CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
LILA
“Kage, stop,” the brunette giggles as he nibbles along her neck like she’s his last meal. So much for my little victory. I thought this was a win until I ended up watching the three stooges in front of me… Him. The brunette. The redhead.
This is torture.
My stomach twists. My hands ache to touch him. And there he is, all over her like none of us are here… like I’m not right here, watching. Maybe I deserve it. I did the same thing with Leon.
I slide onto the couch beside Leon. His hand lands on my thigh, but I barely register it.
Everything blurs at the edges. The music.
The people. The noise. Because he’s all I can see, it’s like watching a car crash in slow motion as Kage licks the redhead like she is his favorite flavor.
Kissing. Grabbing. Smirking and staring at me the entire time… Just like he did with Natasha.
He’s taunting me, testing me. That bastard really loves to play games. The last time I let myself play along, he threw my phone out the window. I cried. I broke. And he saw it.
But not this time. This time, I won’t break. He thinks I’m weak. He thinks I’ll bend the second he looks at me. He’s wrong. I’m not the girl he can toy with anymore.
“Are you guys ready to play?” Aster calls out, flopping onto the lap of some eye candy she will probably break later.
“Yes,” I say coolly, locking eyes with him as I toss back a shot. The burn slides down my throat, sharp and biting. Still not nearly drunk enough for this.
Beck sinks into the couch beside one of the girls Kage brought, but his eyes aren’t on her. He keeps glancing at Kage, waiting for something. A nod. A look. But Kage gives him nothing. He is too busy watching me. His mouth is on another girl, but his eyes are glued to mine.
I furrow my brows, leaning into Clint, who is sitting beside me. “What the hell is going on? What is Beck waiting for?”
Clint leans into my ear, voice low and smooth. “I’ve heard… they share girls.” My eyes snap wide.
Well. That was unexpected. But if I’m being honest? It’s kind of hot.
The image flashes through my mind like a fever dream I have no business entertaining.
Kage and Beck. Both of them are doing unspeakable things to me.
I picture Kage pressing me into the mattress, wrists pinned above my head, his mouth trailing fire along my neck as he growls every filthy promise he intends to keep. And between my thighs?
Beck is on his knees, tongue precise and unrelenting, every stroke slow and sweet, like he has all the time in the world to unravel me.
Kage leans in, whispering filth into my ear while Beck drags cries from my throat.
Their hands. Their mouths. Everywhere. At once.
One teasing. One commanding. Both are in complete control.
My thighs clench. A whimper nearly escapes. Heat coils low and tight in my belly, threatening to snap.
“Lila,” someone calls. I blink, breathless, like I’ve just surfaced from underwater. “It’s your turn to ask,” Aster says, cocking a brow.
Right. Game on.
I tap my lip, pretending to think. “Hmm… Aster. Truth or dare?”
She tosses back a shot like it’s nothing. “Dare. I’m not a little bitch.”
Perfect .
I glance at Beck, then back to Aster. The air shifts. They both feel it. Something’s coming. And neither of them has any idea what I’m about to do.
I smile sweetly. “Well, since you’re so brave… I dare you to kiss Beck.”
Beck stiffens. His brows shoot up. “Why are you picking on me?”
"What can I say? I like to keep things interesting," I say with a sweet smile that doesn’t quite reach my eyes.
Aster rises from the guy’s lap and struts across the room like the challenge was always hers to win.
Beck stands too, towering over her in front of the leather couch, and instantly, the tension between them is palpable, like fire and gasoline, and I’m about to watch it explode.
She reaches out, her fingers brushing his arm, and Beck’s body reacts before he can even make sense of the feeling. Aster rises onto her tiptoes, and Beck leans in, meeting her halfway. The kiss starts off hard, playful, teasing. But then… it changes.
She softens. My badass best friend melts into him.
Her hands slide behind his neck as his mouth parts against hers.
This isn’t just a dare anymore. It’s not even close.
He wants her. No…he feels something deeper.
Her legs lift without thinking, wrapping around his waist, and he catches her like it’s the most natural thing in the world.
I can’t help but sigh in awe. I’m such a hopeless romantic, and this feels like a scene pulled straight from a chick flick. I catch myself smiling like an idiot because that’s my best friend, and she found him. For the first time, I see Aster truly swoon, and it takes my breath away.
Clint lets out a low whistle. “Okay, okay. Get a room, you two. ”
They pull apart slowly, like gravity is still trying to hold them together. Aster grins, eyes locked on Beck’s ocean-blue stare. Then I hear her whisper, “The plague doctor from the maze?”
Beck blinks. “Catwoman… from the maze?”
She nods, resting her forehead against his. “I’ve been thinking about you since that night.”
His voice drops. “Me too.”
Kage’s voice slices through the moment. “Alright, lovebirds. Can we please get back to the game?”
Aster hops down, grabs Beck’s hand, and pulls him toward the nearest leather chair. Her eye candy takes the hint and slips away without a word. She has her man now. Beck sinks into the chair, and she slides onto his lap, grinning like she just hit the jackpot.
Across the table, she mouths to me, “You knew it was him this whole time?” I nod, biting my lip, trying not to smile. “You sneaky matchmaker… thank you.”
I blow her a kiss and make a cheesy heart with my hands. “Alright, Aster,” I say, playful. “Since you went last time, it’s your turn.” She scans the circle, eyes glinting, playful and dangerous, before they settle on me.
Oh, shit. I did her a favor. That means she’ll go easy on me… right? Right?
Her smile doesn’t falter. But her eyes? Devious. “Lila,” she purrs, “truth or dare?”
I toss back a shot like it's water and cross my arms. “Dare.”
Aster leans forward, her chin resting on her hand, eyes glinting with mischief. “I dare you to seduce Kage.”
My heart slams against my ribs.
Seriously, Aster? You cockblock me and then throw me into the lion's den. You must hate me .
But this is what I have wanted all along.
While he was with other women, I was dreaming of touching him, teasing him, watching him come undone for me.
And now it is real. I have the chance. His eyes burn into mine.
He does not move. He does not speak. But I feel it.
He is waiting for my response to the dare, waiting for me to back down, watching to see if I have the nerve to go through with it. Daring me to try.
My watch vibrates against my wrist.
Shit. My heart rate is spiking.
He glances down at the flicker on the screen like he already knows. I can do this. I will do this.
Slowly, I rise to my feet as Leon’s hand slips off my thigh, and I never break eye contact with Kage.
Then he speaks. His voice is smooth, cruel, laced with challenge.
“Aww, Aster. That’s cute. You really think she can seduce me?
” He grins wickedly, arms still draped around the two women like he’s already made his choice.
Show him what you’re made of, Lila. He may have won the other day. But not tonight. Tonight, I win.
I take my time walking over, every step confident and unhurried, until I’m standing behind the leather couch where Kage lounges like a king among his playthings.
“Revolving Door,” by Tate McRae, throbs through the speakers.
Every lyric hits like it was written just for me, syncing with emotions I’ve spent weeks trying to forget.
He’s my bad habit. The one I swear I’ll stop craving. But I never do. He’s my own personal revolving door. No matter how far I run, I always end up right back here. Right back to him.
The beat pulses through me like a second heartbeat.
The melody coils around the room, smoky and seductive, thick with tension.
Like the song already knows what I’m about to do…
even though I know I shouldn’t. I lean in, slow and steady, letting my breath skim just beneath his ear.
His arms are still draped around the women on either side of him, but I make sure he feels me.
Well. This won’t do.
He smells like desire. Expensive cologne.
A trace of cigarette smoke. And something darker.
Something that is undeniably him. It takes everything in me not to thread my fingers into his hair and yank his head back to put my lips against him.
I can’t see his face, but I know his body. I know when he’s bluffing.
He’s too still. Too composed. Trying too hard to look untouchable. The song hums around us, and I wonder if he feels it too. This heat. This ache. This pull I can’t shake. I go in for the kill.
My lips ghost along his neck, soft and fleeting, but it lands like a match to dry wood. Just enough to tease. Just enough to tempt. I do it again, slower this time, pressing a kiss that lingers against his neck. Skin to skin. A connection that feels as doomed as Gatsby and Daisy.
His body shivers underneath my lips. I let out a shaky breath. His body is reacting, but he’s still holding back. Then I drag my lips against his skin, and I take it up to his ear. And just like that, it’s electric. A live wire between us.
Every nerve in my body sparks to life. My skin buzzes. It’s hot and dangerous and somehow achingly tender, like the space between us has always been waiting to ignite.
I don’t press harder. I don’t rush. I let the silence thicken.
This is everything I thought it would be… and so much more .