Dare You To (Pushing the Limits, #2)(70)

Ryan does it again—his smile. The one that makes my stomach      flip.

“I like you,” he says.

I raise an eyebrow. He must have snorted some crack earlier,      or maybe he’s doing that steroid crap. What do they call it? Juicing. Yeah. The      kid is definitely juicing. And drunk. “You like me?”

He shakes his head and it’s a strange clumsy mix of yes and      no at the same time. Ryan is sloshed. “I don’t know. The way you talk. The way      you act. I know what I’m going to get from you, but then I don’t. I mean, you’re      unpredictable, yet I know whatever reaction you’re going to give me is real, you      know?”

Officially cutting him off, I slide the few remaining beers      from him and conceal them in the hay while trying to keep his eyes on me. His      declaration of “like” has placed him in the category of beyond intoxicated and      there’s no way I can lug him home. “You mean you like knowing that our      conversations will end with me telling you to go f*ck yourself?”

He laughs. “Exactly.”

“You’re weird.”

“So are you.”

He has me there.

“Is there anything you don’t pierce?” Ryan stares at my      belly button. My shirt must have ridden up, exposing the red jewel dangling on      my stomach. On my sixteenth birthday, Isaiah paid for my belly button piercing.      At seventeen he paid for the tattoo. Both times he came up with the “consent.”      Isaiah is crafty like that.

“Maybe. Maybe not.”

Ryan’s eyes flash to mine and I see he understands the      innuendo. I laugh when his cheeks turn red. “What are you, Ryan?”

“Did you just ask what I am?”

I nod. “Why would a jock be holed up with me in a barn,      drinking beer, when he could be screwing half the female population at school?      You aren’t fitting the profile.”

His eyes search my face and he ignores my question. “What’s      your tattoo mean?”

“It’s a reminder.” It means freedom. Something I’ll never      have. My destiny was built for me before I sucked in my first breath.

“You’re doing it again,” says Ryan. And he touches me again.      This time on my stomach, yet his eyes hold mine. His finger lightly explores the      edges of the jeweled ring. Tickling me. Entrancing me. Taking my haze higher.      And that’s exactly where I want to go—higher.

“What would you say, Ryan, if I said I didn’t want to be      alone?”

His fingers slip to my side and his warm palm clings to the      curve of my waist, inching me and my body slowly toward heaven. “I’d say I don’t      want to be alone either.”





Chapter 37

Ryan

THE LANTERN LIGHT FLICKERS,      creating shadows over Beth’s face. There’s no mistaking the suggestion in her      smoky-blue eyes or the invitation of her fingertips as they trace the curve of      my biceps. With her black hair sprawled out against the golden hay, she reminds      me of a modern-day version of Snow White—lips as red as roses, skin as white as      snow.

Would a kiss bring Beth to life? Tonight she’s shown me brief      flashes of the girl hidden behind the facade. Maybe I can draw her out more.      Maybe if I kiss her...no, not kiss. I’m no prince and this isn’t a fairy      tale.

Attempting to find sanity, I rub my head.

“You okay?” she asks.

“Yes.” No. The thoughts in my brain crest and dip like waves in      the ocean. Each thought harder to hold on to than the one before.

“It’s all right.” Beth’s voice becomes smooth, as if she’s      casting a spell. “You’re thinking too much. Just relax.”

“We should talk,” I say in a rush before the thought drifts      away, but my hand draws another lazy circle on her stomach. Her muscles come      alive under my touch, a shudder of pleasure, and I crave to please her.

“No, we shouldn’t,” she answers. “Talking is overrated.”

And I nod in agreement, but the thought floats back to the      surface: we should talk. I’ve fought it all night; hell, I’ve fought it since I      met her, but I like it when Beth talks because she becomes real—she becomes      more. I like more. I like her.

What I really like is how her smooth skin glows in the lantern      light, how soft it feels against my fingers. Beth licks her lips again and my      head tilts in expectation. Her mouth glistens now and I memorize the perfect      shape while imagining her lips brushing against mine.