Chapter 16 #3
She snorts and shrugs. “Go for it.”
Harper starts the timer and I just keep thinking this could be a really bad idea. There are so many secrets bottled up that shouldn’t get out.
“Do you regret punching me when we were kids?”
“Hardly,” Bristol scoffs. “You deserved it.” She nudges me on the sofa, a smile on her face, but I can’t help but admit it stings.
She doesn’t even have a tiny bit of regret for what happened?
“You two knew each other as children?” Harper glances between us.
“Yes,” Bristol says before I can answer.
“Will you always hate me?” I ask, needing to know if I’m wasting my time.
“No, I don’t know.” Bristol rolls her lips together, her brow tightening as she glances at Luca and Ashton, waiting for them to ask something. She’s probably hoping they’ll offer up some easy questions.
“Are you really interested in Liam, or are you just playing games with him?” Luca asks.
I glance at Luca. Is that what he thinks, or is he trying to protect me like a brother would look out for a sibling?
“I’m not playing games. I don’t do that.” She shifts uncomfortably, and the timer beeps on Harper’s phone.
“Your turn,” Bristol says, glaring at me, and I have a definite feeling this game is going from bad to worse.
The timer starts, and Bristol pins me with her stare. “Is your father mafia?”
I reach for the bottle of wine, taking a long swig.
I’m not sure how she knows the answer, but I’m not about to say it aloud. Although, I suppose me drinking is confirmation. I hope that someone else will interject with a less lethal question.
“Do you work for your father?”
“No.” I stare her dead in the eyes, refusing to blink. “My father is in New York City.”
Bristol still isn’t satisfied, asking another question. “Have you ever been arrested?”
“No.”
At least this time, I don’t have anything to hide.
Ashton interrupts with the next question, keeping Bristol from entirely running the game, or maybe he’s just trying to steer away from mafiaesque questions. “Do you prefer to give or receive oral?”
I laugh under my breath. “Are you asking because you’re interested?” I joke. “Give.”
Ashton pretend-coughs. “Liar.”
I glare at him, and he shrugs with a smirk.
“Favorite kink in the bedroom?” Luca asks.
“I like dominating a girl,” I admit.
“Who doesn’t?” Ashton glances at Luca. “Am I right?”
Bristol glares at me when she rattles off her next question. “Did you call my father just to piss me off?”
The timer buzzes, but I still answer the question.
“No, I reached out to him because I was worried about you.”
And I’m glad my turn is over.
Bristol doesn’t meet my stare, she glances away, and the silence is deafening between us. She’s stewing, and I want to reach out to her. But I get the distinct feeling if I so much as touch her, she might scream at me.
I have so many questions for Bristol, but it’s not her turn. It’s Nova’s.
How the hell did Bristol know my father is mafia?
Why did she ask if I’ve ever been arrested?
I suppose I know the answer to one question, is she still mad that I reached out to her father? That’s an obvious yes.
Bristol ignores me. Quietly, she gets up and heads past everyone, down the hall, for my bedroom. Bristol doesn’t so much as look at me or acknowledge me.
Did I say something wrong?
“Maybe you should go check on her,” Harper whispers to me, before resetting the timer for Nova’s turn.
Sighing, I stand and head for my bedroom, finding Bristol digging through her overnight bag. Well, she hasn’t asked me to take her to the bus station yet.
That’s still a good sign.
“Hey.” I step into the bedroom. Standing by the door, I size her up, trying to figure out what’s going through her head.
Both her mafia and her arrest questions threw me off my game. Then again, I wasn’t the nicest, asking if she’d always hate me.
Her answer admittedly stung.
“Hey. I just needed to grab my meds,” Bristol says and shows me the container. She walks past me and down the hallway to the kitchen.
I’m right on her heels, following to make sure she’s okay.
Silence fills the space between us as I reach into the fridge and grab a bottle of water, and hand it to her.
She opens it, downs the pills along with a swig of water, and finally glances at me, making eye contact. “Thanks.”
“Are we … okay?” I ask. I definitely feel like this game made things worse for us. I’d rather her ask me a hundred sex questions. Even the most embarrassing question is more enjoyable than this awkward shit between us.
Bristol shrugs. “Yeah, I guess so.” She can barely make eye contact with me. My hands rest on her hips, pressing her back against the cabinet to stand, before moving one hand to guide her chin to meet my stare.
She exhales loudly, and I swear everyone else in the living room is being quiet so they can eavesdrop on us.
“You can keep playing!” I shout in the vicinity of the living room.
“We’re waiting for you guys,” Harper shoots back.
“I guess that’s our cue.” Bristol slips past me, and just as she turns to walk away, I capture her hand in mine. “I need to drop this in my bag before I forget.” She reminds me, her pillbox in her other hand.
“I’ll do that for you. Go sit, hang out with everyone.” I offer her my palm, and she deposits the plastic container in my hand.
“Thanks.” Bristol hurries out of the kitchen, and I hear her soft, nervous laughter when she returns to the living room. “Whose turn is it?” she asks.
“Nova’s.” Harper points at her, seated on Ashton’s lap on the floor. Ashton has since climbed onto the beanbag, but Nova has still found her way onto his lap.
I walk past them on the way to my bedroom, drop the plastic container of Bristol’s medications into her bag. I try not to snoop, my gaze curious, but I stop myself from causing more drama.
Nope.
None of my business what she brought in her backpack.
All I see are clothes, and I’m not snooping to discover what’s on the bottom causing her bag to weigh as much as my hockey gear.
That would have been a great question to ask her: What the hell did she pack in her overnight bag? I just have to hope we can survive another entire round of this dreadful game.
“Hurry up, Liam!” Harper shouts for me to come join them.
I resume my position on the sofa, resting my arm on the back of the couch, my fingers playing with Bristol’s dark tendrils as she leans back to get comfy.
My fingers delve from her hair to the back of her neck, and eventually, she scoots closer, her body pressed up against mine.
I listen to the soft breaths of air and try not to get turned on, but the truth is her proximity is enough to make my body respond.
She smells amazing; whatever her shampoo or perfume is, it’s riveting.
All I want to do is drink it in, brush my lips across her neck, and listen to the soft sounds she makes as I tease her.
I shift on the sofa, trying not to let my mind wander to Bristol getting turned on by me, because the next thoughts would be of her naked. That’s a fantasy for the bedroom, not while I’m seating next to her playing rapid fire questions.
I definitely don’t need her asking me why I’m sporting a hard-on midgame.
“Are we playing?” I ask, glancing at Harper, waiting for her to start up the timer for the game.
Nova whispers something into Ashton’s ear, and his face reddens. “We’re going to head to bed, guys. Have a good night!”
Nova climbs off his weight, and he’s got a definite bounce to his step. It’s obvious what they intend to do.
“Keep the noise level down,” Luca growls at them. “Zeke is sleeping.”
Right, like he and Harper ever keep it down. The two of them don’t know how to have quiet sex. There have been nights that I had to put on my noise cancelling headphones to keep from hearing the two of them, and their room is closer to Zeke’s than it is to mine.
That kid is lucky he can sleep through anything.
“Harper.” Luca gestures for her to join him on the love seat.
She tosses her middle finger up at him. It’s clear she’s still pissed. I don’t want to meddle, and as much as I hate seeing them fight, I get the feeling that they will find their way back to each other. They always do.
Luca stands and strolls across the room. Growling, he grabs Harper, lifts her up, puts her over his shoulder, and carries her into his bedroom.
“Put me down!” Harper squeals, pounding his ass with her closed fists as she fights him the entire way.