Page 16 of The Dare

“I was supposed to come in here and ask you to kiss me,” she says pointedly.

Giving a sharp look over to her friend and creasing the corners of her mouth as she shifts her gaze to her mom.

“A not-so-attractive younger girl asks an older man to kiss her,” she says again.

The way she says it this time makes me dislike how she’s put it.

That’s not how I see her at all. And I’m sure her best friend and her mother wouldn’t think that either.

Or would they?

It is odd though. I mean, asking a complete stranger for a kiss as a dare.

I could be an ax murderer for all they know.

The thought of Natasha asking anyone else, a complete stranger for anything suddenly has my back up.

“Do you get these kinds of dares very often?” I ask her, not exactly hiding my emotions now.

“Never,” Natasha answers me straight away.

The awkward silence that follows is only broken by the dull rhythm of the train moving over joins in the tracks.

I consider everything for a moment.

Relaxing once I convince myself not to be an ass when I’m being presented with the greatest opportunity of my life.

“Well I’m not the kind of guy to just kiss anyone,” I tell them all.

Which is true.

I’m all or nothing about most things, but anything like that? Definitely. Not just something I’d do on a whim for no good reason.

Natasha on the other hand…

“I think we’d better be going,” Natasha’s mom says again, with her friend murmuring in agreement.

They move out of the suite and hover by the door, waiting for Natasha.

“Sorry,” Natasha mumbles. “It was a stupid idea. You’re absolutely right,” she sighs bitterly, moving to join the others.

“I’m sure your wife or girlfriend wouldn’t appreciate...” she says, but I’ve stood up and gripped her by the arm again, turning her to face me.

Her eyes widen with something that’s not fear but hurt.

As if the idea of me with anyone else cuts her up the same way I feel when I think about her with anyone else.

“And you?” I almost growl. “You’re free to just kiss whoever you like?”

Yanking her arm free, she turns her back and stalks into the corridor of the train carriage, swaying a little as the train pitches slightly again.

I’m fixed to the spot, rigid.

Rigid in my pants too, and wondering what the fuck just happened.

The girl of my dreams was just presented to me on a platter, announcing her intentions to kiss me…

Now she’s walking away?