Chapter Five — Callum
She did it. She beat me. Fair and square.
Part of me thinks I should be mad, but I don’t have it in me.
I mean, first of all, what she did was impressive.
Using her Vaseline and clothing? Brilliant.
And then there’s her sabotage. She thinks I didn’t notice, but I did.
When I stepped away from my fire, I watched her dart over to mine and blow it out.
I think other men would probably be angry, but not me.
First of all, it wouldn’t have mattered.
She was going to win anyway. But second of all, the rules never said you couldn’t blow out an opponent’s fire.
I’m setting the rules here, so I can’t blame her for playing by them.
It’s on me for not specifying them better.
And I admire her grit, I have to say. You don’t see that often in a woman, or hell, in anyone.
Anyway, it’s not like she’s won the million dollars. She’s only won five games now. I don’t have to panic yet.
I will have to probably start picking the games more strategically, though. I can’t be as nice as I was this time. Although, it’s not like I was necessarily nice. I just picked something neither of us had experience in. And she bested me.
I’m not going to be a sore loser, though. That’s not my style.
I give her a hug, and for a second, I forget about all of it: the betrayal, the dynamic, our history. I just tell her, “I’m proud of you.”
She smiles like she means it. “Thank you.”
“I guess my punishment didn’t deter you, huh?” I ask.
Her eyebrows rise, as if she forgets for a second what I’m referring to. Then her cheeks flush as she remembers the butt plug she’s been wearing since earlier today, after she was late.
“Right,” she says. “Yeah. If anything, I think it motivated me.”
“Oh, really? How’s that?” I ask, smirking.
“To show you I could do it anyway,” she says.
“Touché,” I say. “Well played.”
She just smiles.