Chapter Twelve
QUINN
“ I need to reevaluate my life choices.”
“Not from where I’m sitting,” Gia called from the couch.
After Kingston had kissed me and left the room the night before, I decided to suck it up and go back to the Round Tableau room. I figured if Landon came back, I could demand an explanation at the very least.
But I never got the chance.
I fell asleep as I ran through the various things I wanted to say to him, waking up the next morning alone and disoriented.
Gia, in true ride-or-die fashion, had already texted me that she was at the gate. She came bearing iced coffee and aspirin, which I regretfully informed her I wouldn’t need. Stifling her disappointment, she listened to me recount the entire night’s events without saying a word.
But ever since we got back home, she’d been completely unhelpful. Instead of talking me out of finishing The Quest, she thought I should ride off into the sunset with all three of my potential suitors.
Her words, not mine.
Rejoining her in the living room, I plopped onto the couch beside her. She had her legs thrown over the side, head resting on the cushions as she binge-watched some reality dating show.
I struggled to focus on the screen as my own drama replayed in my head.
“Gia, I went there fully intending to lose my virginity with one guy and ended up flirting with two more, eye fucking one’s bare chest as he cradled me in his ridiculously sculpted arms, and then let the other one kiss me when I should’ve been running away.”
Stuffing a handful of popcorn into her mouth, Gia shrugged. “I don’t see a problem there.”
I groaned, burying my face in my hands. “It was one thing to do The Quest when I had convinced myself I’d be unaffected by one guy. Get in, get the prize money, and get out.”
“With a few orgasms to boot,” Gia added. “A solid plan, if you ask me.”
“Yeah, except I was there for five minutes before meeting Max and wanting to climb him like a tree.”
“He sounds so hot.”
I glared at her. “You are not helping.”
She shrugged again, eyes flicking between me and her reality show. “Agree to disagree. But anyway, so you met a hot guy at a party even though that wasn’t your plan. So what?”
“So, he blew me off out of nowhere. Then, two seconds later, another guy appeared and I flashed my bare thigh at him. I’m a…a trollop!”
Gia laughed, an errant popcorn kernel going down the wrong pipe. She coughed and sat up, thrusting her fist into her diaphragm until she cleared her throat.
I got up and patted her back, concerned by the tears rolling down her cheeks, until she caught her breath and kept laughing. I went back to my chair and sat down with a huff.
“You’re the worst,” I lied.
She wheezed out another laugh and wiped her cheeks. “Oh god, I’m sorry, but you seriously called yourself a trollop.” Grabbing another handful of popcorn, she tossed a few pieces into her mouth. “Man, I wish I could watch this whole thing on TV. Your solo interviews would be hilarious.”
“I hate you.”
“You love me.” She tossed a piece of popcorn at me. “And you’re lucky to have me. Who else would stop you from shame spiraling after doing absolutely nothing wrong?”
I smothered my face with a couch pillow. “I almost lost my virginity in a sex dungeon.”
“And what? You want a bed with rose petals?” She quirked an eyebrow, pulling a red vine candy out of the bag beside her and chewing on the end. “Candles? A bit of poetry? So you could lose your V-card in a romantic fantasy?”
“Maybe,” I grumbled. “It’s supposed to be special, isn’t it?”
“Sure, if that’s important to you. But first times are usually awkward and uncomfortable and don’t always live up to the fantasy in your head. What you might get instead sounds hot and actually satisfying. Why second-guess it?”
I tugged at the hair on my scalp.
“I didn’t sleep with my ex because I wanted it to mean something…But then, I just planned to give it up like it doesn’t mean anything?”
Tears pricked my eyes. The memory of that night, and the results of my choice, were still as fresh and painful as ever.
Gia caught sight of my expression and was at my side in a flash. Her arm looped around my shoulders, pulling me into her hug as she freed my hair from the tangle of my fingers.
“It’s not your fault, Quinn.”
A bitter laugh burst out of me.
“It’s absolutely my fault he’s dead, Gia. And I have to live with that by myself for the rest of my life. Just like I have to live with the rest of my choices.” I wiped my face with my sleeve, shoving the heavy weight of loss down as it threatened to overwhelm me. “The least I could do is make choices he’d be proud of.”
Gia took my face in her hands, forcing me to meet her eyes. “He wanted you to make choices that made you happy, not other people. That’s what you told me he said to you, right?”
I nodded, thinking about my dad’s last words to me.
“Did anything about last night feel like you were doing what someone else wanted? If it did, then don’t go back.”
Thinking it over, I ran through my interactions with Max and Kingston. In both of those moments, I hadn’t thought about what I should do.
Sure, I blamed it on their ventilation system and heavy doses of aphrodisiac being filtered through the room, but that had been a cop out.
I had wanted them. Both of them. Even if I’d shown up expecting to meet someone else. And with Landon, I’d admitted the truth to him.
The only thing I’d truly been afraid of was how much I wanted what The Quest had offered—thirty days to explore every dark fantasy and dirty command he could imagine. I’d worried over what that said about me, but I hadn’t been planning to let that stop me.
If Landon hadn’t freaked out over my confession, I would’ve slept with him. Instead, I ended up in Max’s arms.
Then, Kingston’s.
And even though I’d wondered if I should slow down—if maybe the events of the night were making me act rashly—I’d had the wherewithal to question what I was doing.
I just hadn’t let it stop me.
“It didn’t feel like that,” I admitted.
“Right. It sounds like you took what you wanted for the first time. Without worrying over what anyone else would think.” She cupped my cheeks and squeezed. “I’m so proud of you for that. And I know he would be, too.”
Feeling better, even if not entirely convinced, I relaxed. Gia gave me a hug before returning to the couch. She hit play on the TV remote, turning toward me and holding out her bag of snacks.
I grabbed a handful of popcorn and chocolate candy. “Thanks,” I said, not just about the snacks.
“That’s what best friends are for,” she said. “Now, can we circle back to Kingston and the hot, hot promise of sex to come? And then, I want all the details on Max and his sexy naked man chest. For research purposes only, of course. And we can end with Landon, so we can put together a game plan for when you go back.”
Rolling my eyes, I settled into the couch. “Well, Kingston asked me to win and said he’d be waiting for me at the end.” Sighing, I sat back and picked at my snack pile. “I’m not sure I’m ready for any of that.”
“That’s fair. Just wait and see how you feel, then.” She shrugged, then clapped her hands together. “Now, what about the other two? Your Knights in Shining Under Armor.”
I snorted, thinking about the other two guys wreaking havoc on my brain. “Kingston also said Landon would be by my side. Honestly, if he hadn’t kissed me, I would’ve thought he was trying to set me up with his best friend.”
“Ooh! Or maybe he’s a king who already knows how to share?” Gia asked hopefully, rubbing her hands together. “What do you think? Was that the vibe?”
I laughed and shook my head. “That place was like a TV spot for alpha male energy. I did not pick up on any sharing vibes. He just…vouched for his friend, I guess.”
She pursed her lips together, nodding in thought. “But he knows what the Knights and Maidens do behind closed doors, right?”
“Yeah, he’d have to, right?”
“Well, then he’s either stupidly trusting, or he knows something we don’t. Like, maybe Landon isn’t into hot chicks. Or he’s a eunuch.”
“He’s definitely not a eunuch.” I blushed.
Gia squealed and threw her couch pillow at me. “Yasss, girl! See, stay focused on that.”
“But I do keep going back to what Landon said. About being the only one there without a choice. Maybe he isn’t into hot chicks. Or girls at all. Maybe that’s why Kingston isn’t worried about him being my Knight?”
My brow furrowed, both confusion and concern rising when I thought about what Landon had let slip.
But then a fresh wave of rejection wiped it away. “No one forced him to be a dick. That’s all I know.”
“Do you think someone made him participate in The Quest? Or be a Knight? What do you even know about their society?”
“Only what Elaine told me. Everything I told you earlier.”
She pressed her lips together in thought. “Maybe Kingston put him up to it?”
I shrugged.
“No, that doesn’t make sense.” She scratched her head. “Someone else in Camelot Court? Who was that older man you mentioned? The King’s advisor.”
“That’s Max’s Dad, Merle Dread.” I shook my head. “His son was the only one he seemed to have any kind of hold over. But I didn’t even meet the guy.”
“Well, we’ll put a pin in that for now, then. Tell me more about Max. Max Dread.” She said his full name and whole body shuddered. “Even his name is hot. Like he’s going to hunt you in the shadows and fuck you ’til you scream. Ooh, or put you on your knees and make you take his cock like a good girl.”
I swallowed, wondering if that was exactly the kind of thing he’d do. “If not him, Landon certainly seemed like the type.”
I actually couldn’t decide if Max or Landon would be more likely to dominate me like that in the bedroom. Maybe both. And maybe I wouldn’t mind if they did—alone, or together.
My face flamed as that image sent a rush of wild heat through my body. Me, on my knees between them, taking them into my mouth as they both stared down at me. Despite the hint of submission, something about the fantasy made me feel powerful.
When I added Kingston to the mix, picturing him watching us—directing me on how and when to please them—all while he stroked his own cock, I began to sweat.
Gia caught sight of my blush before I could hide it and let out a squeal of glee. “Oh my god, you’re thinking about them both doing it, aren’t you?”
When I blushed harder, she cackled excitedly.
“No, you’re thinking about all of them! YASSS, Queen! Get your freak on!”
I threw my pillow at her, whipping the blanket off my legs and fanning myself with it. When I calmed my overheated body down, reality sunk in.
There was no way that fantasy would ever come true.
“It’s too bad Landon and Max give me whiplash, and that Max seems to hate Kingston and Landon.”
Even with no physical proof to back it up, Max clearly didn’t get along with the other two by the way he spoke about Kingston, and by the way he’d reacted to me being there for the King— a comment I still didn’t understand.
I had no idea what their dynamic was, or the drama it would cause for me to be with Landon when Kingston wanted me, too. If I went back to Camelot Court, I’d have to deal with that.
“Oh, and the fact that I had no intention of getting involved with a guy. Let alone getting tangled up with three!” I added for good measure. “Let’s not forget that.”
Gia scoffed, waving her hand in the air and ignoring my protest completely. “They’ll come around.”
“Or I can stay focused on why I joined The Quest in the first place.” I stared at her pointedly. “And besides, Max and Landon made it clear they have no genuine interest, so picturing them doing me together gets me nowhere. I just need to survive the next thirty days and leave with my dignity intact. That’s it.”
Gia snorted. “Whatever you say, Quinn. I mean, Your Highness.”
I laughed. “Shut the hell up, you trollop.”