She sighs as though she’s annoyed. She’s annoyed? She’s not the one with a wounded hand and a rapidly swelling whelp.
“You can’t have me again until you apologize.”
She has to be kidding. The only other alternative explanation is that she has suddenly started living in another universe where unicorns and pixies really do exist.
“I’m not apologizing, Tria.”
“You’ll apologize, Kode. Every man has a breaking point.”
She kicks the sheet off, forcing me to bite back a groan as she uses her body like a weapon against my hungry eyes. Deciding not to show her she has me on the ropes, I move to turn the tables.
Putting my body just inches from hers, I lean down to her ear to whisper, “If anyone caves, Tria, it’ll be you. I don’t play fair.”
Goose bumps visibly rise on her skin, and I smile with a hint of triumph.
“Good thing I don’t plan to play fair, either,” she says with a daring tone that has me cursing myself for celebrating too soon.
Still feigning confidence, I ask, “Care to place a wager on this? Who caves first?”
One thing I’ve learned about Tria is that she loves having sex with me. It’s what we do better than anything else. She can’t hold out for long.
Ah, hell. Why is she grinning? That has me admittedly a little worried.
“Sure. If I win, you have to announce to everyone in Sterling Shore that you’re an asshole and that you made up all that shit about Rygan Clanton and me.”
My laughter comes out in a harsh breath, but I quickly smother it with my hand in an effort to keep her from getting even more pissed. I needed to keep her away from that fucking tattooed prick that seems to be around more and more. Now I’ve accomplished that while also getting a little revenge.
I’m so fucking brilliant.
“Fine. If I win, you have to admit to everyone that I’m the greatest lover you’ve ever had. In public. A few details of my awesomeness wouldn’t be discouraged.”
She grins, but quickly banishes it.
“Fine,” she says in echo to my own answer. “And we have rules.”
“What rules are those?” I muse, staying as close as I can without touching her.
“Nothing public, nothing too malicious, and no cheating.”
My teeth grind together. “By cheating, I assume you mean other people. If you so much as—”
“By cheating, I mean no self-gratification to take the edge off. It’s a given that there won’t be anyone else, or this relationship is over.”
I breathe out in relief and in pained arousal at once. I can’t take things in hand? This is going to be hard.
“Agreed. So this is a battle of seduction. Got it. Personally, I think I’m going to enjoy this little war.”
She shivers a little, much to my delight. No. She won’t make it at all.
“No more vicious rumors,” she says. “This is a sexy game, not an evil contest.”
“That goes for you, too,” I growl, scowling at her. “My mother already caught wind of this one, and now she feels guilty for not being more supportive of me. Fifteen calls from her, Tria. All of them promising me that she’ll love me no matter what my sexual preference.”
She snickers quietly while nodding. “No more rumors.”
“Then let the games begin,” I say, forcing myself to turn over and not curse my painful erection that won’t be getting any relief for a while.
Chapter 15
KODE
Cold showers suck. Three days ago, I was getting laid multiple times a day, and now… nothing but icy cold showers to kill the raging hard-ons. And she’s still using that fucking sexy, curvy body against me.
After drying off and tossing on a pair of workout pants and a T-shirt, I head into the kitchen, only to stumble to an abrupt halt. Tria is sitting at the bar, her long hair braided in two pigtails, and she feigns interest in a magazine as she licks her popsicle.
I’ve been imagining her mouth on me like that since we started this relationship, and now we’re at a stalemate, making my dreams go awry. Every day she finds a way to look like a motherfucking wet-dream. This isn’t war—it’s torture.
“Thought you were opposed to clichés,” I announce, regaining forced composure while moving to grab the orange juice from the fridge. “Don’t you think seducing me by licking something is one of the most cliché things you can do?”
“Just enjoying something cool after a run on the beach,” she lies. Even though she is wearing shorts that are much too short, and nothing else but a sports bra, she looks too sexy to have gone running.
Fucking games. How’d I get myself into this mess?