I’m left there with Oliver and the crew and I feel every set of eyes on me.
“Go on, Kaya. It isn’t that bad. You jumped into the lake at the bonfire after all.” He tries to coax me, his voice devoid of his usual teasing tone.
“You don’t understand,” I almost sob. “That was all of ten feet. And you’d pissed me off with that dare. This is ... this is too high. My knees are shaking just looking at it.”
Oliver takes a step toward me. His voice is surprisingly gentle, if a bit amused. “Would it help if I dared you? It did the trick last time.”
I swallow the hard lump in my throat. “No, I can’t. It’s too high, too high ...” I keep repeating ‘too high’ as if I could get out of it by conveying how fucking terrified I feel.
“Yes, you can. You’ve won every challenge, every dare so far like the badass you are. You say ‘badass’ in this country, don’t you? The point is, you did a lot of stuff you didn’t want to or you weren’t comfortable with. This isn’t different. Come on.” He takes my hand in his and surprisingly I don’t reject it, I actually take it in a death grip, squeezing so hard that my own joints hurt.
“Come on, angel. You have it in you, I know it. I understand how you feel. I almost failed my own pledge challenge my freshman year, you know? I’m seriously claustrophobic and the dare was to make out with this girl in a coffin, don’t ask it was Halloween. Regardless, I almost bowed out. I’ll tell you what, the rules say that you have to jump, not that you have to do it alone. Let’s do it together.”
His voice is soft, smooth like velvet. It reminds me of Parker or Bryce. “Why are you being so nice to me? You know I don’t like you.” I breathe out, still trying to get my tremors under control.
Well done, Kaya. Way to lose all your manners together with your dignity, I think. But when I’m stressed or scared, I tend to be really blunt.
Oliver doesn’t look offended or angry at my admission. “I know you don’t like me. I’ve been a total arse to you. Why am I doing it? Because I love being an arse to you. You make me hard and you’re a bloody fun challenge. If you get excluded from pledging, I’ll die of boredom. Come on, let’s do this and show everyone what you’re made of.”
The captain intervenes. “Miss, I know this is a challenge. I was in a fraternity myself, I understand how much is at stake. But this is my boat and if you can’t jump, I say don’t. I’ll tell everyone that I forbade you from jumping for safety reasons.”
I appreciate the captain’s help but I know that it won’t make a difference. If I don’t jump, I’m done with the Zetas. The thought is appealing and infuriating at the same time. I’m not sure I’m enjoying the experience but at the same time, I hate losing a challenge. And a part of me feels ridiculous for even harboring the thought but the Greek events are the only occasions in which I get to see Reid these days. I would hate to lose even that feeble thread that’s still linking us.
With Oliver’s and the captain’s help, I climb on the railing. Oliver is still holding my hand.
My knees are shaking, my chest is heaving and I feel like all my limbs are made of wet noodles. “I can’t,” I sob, the bitterness of failure mixing with my tears.
“Yes you can. We can. Come on.” Oliver surrounds me with his strong arms, practically lifting me off the rail and twisting me so that I can’t see the abyss beneath us.
“At my three, Kaya. I’ll jump us in. One, two—”
And he jumps into the water with me in his arms. “That was two, motherfu—” The cold water muffles my words and when we re-emerge, I’m coughing and spluttering but I’m in one piece and still in Oliver’s arms.
“See? You did it, you badass bitch!” He cheers me on and I instinctively place a kiss on his cheek.
“Thank you, Oliver. I owe you.” His usual smirk returns in earnest and he winks at me.
“So grateful that you’ll let me take you on a date next weekend?” he says wiggling his eyebrows.
I try to splash him but he closes his arms tighter around me. I feel his hard-on rub against me and that’s when I push him away. “No. I have a boyfriend, I told you. And eww, you creep, keep that thing of yours to yourself.” I laugh but his smile widens.
“That was the first time you kissed me without being dared or challenged. So sue me if I get hard.” he argues.
“That was just a kiss on the cheek, it doesn’t count.”
He shakes his head at my retort. “It totally counts.”
Valeria
I HELP REID INTO MY cabin. It’s the last night on the yacht and I haven’t even got a proper kiss out of him yet. He’ll keep his arm around me and kiss me on a cheek or a temple but that’s as far as his PDAs have ever gone. Last night he got absolutely shit-faced and he passed out on my bed, snoring loudly. Tonight he’s stumbling over his own feet and is barely able to walk without my help. This guy definitely has a drinking problem. And drinking isn’t his only problem, I think he has a stepsister problem too if I have to judge by the way he looks at his stepsister when he thinks that no one is looking.
Not being able to get what I want infuriates me but at least on the bright side, Oliver isn’t doing any better with his part of the wager. Kaya seems very taken with her dirty trio and has been rejecting every advance my stepbrother has attempted.
Oliver is fuming but surprisingly, he hasn’t steeped as low as I know he’s definitely capable of. I know that Kaya isn’t just fucking Bryce and Parker but she’s also sleeping with Chase. I saw them outside that bar one Friday night and I know Oliver saw them too. I mean, I’d high five her if I weren’t so jealous that I want to destroy the bitch. “What are you going to do to win her then?” I asked Oliver last night as we had a glass of champagne on the top deck, while I had the crew try to wake Reid from his drunken stupor. “You could totally force her to date you if she doesn’t want you to tell her parents about her slutty ways. Everyone noticed that she’s super cozy with Parker too. I bet she’s fucking both him and Bryce and who knows who else.” I concluded without hiding the disgust in my voice.
“No,” Oliver says without even blinking. “I don’t want to have her this way. I want her to want to be my girlfriend.”
“But it doesn’t really matter what drives her to date you, Ollie. Our wager says that she has to agree to be your girlfriend, not that she has to be in love with you or even particularly like you.” I provoke him. And no, I’m not a glutton for punishment and I’m not trying to help him win. I just think that if he blackmailed her, Kaya would hate him even more. And I know Oliver, when he wants something, when he’s trying to win, he doesn’t care how he gets to his goal. He doesn’t take prisoners, that’s why he and I always got along so well.
“No, Val. I like her. I really bloody like her, against all the odds and against what’s good for me. I don’t want her that way.”
“But Reid and I are spending a lot of time together. We’re basically a couple. Aren’t you afraid that I might win?” I taunt him.
“Nah. First of all even if you were officially going out, that’s a far cry from an engagement. Secondly, Val, I’m just playing because it’s fun. I don’t even want my prize that much anymore.”
His disinterest is worse than a slap on the face. How dare he? When we decided to bet, he was dying to have my ass and now he no longer cares? “Whatever you say, Ollie. But don’t forget your end of the bargain if I win. You said I could have anything I wanted. I could ask for all your assets. I could ask you to marry me and you’d have to do it. It’s your honor, Lord Wellesley.”
“I know.” Oliver shrugs. “You know I love you as much as I could possibly love anyone, sis. But I think that Kaya might really like me. So regardless of me claiming my prize, I wouldn’t celebrate your victory yet. Now, go take care of your boyfriend, it looks like he needs it,” he says with a disgusted look on his face as two deck hands finally manage to lift Reid off one of the loungers and begin dragging him to my room.
I have the crew place Reid on my bed wher
e he basically falls totally asleep, snoring loudly. “Seriously?” I shriek. “You asshole! Come on, I wanna fuck. What’s the point of all those sexy, hard muscles and that perfect face if you don’t at least have some fun?” Nothing. He doesn’t even open his eyes, he keeps snoring with his mouth slightly open.
“You know what?” I seethe. “If you aren’t gentleman enough to stay sufficiently sober to perform for your date, I’ll take what I want.” I jump on the bed and help Reid out of his shirt, unbuttoning it and dragging it off of him. Fuck, he’s in perfect shape but he’s so tall and well built that he’s incredibly heavy and just sliding his shirt off from underneath him makes me break a sweat.
Taking his pants and boxer briefs off is much easier and I look at his huge cock again. The guy is massive even when he isn’t hard. So I begin stroking him as I attack his lips with mine. And for a moment, my heart swells with triumph. Reid kisses me back.
“Kaya,” he murmurs against my lips. “I love you. I love you so much.” And then he begins snoring again, his dick remaining soft in my hands. I’ve never felt so rejected, frustrated and furious in my entire life. And it’s all because of Kaya. The little slut gets every guy drooling after her. And she isn’t even that pretty, she’s barely slimmer than Erin. I worked so hard to fit into a size zero and this is what I get?
“Fine, loser,” I say climbing off the bed and walking toward the cabin of the one guy I can count on for a dirty fuck. He’s always ready to go and he can’t resist me. But before I knock on his door, I have one last stop. I slide a thick envelope under Kaya’s door and quickly walk away, smiling as I imagine her face when she opens that note. It says: ‘I’ve tried everything, I’ve dared you, I helped you, I even made you come and you won’t give me a chance. An English lord always wins, so now we’ll play my game with my rules. You have one week to accept my request for a date. If by next weekend, you don’t set a date to go out with me, your stepfather will learn how you really spend your nights. He’ll learn that you’re fucking Chase and both his friends. The ball is in your court, darling. Sweet dreams. Oliver.”
I knock on my fuck buddy’s door and when he opens, I sneak into his cabin squealing as he grabs my ass with greedy hands. I’ll teach Kaya and Oliver to fuck with me. I tried to be nice but I’m done being treated like I don’t matter.
17.
Ninety-Nine Problems
Kaya
“OLIVER IS A DEAD MOTHERFUCKER! I’m tired of his shit. I don’t care if he tells Dad about us, Kaya. But I’m not letting him blackmail you into going out with him. Plus, I’d like to see how he’ll talk with his jaw wired shut. Because I swear, I’m gonna fucking make sure that he’ll have no teeth left and that he’ll have to eat through a straw for the rest of his goddamn life!”
I see the fury in Chase’s eyes and I don’t doubt, not even for a second, that he’ll make good on his threat. After all last summer he beat the shit out of Marc.
“Chase, babe, please don’t do that. I know your heart is in the right place, I know you want to protect me ... us, but – Violence is never the answer.”
“The fuck it isn’t. Certain people only stop pushing when you make them. I’m done playing silly games, Kaya. Done.”
I hug him tight, I’ve been feeling terrible about everything lately. “I’m sorry. This is all because of me. I tried not to encourage him, I don’t like him but when I’m around him there’s this crazy pull between us. It’s crazy because I fucking hate him but—” My voice breaks.
On top of the guilt toward the guys because of how I feel about Oliver, I feel ... disappointed. I guess all the talk about him wanting me to want him, made me believe that deep down, Oliver wasn’t the asshole he wants the world to believe he is. But then again, if Valeria told the truth, even the kindness he showed me of late means nothing. If he made a bet with his stepsister about fucking me, then it makes perfect sense that he’d use what he knows about me and Chase to get his way. After all, he’s the first one to admit that he loves to win and he’d do anything to get his way. The joke’s on me for believing him when he said that he wasn’t going to use what he knew to make me do anything. That, and the way he helped me during the diving competition made me believe that there was good in him but I was wrong.
I look at my guys and sigh, relieved that they don’t seem mad at me. “I feel so stupid for believing him when he said he’d never tell about me and Chase. You guys warned me against him.”
Bryce gets up from his spot on my living room couch and tucks a strand of my hair behind my ear. “Sweet stuff, this is one of the things I love about you. You always see the best in people. You don’t think that people could lie and be duplicitous, because you’re honest.”
I lower my gaze. “I don’t know about that, Bryce. I kept a secret from you and Parker, I’m lying to my parents. I didn’t even tell Nic about what’s really going on. She’s still convinced that I’m dating just you. What does that say about me?”
Parker intervenes. “No K, Bryce is right. You are open with your heart and you’ve only kept secrets to protect the people you love. Stop blaming yourself and let’s try to find a solution to this mess. Together.”
I walk up to Parker and seek refuge in his arms. He’s always so calm, he’s my rock. “I don’t see any other solution than either accept his terms and go out with him or call his bluff. But really, I’m terrified of what will happen if he does tell on us. My mom would be devastated. She loves Dustin and I don’t know what she would do. I wouldn’t really blame her if she chose to cut me off to save her marriage. We all knew what their expectations were and we went against their wishes.”
Chase shakes his blond head. “Princess, I don’t think we’re to blame. Look, I get how they wouldn’t be delighted with us dating. How they’d be afraid to have to take sides if we broke up. I don’t blame them for it. But they could have handled it differently, maybe by telling us that if we broke up, they’d stay totally out of the fallout. But I really hate how they decided to dictate what we should feel for each other. We’ve been miserable for years trying to fit in the mold that they made for us. And we tried, didn’t we? We tried to stay away.”
Chase isn’t wrong and I’m about to tell him when a knock on the door interrupts our conversation.
I’m shocked to see Reid enter my living room and the emotions warring inside my chest when I meet his ice blue eyes make me feel so dizzy that I’m thankful to be sitting down and to have the protection of Parker’s arms around me.
“Kaya.” He nods and my heart jumps in my throat. His voice going down to reach that corner of it that will always be Reid’s, even if he made it abundantly clear that he doesn’t want it.
“What are you doing here?” I ask shakily, trying not to sound hostile but unable to deny my hurt feelings. It’s not just the history between us. I know I have no rights but lately seeing him date Valeria has been harder than I thought when I kept telling myself that I had to be prepared for the twins to get girlfriends. I knew it would hurt but I never thought it would be so devastating.
“Chase called me a couple of days ago. He told me what happened last weekend, about the note you found under your door.”
Great. I knew that Reid was aware of the nature of my relationship with his twin and the signs of the fight that originated from it were impossible to miss. So I know that Reid didn’t approve of it. For once, the fact that Reid didn’t talk to me was a relief because call me a coward but I didn’t want to deal with it.
“Yeah, we were just discussing that. Time’s almost up. Oliver wants an answer soon and we were debating about what to do. I can’t risk Mom and Dustin finding out about me and Chase. I feel terrible about lying to them but I can’t see any benefit in them knowing. It’s obvious that they’d be furious.” Especially since there’s also the fact that I’m not just with Chase. I’m completely aware of how the whole situation would look to them. Fuck, what a mess I made. Maybe the kind of relationship I have with my guys isn’t that common b
ecause of how hard it is to make it work in the real world. When we’re in our bubble things are perfect, but outside of it there’s just judgment and it’s definitely not favorable.
“Right. I can’t say I disagree.” Reid nods and I don’t dare meet his eyes. “I’ve seen the way Dad looks at you two every time my brother even speaks to you. That it wouldn’t go down well is the understatement of the century. So what conclusion did you come to, Kaya?”
“I can’t risk Oliver telling. I might have to go out with him and try to reason with him. Hope that one date will be enough to appease him.”
The chorus of ‘hell no’s’ that comes from my three boyfriends is deafening. “The fuck you’re going out with him!” Chase states firmly.
“I don’t like this. No way, Kaya.” Parker tightens his arms around me.
“I don’t like this one bit. Kaya, whatever there might be between you and Oliver, I don’t trust him. He said he didn’t want to try to force you into dating him and look at what happened. How can you trust that he won’t try to force himself on you? Obviously his word means nothing.”
Bryce is right. Once again, I’m a shitty judge of character. My attraction for Oliver is mostly physical but I guess there’s a part of me that thought that he might not be the insufferable, entitled douche he wants the rest of the world to see.
“What else can we do? You’re right, he said that he wouldn’t tell anyone about me and Chase but he obviously couldn’t resist the temptation to use what he knows to get his way. But that probably means that he wouldn’t hesitate to follow through with his threat if I told him to go fuck himself. I see no other way.” The defeat in my voice is bitter and the fact that I’m genuinely disappointed in Oliver’s behavior makes the whole situation worse. For a second, I thought that maybe he and I could be friends. For a second ... I don’t know what I thought.
Illicit (Perfect for them Book 2) Page 18
