Effortless (Thoughtless, #2)(56)

No sooner had I finished my descent to a seat, than Matt was beside me, handing me a large glass filled with something an orangey-pink color. “Here you are, Kiera. Something sweet,” he laughed as he straightened, “like you.”

I smiled at Matt and thanked him just as a pair of dice were placed in front of me. Frowning at the brunette who’d handed them to me, I started shaking my head. I really hadn’t intended to play. Rolling her eyes, she put them in my palm and made my palm drop them.

The entire table mockingly groaned as I looked at a pair of ones. They all seemed to know what that meant…I had no clue. Kellan started laughing and I glanced up at him, irritated. As Matt consolingly patted my shoulder, muttering something that sounded like, “I’ll make you another one, Kiera,” Kellan pointed to my glass.

“Snake eyes means you have to pound your drink.” My mouth dropped open as I stared at him. Rita handed him a beer, her hand 156



resting a little too casually on his shoulder. Kellan raised his beer to me.

“Bottom’s up, babe.”

I smirked and shook my head. “I wasn’t really playing…” The entire table started booing and groaning; someone even threw a bottle cap at me. Kellan laughed and shrugged as I took a hold of my drink. Knowing that he wanted me to loosen up and have a little fun, and figuring this was as good a way as any, I tipped the drink down and forced myself to swallow it as fast as I could.

It freaking burned.

Whatever the hell Matt had made me was strong. By the end of the glass I was coughing and my eyes were stinging. My belly also had a pleasant warmth to it and my head swam a little. I grinned up at Kellan as the table burst into cheers. God, by the approval level, you’d think drinking was a sport, and I’d just scored the winning point.

As Matt handed me another beautifully peachy drink, someone commented to Kellan, “Dude, your girlfriend can really suck ‘em down…lucky bastard.”

Kellan started laughing but immediately stopped when he met my icy glare. Grabbing the commenter’s jacket, Kellan hauled him from his seat.

“My turn,” he told him, sitting in his spot. I smiled as the dice made their way around to him. Jerk. I hope he got snake eyes too.

As the evening progressed, my luck with this game didn’t improve. I swear to God every time anyone did anything, I was the one that had to drink. My glass never strayed from my lips long, and my head got fuzzier and fuzzier the longer I sat at the table. The drink, however, got smoother and smoother. It was practically candy at one point.

The brunette bitch to the right of me, that had made me start this little fiasco in the first place, giggled and gave me five drinks…just because.

As I cursed and then started taking them, she adorably peeked her head up at Kellan. “Sorry, Kellan, I’m really not trying to get your girlfriend drunk.”





157


I wanted to leer at her and mutter, “Yeah, you are,” but I wasn’t finished with my assigned drinks yet.

Kellan smiled at the cute girl next to me, but before my jealousy could really start to flare up, his gorgeous blue eyes turned to mine. Even my slow head could appreciate the beauty in those dark depths. Keeping his gaze on me, he told her, “No, go ahead, get her drunk.” Grinning devilishly, he added, “The odds of me getting lucky tonight will only increase if you do.”

I wanted to blush and be embarrassed, but really, I’d had far too much alcohol by this point. In-between sips, I laughed and tossed out, “Since when have you ever needed help with your odds?” Surprisingly, I only slurred that a little bit.

Kellan charmingly cocked an eyebrow at me while the table rolled with laughter. He’d sobered up a bit on the stage, but with how long he’d been playing this game with me, he had to be as buzzed as I was.

Smiling crookedly, he leaned forward on the table. “True…” he murmured drunkenly.

He was sitting kitty-corner to me at the massive table, but our feet were touching underneath it. The table was packed with people, the room was crammed with watchers, but as Kellan locked his simmering eyes to mine, and my body flared with heat in response…we may as well have been alone.

He ran his teeth along his bottom lip, the move so sexy I bit my own, then he dropped his voice to a seductive level that I usually only heard when he were alone, wrapped in each other’s bare arms. “But, maybe I could get you to do that one thing with your—” Suddenly remembering that we were not alone and wrapped in each other’s bare arms, I partially stood from the table, cutting him off.

“Kellan Kyle! You shut the hell up!”

He laughed and sat back in his chair. Quite a few people in the room laughed with him and I finally felt that blush creeping into my cheeks.

He shrugged and shook his head. “Just saying…” As I narrowed my eyes at him, making the room crack up even more, he tilted his head, 158



staring at me in an unmistakably loving way. “You’re such an adorable drunk, Kiera.”

Grinning, my mood shifting again, I finished standing up. He watched me curiously as I leaned over the table, completely pausing the drinking game as everyone stared at us. For once I didn’t care if they did. Kellan was my focus and I wanted him to kiss me…even if I had to crawl over the table to get to him.

Smiling at the image in my head, I crooked a finger at him. One edge of a lip curling up in a way that was dangerously attractive, he stood slightly and leaned over the table as well. Our lips met in the middle, my mouth parting as his tongue lightly brushed against me. My sloppy mind heard a few giggles and whistles, but Kellan’s soft skin took up all of my concentration. I nearly wanted him to lay me down on this damaged, beer-stained surface.