Triple Dare (Sterling Shore 7)

“Sorry!” I squeal, grimacing when his nose starts to bleed.

“Fuck me!” he barks, and of course I have to snicker at that.

“That’s what got us into this mess.”

Yeah… He doesn’t laugh.

“Too soon?” I ask with mock innocence, barely stopping myself from erupting into laughter again.

He’s holding his groin with one hand, cupping his bloody nose with the other, and those eyes are glaring into mine.

We’ve just learned the definition of epic fail.

Worst. Shower sex. Ever.

CHAPTER 29

CORBIN

“You look like you’ve had a rough morning,” the waitress tells me as she eyes me like I just escaped the freak show.

Ruby snorts, and I glare across the table at her as she covers her mouth and turns her head. All that pain, and I didn’t even get any reward. Obviously the mood was ruined after she shattered my balls, busted my nose, and blacked both of my eyes.

“Can I take your order?” the rude woman asks when I don’t comment on her very unprofessional remark.

Since Ruby has come back to town, I’ve lost my hair, my mind, and my fucking dignity.

I rattle off my order, and Ruby manages to order her coffee between bursts of laughter. The waitress looks between us a few times before sighing and walking away, shaking her head the whole time.

“You look like an abusive girlfriend,” I point out, and Ruby just laughs harder.

“You look cute with black eyes, if it makes you feel any better.” She bats her lashes like that’s supposed to make things all better.

“You’re coming with me to my mother’s for lunch.”

“I ate at home, and you’re eating here,” she says, grinning.

“Only because I know you won’t eat there. And I don’t want to lie and say I’ve eaten, then hear my stomach growl the second I smell food. You’re going so you can help me thwart off the latest Stepford attempt, since you won’t let me tell her we’re dating. It’s the least you can do.”

“Or you could just tell your mother to get out of your business and that you can pick your own girls. It’s what most adults do.”

Rolling my eyes, I hold my tongue until the waitress sets a mound of pancakes in front of me. She doesn’t utter a word to me about my appearance again as she turns and refills Ruby’s coffee. As soon as she walks off, I go on with our conversation.

“I know you hate my mother, and you have every right to. But I love her. Despite the way she treats everyone else, she’s always supported me, loved me, and been there for me. Right now I’m all she has, because Dad is all over the country. He’s rarely been in Sterling Shore since I moved out at eighteen. So I indulge her, because she needs someone. If you’d let me tell her we’re together, she’d stop all this bullshit.”

Her eyes soften as I dig into my food. I’m fucking starving.

“I’d never want you to not be close to your mother, Corbin. That isn’t what I meant. I was just talking about drawing a line. Yeah, she’s a bitch to everyone but you, but I’d never try to turn her son against her. I wasn’t saying that. Promise. As for knowing we’re together… I’m pretty sure she already knows, or she wouldn’t be pushing every Stepford she could find at you all of the sudden.”

That’s crazy. “Mom knows how long I’ve wanted you. She’s not stupid. If she thought we were together, she’d have stopped. I know she would have.”

Ruby tightens her lips, acting hesitant.

“Let’s agree to disagree,” she finally exhales. “But I don’t want to go over there.”

“Technically, it’s a social outing, and you’re still under a triple dare. Asking you was just a courtesy.”

Her scowl forms, and I grin while taking another bite.

“You didn’t ask at all. I can’t believe you’re using this triple dare against me right now. Besides, I have work.”

“You never told your dad you were coming in. By now, he’s already there. You’re not going to work, so you’re coming to lunch. With me. And my mother. And the date my mother has setup for me.”

I grin over at her as she shakes her head.

“We are so fucked up,” she mutters, sipping her coffee.

“You know you love me,” I joke, then I turn all my attention to the pancakes, because they deserve my attention. I really am starving.

CHAPTER 30

RUBY

You know you love me. That’s something we haven’t said since we were kids. It used to be something we said constantly, until we developed less-than-innocent feelings for each other.

“Love” is a four letter word, yet we treat it as something precious or we recklessly toss it around with too much abandon. Whereas “fuck” is also a four letter word, yet some people cringe when they hear it. They call it foul, or crude, or something along those lines.