Without missing a beat, Hudson says, “Dare.”
“I dare you to kiss either me or your BFF over there,” she slurs, thumb jabbing in my direction. Her eyes are glossy from whatever she’s been drinking, but there’s something razor-edged gleaming underneath. She thinks she’s being clever by cornering him. As far as she knows, Hudson’s dating Ella, and is supposedly straight.
Hudson goes rigid. His color fades, and his eyes flick to mine, wide and uncertain, silently asking me what to do.
It’s too late to suggest he lie through a truth, so I give the tiniest tilt of my head toward Heather. She’s the obvious choice, and there will be less fallout.
“I don’t think that’s fair to Ella for me to do that at all,” he tries.
Nice try, except Ella already kissed Heather. Tongue and all without hesitation. She went in like it was her civic duty.
“It’s the rules of the game,” Heather slurs. “Besides, your girlfriend kissed me, and neither of you seemed to mind then.”
She’s not wrong. It’s going to suck watching him kiss her, but I know where his heart lives.
I just… don’t want to watch.
Hudson sighs. “You know what? Fuck it.”
Heather grins wide, licking her lips like she’s about to win something. Ella smirks too, like she’s in on the joke. Weird, considering she knows full well Hudson’s not into girls.
Hud moves fast. I turn my head, not wanting to bear witness to my boyfriend kissing that hot mess express—but then he grabs the back of my neck and crashes his mouth to mine.
I stall for just a split second, then I kiss him back. I pour everything into it, gratitude, relief, and all my affection. He could’ve taken the easy way out. Could’ve kissed Heather and kept our secret safe.
But Hudson doesn’t do betrayal. Even when I gave him permission.
The whole hot tub erupts with whistles and catcalls. There is a screeching “What the fuck?”somewhere nearby, but I ignore it
The kiss only lasts a few seconds, but it’s enough to wreck me in the best way.
Then someone’s yanking him away from me.
Ella.
She’s fuming, and Heather looks like she might break something. My neck, possibly.
“What the hell was that, Hudson?” Ella snaps. Her voice is sharp enough to slice marble, and she’s still got a death grip on his arm. My head’s spinning a little after kissing him like that in front of everyone, and I’m having a little trouble keeping up.
Hud just shrugs, sliding back into his seat like it’s no big deal. “Fulfilling a dare.”
“Why didn’t you kiss Heather like I did?”
He raises an eyebrow. “Figured Cullen’s mouth was cleaner.”
That earns a round ofohhhhhsfrom the peanut gallery, like we’ve suddenly entered a live taping ofJerry Springer.
Matt pipes in, unhelpfully. “You basically just kissed your sister.”
Hud frowns, and I cut Matt a look. He’s so drunk he can barely keep his eyes open.
I can feel Hadley’s burning eyes on me, but I don’t look at her. If I do, she’ll see the guilt I haven’t figured out how to hide. But not remorse. Never that. I’ll never regret anything with Hudson.
Heather stands so fast that water sloshes out of the tub, soaking the wooden deck.
“You’ll regret that, asshole,” she spits before climbing out and stomping back toward the house, dripping wet and furious.
Ella’s eyes are locked on Hudson, jaw clenched. “Can I have a word with you?” she grinds out, still clamped onto his arm.
