. We both turn to the deck, where Mom and Keith—Brenner’s dad—stand together, sipping their drinks.

Initially, the trip was supposed to be Mom, Brenner, our friend Lance, and me. But Lance caught COVID right before, and fortunately, Brenner’s dad was able to step in and cover the other half of Brenner’s room. Also, kind of worked out. Bren and I went to the same high school, where Mom and Keith worked on the PTA together. They’ve always gotten along pretty well.

“We’re heading over to the singles meet and greet on Deck 9,” Mom says. “You guys think you’ll be here a while?”

“Probably,” I say.

“Have fun,” Brenner adds.

I watch as they head through the automatic doors leading back into the ship before Brenner and I turn to each other. I’m still thinking about Brenner’s suggestion. His drink isn’t far, so I take the straw between my fingers and bob it up and down.

“You think that’s how you get the rum punch to come out?” he teases.

“I guess there’s only one way to find out.”

I can’t fucking believe the words coming out of my mouth, but as Brenner grins, it’s hard to think about much other than getting back to one of our rooms.

“You’re gonna have to get out and grab our towels,” he says.

“Huh?”

“I’m hard and wearing a Speedo. You’re hard in board shorts. Got it?”

“Got it.”

I make a quick adjustment before crawling onto the deck and getting our towels from our nearby lounge chairs. I dry off and wrap mine around my waist before helping Bren discreetly get out of the pool. Then we head back to our lounge chairs. I throw my shirt on as Brenner picks up his phone and checks his texts. He takes a minute, responding to someone—someone who caught his attention.

“Your boyfriend text you?” I ask.

“I don’t have a boyfriend, and you know it.”

Even though I meant it as a joke, I probably wouldn’t be bringing it up if there wasn’t this flare of jealousy burning in my chest.

Brenner doesn’t have a boyfriend. Over the summer, we became friends with this frat guy Lance whom we have mutual friends with. Brenner and Lance got pretty tight—tight enough that they were gonna share a room on this trip.

“So is it Lance?” I press, surprised by my interest.

“Yeah, it was him. He’s feeling a lot better.”

“That’s cool,” I say, reminding me of what a fucking asshole I am.

“So…” he says, slipping his phone into his pull-string bag, “your room is closer.”

As his attention returns to me, the tension Lance’s texts stirred eases. We head to the cabins, taking our usual walk back to the room. Since the cruise started four days ago, he’s only blown me once in a restroom, and for obvious reasons, we had to make it quick, so it’ll be nice to have a moment to take our time and fully enjoy the experience.

When we get to the room, Brenner heads in first and practically drags me in behind him. The guy’s so fucking fast, it’s hard to keep up with how he even got both our towels on the floor. He pushes his abs up against mine so that our cocks are sliding up against each other. His body radiates heat, his warm breath pushing against my lips.

“Jealous of the little Alpha Theta Mu prez, are you?” he asks as he removes his sunglasses and tucks them into the waistband of his Speedo. “You think I invited him along to give him some of these BJs?”

“Whatever. You know I’d be fine with that.” I haven’t hooked up since that first time we messed around. Knowing him, he must have at some point, which, as I said, is fine by me. “But after we move into the new place, if I find out you’re playing Call of Duty with him behind my back, I’m gonna lose it.”

“You worried I’m gonna be inviting other buddies over while you’re out making food deliveries?”

A.k.a. my part-time gig while studying finance at Peach State. Perfect for a guy who doesn’t love chatting and wants to work his own hours.

“I wouldn’t do that to you,” Bren assures me. “You’re my number one guy.”

It probably shouldn’t feel as good as it does, but I like him calling me that. “Well, your number one guy needs to get off right now.”

He leans back and reaches into my board shorts, his hand sliding over my stiff cock. A smirk plays across his lips as he offers a few pumps.

I fall back against the wall, moaning. “Fuck.”

He pulls his hand away and licks his palm before gripping my cock again and getting to work.

“Fucking hell, how do you do that so good?”

“Lotta practice,” he says, which makes me burst into laughter.

It’s not how I laugh when I’m around other people. With Bren it’s free, uninhibited, because he’s one of the few people I let see me. Really see me.

As my laughter subsides, I notice he’s staring at me—don’t really get why.

“Take these fucking things off,” he says, removing my sunglasses. He slips them into the pocket of my board shorts, continuing to jerk my dick, then leans close, whispering into my ear, “I can feel a future finance bro precoming already,” his hot breath hitting my flesh, making it prick with sensation. He offers another big pump that hits my nerves just right, and my body vibrates before he pulls back and watches my expression again.

“What?” I ask.

His brown eyes light up. “Kind of wanna see your come face .”

“Huh?”

“The face you make when you come.”

“I understood. I meant, I don’t get why you want to see me…”

His thumb slips just under the head of my dick in a way that really gets me going, makes me forget what the fuck we were even talking about.

While I recover from the sensations sweeping through me, he takes his hand off, and I wonder why the hell he’d do that, before I feel a tug at my waistband, and soon, he’s on his knees, sliding my cock into his mouth.

My hand rests on the back of his head as I encourage him along, that warm mouth demonstrating its expertise once again. “Fucking hell, Brenner,” I mutter as he gets me worked up quickly. Too quickly. “Brenner, stop,” I demand.

It’s funny how fast he freezes, my cock pushed to the back of his throat. He raises his hands out to his sides and pulls off. As he pushes to his feet, I notice some precum on his lip, which he licks right up before his gaze meets mine. “Not good?”

I glance at his Speedo. His cock is peeking out of the waistband. I pull the Speedo back to see my buddy’s dick twitching.

“Maybe I want to see your face when you come,” I say.

“Do it, Tay. Jerk me off. Fuck, you’re killing me here.”

“Dare me?” I tease, and his expression turns serious as he says, “Dare you.”