I Dare You (Dare 1)

Swallowing the pills, I lower the glass to my lap. “What’s wrong, Cole?”

“Nothing,” he answers. His back still toward me, he walks to the bathroom.

“You’re just as bad of a liar as I am.” I know him now. “Please?” I beg. “Just tell me. Whatever it is. I want to know.”

He comes to a stop and sighs heavily. “The guys want me to pull back.”

“Pull back from what?” I ask confused.

He turns back to face me. “You.”

I narrow my eyes. “They want you to dump me?” I clarify.

He runs a hand through his hair. “They think that’s the only way that you will be safe.”

“From who?” I demand.

“Kellan. Your dad.”

“I’m not afraid of them.” I snort.

He comes over to the bed and sits down beside me. He runs his hand through my hair. Well, the best he can. It’s tangled from his hands being in it last night. “I’m not afraid of them either, but I want to keep you safe.”

“And you think breaking up with me is the only way?” I ask, crossing my arms over my chest.

“I think they have a point.”

“What about my point?” I snap.

“Austin … don’t.”

“No. You don’t, Cole.” He opens his mouth, but I continue. “When am I gonna get a say? When am I gonna get to decide what happens in my life?”

“When it makes sense,” he growls, his eyes narrowing on me.

I snort. “You cutting my arm didn’t make sense. You stealing a car didn’t make sense.”

He stands. “I stole that car for insurance. It made perfect fucking sense.”

“Insurance on what?” I demand, picking up the water and standing. The room sways, but I manage not to fall over like a hungover idiot.

“It doesn’t matter anymore.” He brushes it off.

“It does!” I shout, getting pissy. “Everything fucking matters now. There are so many lies and secrets that I can’t seem to keep up with them. Deke was the only one on our side, and all of a sudden, he wants you to walk away from me?” I shake my head. “He has to have a reason. And you’re gonna tell me why. I’ve put up with enough shit to know what I’m up against.”

His eyes narrow on mine, and I arch a brow, not backing down. He looks away from me, and I know I’ve won when his jaw sharpens. “That car belongs to Bruce.”

“What?” I gasp. “Why would you steal my father’s car?” I demand.

His eyes come back to mine. “He keeps it at a warehouse that my father owns. I stole it to guarantee he wouldn’t send you back.”

“You’re not making any sense, Cole,” I growl.

He takes a step toward me. “That night at dinner while you and Celeste were washing dishes, he had told me that he was shipping you back to your mother’s with twenty thousand dollars. I asked him to give you to me. That if he gave you to me, I would keep you out of trouble.”

“I’m not some fucking toy,” I snap.

“You were at the time,” he growls back.

I fist my hands.

“He told me no. That’s when I informed him I had something he wanted. I pulled out the key to his car and told him he could have it back after graduation if he let you stay here.” He smiles at me. “And he accepted it.”

“That’s why he wouldn’t send me back after I got suspended,” I whisper. He nods. “You dick.”

“You don’t understand …”

“No. I guess I don’t!” I snap, walking over to the railing that looks over and down to the first floor. I grab my black bag and unzip it.

“It’s not like you didn’t know my intentions,” he says from behind me. “I never once pretended to care about you.”

I flinch at his words and yank my shirt out of my bag. “That was obvious when you cut my arm.”

“Austin …”

“Or when you had your best friend video tape me crawling all over you.” I pull the shirt up over my head not even bothering with a bra. “Let’s not forget the recording of you fucking me in the bathroom.”

“Things have changed.”

I spin around to face him. “What the hell has changed, Cole?” I demand. “Because it sounds to me like it’s still the same.” His eyes are narrowed on me. “We’re still playing a game. Just a different level. And you’re gonna do whatever your friends suggest.”

“I don’t take orders from them,” he growls.

I laugh as I grab my shorts out of my bag. Pulling them up my legs, I say, “They tell you to walk away from me, and you actually want to do it. Sounds like they’re giving you orders.”

“It makes sense,” he argues. “They made a point. Your dad is onto us.”

“I don’t care!” I shout, throwing my hands out to my side. “What is he gonna do? Give me a fake check? So what? It didn’t matter if it was real, I still wasn’t gonna take it. I don’t need it.” Between the three accounts that Jerrold and Jeff had, we’ve each made enough to live comfortably. Well, I have. I don’t take much to survive. “You’ve been feeding me these lines of bullshit of how you want me to go to Texas with you, and all of a sudden, you want to get rid of me.”