Dare Me

Once she was down to her panties, she reached into them. I gripped the edge of my desk. I watched her touch herself, her eyes squeezing tighter shut with every stroke. I knew she was close when her jaw dropped wide open. I could see the bliss twisting in her face and I was fucking high on it. I loved the way she looked. Every expression she made. I loved how deep her fingers dug into my mattress, how tight her toes flexed as she got closer. She was almost there and I was just waiting for it with the purest, hottest lust in the world.

The second her knees clamped shut, I came like an animal, pleasure churning through me as I grunted a string of profanity dedicated solely to her.

And the next day, the white tie was back on the rack.

I had to give it to her for that one.

Because Lake could fuck with my head in ways I never knew possible and it wasn’t even like she was trying. It was just instinct, the way she naturally was. Thanks to her, I’d found out early on that some women were just designed to drive men up the wall and leave them standing around clueless, angry and hornier than hell.

Just like now. Fuck. I rolled my neck, trying to tell my body it was calm when it wasn’t. I did my best to neutralize my thoughts, knowing better than to walk into a formal dinner with a racing heart and throbbing cock. Alright, Callum. I inhaled deep, exhaled hard.

You’re good, I lied to myself.

And then I went in.

*

“Why so damned serious, Cal?” Colleagues asked the same question all the time and I never had an answer for them till now. I had a poker face. I was guilty of being stoic. I was told it came off as unfriendly but it certainly came in handy for moments like these. Not that I had these moments often and thank Christ for that because laying eyes on Lake DePalma for the first time after six years clean felt like being hit by a concrete wave.

The second I walked in, her big eyes locked on mine from well across the room. A little glimmer in that pool of hazel and I was done for. My senses sparked. They heightened to take in her every move. Twitching at my side were my fingers aching to run over her skin. I used to crave that soft skin. There were nights, whether we were studying or watching TV, that I found myself mindlessly running my mouth along her bare shoulder, up the curve of her neck. She had been candy to me and I was already craving the taste again.

Christ.

Shaking hands with old friends, I obliged the social instinct that fought through my lust, multi-tasking the way Lake was. She had turned back to the guy she was talking to – someone whose name I should’ve probably remembered – but I knew her attention was still on me. We watched each other while looking at others. We always had. So as I carried on small talk, I continued taking her in. I eyed that hair I used to bury my face in. It was longer, darker than I remembered and it fell in loose curls around cheekbones that hadn’t been so pronounced last I’d seen her. Every feature on her gorgeous face was accentuated, every dip and curve on her body exaggerated. Pinched and flared for my viewing torture.

I was losing it, hyper aware of every little thing about her. But it was the wrinkles across the tits of her dress that were getting me particularly hot. Six years later, her body was still giving a hard time to every piece of clothing she stretched over it. Might as well walk around naked. I imagined her doing it. The second my brain gave me a moment of weakness, my dick pounced.

Yeah, fuck it.

I gave in. I needed to put my hands all over her. I needed a break. That was what I told myself at least. I’d been working hard so I deserved to indulge in something as irresponsible as forgiving Lake and riding the high that came with being simply near her. I needed some real gratification. Go ahead. Take her back. The mental whirlwind rocked inside me but I didn’t show it. I casually adjusted my cufflinks, revealed my plans for Labor Day. I’d gone secretly to Hell and back while chatting about the weather with old friends and now I was ready. Fuck it, I was going to forget that Lake had ever left and just thank Christ that she was really back. I was ready, relieved with my decision.

But then she flashed me the look and my pulse spiked.

That old signal. Holding her gaze, she tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. My shoulders went rigid. The switch flipped in my brain and I was ready to swing the fist I’d already made.

“Callum, I’m sorry – I’m so sorry.”

I went back to the first time Lake used the look on me. Her boyfriend was spitting words an inch from her face when I caught the signal we’d devised. If she gave it, I’d rush over and that was exactly what I did that night. Minutes later, I had a split lip and a dozen shards of broken glass in my back but at least I was conscious, still standing. Theo couldn’t say the same. As best friends, not our greatest night.

But it was downright peaceful compared to what happened a few days later.

“Earth to Callum. Babe! Are you okay?”

Snapping me back to reality was Cass, the hot but slightly crazy-eyed blonde who always ended up at these dinners. I blinked at her and said something in reply but then went back to pinning a hard stare across the room at Lake. I glared at her, forcing my body down from the high alert she’d reeled me right into. The fuck, Callum, I cursed myself. I was still her dog. Still trained to perform her tricks. Lip curled, I held my ground, unclenched my abs. I wasn’t about to save her from whatever harmless guy she was talking to. She didn’t need to be rescued from their dull conversation.

She was just testing to see if six years later, she still had me broken in.

Fury ripped through me but I hid it well as I tore my stare off of Lake and gave my full attention to Cass Vaughn in all her bubbly, blonde glory. I knew who she was because she’d been greeting me with “I bet you don’t remember my name” since we met in senior English. I rose instinctively to challenges so she’d effectively mindfucked me into knowing who she was, which I figured she deserved some credit for. That and the fact that she’d been chasing me since high school. Logan used to call her Queen Groupie for figuring out my schedule every year. I found that shit completely off-putting but tonight, I didn’t care. Lake was back and she’d effectively pissed me off without saying a word because of course she had. That was just what she did.

So Cass was a welcome distraction. Especially wrapped in something too small and short to be called a real dress. She gabbed excitedly at me, higher pitched with every word she spoke. Her voice reminded me of a child pinching her nose but I trucked through it, half because I knew it wouldn’t last long. Lake was never one to stand and stare either, so I waited for it – for her to lose what little patience she ever had for being ignored, especially by me. Cass was pouting for a Friday night reservation to The Pike when I finally heard it.

“Excuse me.”

There it was. Her crisp but raspy voice. I stiffened to the sound, the pitch lower, mature, but still completely familiar. When I turned around, I was slapped in the face with a close-up view of Lake’s head-to-toe beauty. Jesus. I kept a straight face despite feeling my muscles wind so tight it hurt. She had become a woman in the years she’d been gone and I was fighting my primal instinct to just grab her. Take her. In that half second I’d already pictured her up on the wall, dress down, nipples nice and hard in my mouth. I was so fucking turned on it was brutal. Still, I managed to return Lake’s cordial smile. Her eyes were pinned fiercely to mine but she was outwardly casual because we both knew better than to show real emotion. Not in front of this audience.

“Callum, it’s so good to see you again.” Her words were formal and measured. It wasn’t the way we spoke to each other. Still, my name off her tongue drove me fucking wild.

“It’s been awhile.” I gave a short chuckle as if this were something I found lightly amusing. For Christ’s sake. She leaned in to kiss my cheek. Her lips on my skin had a rush of blood threatening me below the belt.