Chapter 2 – The Dare

I woke up still tasting Ryan on my lips.

And still staring at the note from Jace.

“You taste like secrets.”

What the hell did that even mean?

Liv was already up when I rolled over. She was in a towel, towel barely holding on, twisting her curls into a pineapple on top of her head. Her skin glistened, freshly showered, like she walked out of a body oil ad. I couldn’t stop watching her.

“You have a good night?” she asked with a wink.

I raised a brow. “You tell me. You were awake when I left.”

“I heard everything,” she said, climbing onto her bed. “Well… not everything. The walls aren’t that thin.”

I groaned and threw a pillow at her.

But she caught it and tossed it right back. “He’s hot, huh?”

I nodded, feeling heat rise in my cheeks.

Liv tilted her head. “But you still can’t stop thinking about Jace.”

“I never said”

“You didn’t have to. That note’s been in your hand since sunrise.”

I stared at the folded paper.

I hated how right she was.

Jace was like a problem I wanted to solve with my mouth. Arrogant, unreadable, the kind of guy who looked at you like he already knew how you’d sound when you begged. The worst kind.

The best kind.

“Don’t worry,” Liv said, pulling her towel tighter, but not tight enough to keep my eyes from wandering. “You’ll get to taste all of us if you stay in this dorm long enough.”

I laughed.

She didn’t.

“You’re not kidding?”

She smirked. “Who says college can’t be… collaborative?”

That night, I followed the music to a dorm party down the hall.

It was wild. Loud music, red cups, bodies grinding in dim corners. I lost Liv within the first five minutes and ended up near the kitchen, sipping some suspiciously strong punch, when a voice curled around my ear like silk.

“Did he kiss you like I would’ve?”

I turned. Jace.

Close again. Too close.

He smelled like cologne and danger. Same smirk. Same eyes that looked through my clothes and into my thoughts.

“You jealous?” I asked.

“Not the word I’d use.” His gaze dipped to my lips. “But I wouldn’t have stopped at just a kiss.”

I rolled my eyes. “You talk a lot.”

“I do a lot too,” he whispered, brushing a knuckle along my collarbone.

My breath caught.

He smirked like he knew it would.

Then he leaned closer, lips almost brushing my ear. “But if you want proof, you’ll have to earn it.”

“And how exactly would I do that?” I asked, turning toward him, heart racing.

His smile was wicked. “With a dare.”

Jace reached into his back pocket and pulled out a tiny glass bottle with a note inside. Truth or Dare. Apparently, it was a dorm tradition.

“Draw one,” he said. “If you want to play.”

I didn’t hesitate.

I shook the bottle, popped the cork, and pulled out a folded paper.

Jace leaned over to read it.

His grin stretched wide.

“Take a shot… off someone’s body.”

He stepped back and gestured toward himself. “Well? I’m available.”

Before I could answer, another voice slid in.

“She’s not the only option.”

Ryan.

He stepped up beside me, holding two small bottles of tequila, his dimple deepening.

“Unless you’re scared,” he added.

“Of what?” I asked.

He leaned in. “Getting addicted.”

Jesus.

The crowd around us started chanting. “SHOT! SHOT! SHOT!”

I looked between them. Jace dark and daring. Ryan golden and gorgeous.

I swallowed.

“Both of you. Upstairs. Now.”

The cheers followed us down the hall and up the stairs to someone’s empty dorm room. I didn’t care whose. The door locked behind us. The music below muffled.

I turned to find both of them watching me like prey.

“Alright,” I said, setting the bottle down. “Shirts off.”

Ryan raised his brows. Jace just grinned.

“Bossy. I like it.”

They stripped, and my mouth went dry.

Ryan lay on the bed, his chest smooth and toned. I straddled his waist, poured the tequila down his abs, and licked a slow trail up his skin.

He groaned. “Fuck…”

But I wasn’t done.

I turned to Jace, pushed him back against the wall, poured the second shot just under his collarbone, and kissed my way up his chest, slow and teasing.

His hand caught my hair. “Careful, Lola.”

“Or what?”

“Or I’ll show you what happens when you play with fire.”

I met his eyes. “I’m not afraid of getting burned.”

His mouth crashed into mine hungry, messy, perfect. Ryan’s hands wrapped around my waist from behind, lips grazing my neck.

It was chaos. Heat. Tongues. Hands. Moans.

And just when I thought I couldn’t take more

The door creaked open.

Liv.

Wearing a silk robe and a smirk.

“Well, well,” she purred. “Didn’t anyone invite me to the dorm bonding party?”

She closed the door behind her and leaned against it, her fingers slowly untying the sash.

My breath caught.

And then she said:

“Who’s next?”