I Dare You (Dare 1)

“Please?” I ask.

She looks away from me, running her hand through her hair.

“Just a place to sleep. I will take you home afterward.” Lie.

She finally nods. “Okay.”

AUSTIN

“Austin?”

I hear my name through the pounding in my head.

“Austin? Oh God, Austin. Wake up.”

Hands grab my shoulders, and I feel like I’m in an earthquake.

“Austin? Please …”

“I’m up,” I say roughly, wanting the noise to stop. It’s too loud.

“You need to go to the hospital.”

I open my heavy eyes to see Becky kneeling by me on the bathroom floor. “What …?” The memories come back to me as I stood before the sink and my face being slammed into the mirror.

I lift my hand to my head and hiss in a breath.

“Be careful,” she says, grabbing my hand to help me sit up. “There’s glass on your face.” Sitting up, I bow my head. “What the hell happened?” she demands.

“I’m fine,” I say as my head pounds.

“No, you’re not. God, Austin we need to get you to the hospital.”

I shake my head. “No.”

“Yes,” she snaps. “I just found you passed out on the bathroom floor. And you need stitches. You probably have a concussion.”

“Shelby,” I say. She’s the only one I wanna see right now. I go to the hospital, and they’ll know I’ve been drinking and am underage. They get the police involved, and I refuse to tell them anything. That’s what the fucker wants. He thinks he can play me. I refuse to let him win.

“Hand me my phone.”

“Where is it?” she asks, standing.

“On the countertop.” I lift my hand to my head again, and it comes back bloody. I rub it between my fingers.

She looks around then shakes her head. “No, it’s not.”

I release a long breath, closing my eyes and trying not to vomit. My head pounds like a drum, and I feel dizzy. “It’s too early to just show up at her house. I’ll give it a couple of hours.”

I wake up to voices coming from downstairs in the clubhouse. When I sit up, my head still pounds, and my eye is swelling shut.

I should have kept my mouth shut. I thought telling them that I had proof on them would make them back off, but I should have known it wouldn’t work with Kellan. The bastard.

I get out of Cole’s bed and stand. A wave of dizziness hits me, but I manage to wait it out.

“Why are we here, man?” I hear Bennett ask.

“I’ll let you know why when everyone has arrived,” Cole tells him.

I pick up his black zip-up hoodie from the end of the bed and put it on because I’m cold. Then I make my way down the stairs, needing a drink.

I notice Cole sitting in one of the lounge chairs talking to Deke who sits in the one next to him.

Shane sits on the couch, and Bennett stands by the table. Cole looks up as I hit the last stair, and he stands when his eyes meet mine. “Hey, sweetheart,” he says softly.

I swallow nervously as he walks over to me. “How do you feel?” he asks, pushing hair behind my ear.

“Fine,” I lie, taking a step back from him. I’m still mad at him. I’m still so confused about what I do now. There are so many questions I want to ask him, but I know I’ll never get the answers.

He sighs. “You’re lying.”

“I’m thirsty,” I admit.

He nods and pulls away from me to go over to the little bar area.

“What the fuck, Austin?” Bennett snaps. “What the hell happened to you?”

“I’m fine,” I say, waving him off. Maybe I should have stayed upstairs.

“Here.” Cole hands me a bottle of water.

He cups my face as he leans down to kiss my forehead gently, and my chest tightens. I’ve held in so much anger for the past two weeks that it’s emotionally and physically exhausted me. My eyes start to fill with tears, making his figure blurry, and I hear him sigh.

I refuse to let them fall. To show him that I feel anything for what he has done to me. What he has kept from me.

“What’s up, fuckers?” I hear Kellan’s voice as the door opens, and my body stiffens, remembering what he did to me this morning. What he could have done to Becky. The commotion woke her up, but Kellan was able to escape before she noticed him. I’m thankful for that. I’d hate myself if he hurt her too.

Cole spins around. “I’m calling it off,” he says.

“Calling what off?” Shane asks slowly.

“All of it,” he says.

Kellan snorts. “So your ex plaything informs us that she has insurance on us, and you call it off? I say she’s bluffing.”

That’s because the bastard thinks he has the proof. He doesn’t. I made sure to delete that shit off my phone for good reasons. He’ll never find where I backed it up at.