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  Opening messenger, I shoot my mom a text.

  N: Bedtime story?

  Knowing Mom might be busy at the hospital, I rest my phone on my thigh and focus on the news. I get lost in what’s happening around the world until Forest and Aria walk into the suite. They disappear down the hallway.

  Checking my phone, I see a message from Mom.

  M: Hi, baby. I had a patient today with an infundibular ventricular septal defect. It’s basically a dangerous hole in the aortic valve. It’s a common congenital heart disease, and I had to perform an early surgical intervention to prevent aortic regurgitation progression.

  I read the rest of her message, a smile forming around my lips. My mom’s the best cardiothoracic surgeon in the states, and her medical journal entries have been my bedtime stories since I can remember.

  “Watching porn?” Carla suddenly asks, making my head snap up. She takes a bottle of water from the fridge.

  Instantly annoyed, I ask, “Shouldn’t you be in bed?”

  “Ooooh… wanna tuck me in?” she asks, the corner of her mouth lifting before she takes a sip.

  Oh, little girl, you wouldn’t be able to handle me if I were to tuck you in.

  “Night, Carla,” I mutter as I turn off the TV and get up.

  I only reach the hallway when Carla makes a sputtering sound. My head snaps toward her, and seeing that she’s choking on water, I walk to her and slap her back.

  She tries to take a breath, but it sounds like she’s being strangled. I move in front of her and framing her face, I stare into her watery eyes. “Breathe through your nose.” She manages to get some air in. “Again.”

  Her hand clamps on my forearm, and the sight of a tear spilling over her cheek makes a weird emotion ripple through me.

  It sounds painful as she drags in air, and then she begins to cough. I move to her side and rub a hand over her back. “It’s okay.”

  It takes her a couple of minutes to catch her breath, and then she mutters, “Death by water. Who would’ve thought?”

  Tilting my head, I ask, “Are you okay?”

  Her eyebrow pops up, and I instantly regret asking the question.

  She clears her throat, but her voice is still raspy as she asks, “Wow, is that a note of concern I heard?”

  “Nope.” Letting go of her, I head down the hallway.

  “Too late, Noah. I know you care, or you wouldn’t have asked if I’m okay.”

  Turning back to her, I say, “No, Carla. It’s just the humane thing to ask after someone chokes.”

  She walks toward me, a daring light in her eyes. “Yeah? So you feel nothing for me? Is that what you’re saying?”

  “We move in the same circle, and you’re Jase’s little sister,” I remind her. “Stop reading more into every single thing I do. You make me uncomfortable.”

  “How do I do that?” she asks, crossing her arms over her chest.

  “You’re a kid.”

  Her gaze narrows on me. “I’m eighteen. Stop calling me a kid or a little girl. It’s demeaning.”

  Leaning a little forward, I say, “You’ll always be a kid to me. Get that?”

  She takes a step closer to me, and lifting her chin, she chuckles. “It’s only a matter of time, Noah. If you haven’t realized yet, I don’t give up easily.”

  Shaking my head, I glance up at the ceiling before I decide this conversation is over. I turn away from her and walk to my room, frustrated as hell.

  Chapter 3

  CARLA

  Forest and Aria seem to be caught in their own little bubble, and it makes me feel a bit lost. I always hung out with them, but since we started at Trinity, I’ve been pretty much on my own.

  Sure, there are lots of girls here I can befriend, but the problem with being a Reyes is that you never know if someone is your friend because they genuinely like you or because they want to up their status.

  Sitting alone in the restaurant, I let out a sigh. When Fallon, Mila, and Hana, my other roommates, walk into the establishment, a smile instantly forms around my mouth.

  They each take a seat, then I say, “You’re a sight for sore eyes.”

  Fallon frowns at me. “Why? What happened?”

  I shrug. “I’m just struggling to find my place here. Forest and Aria are so busy with their fake relationship, it doesn’t leave much time for them to hang out with me.”

  Mila, who’s Jase’s girlfriend, and hopefully my future sister-in-law, places her hand on my arm. “You can hang with me any time.”

  Jade smiles at me. “Yeah, what she said.”

  Fallon scoots closer and places her arm around me. “Sorry, hon. I should’ve made more of an effort.”

  I shake my head. “It’s just weird adjusting to how things work here.”

  Mila picks up a menu, then asks, “What are we eating?”

  Without looking at the selection of meals, Fallon answers, “I’m having a salmon salad.”

  “I want steak,” Jade murmurs.

  My lips curve up, and having company for lunch makes me feel a hell of a lot better than I did a couple of minutes ago.

  A waiter comes, and when Fallon places her order, I say, “I’ll have the same as her, with an orange juice.” I can’t handle the fizzy taste of soda. It makes my teeth feel like sandpaper has been rubbed over them.

  Suddenly Noah sits down next to Fallon, muttering, “Ladies.” He pulls a menu closer and quickly glances over it, then he tells the waiter, “A cheeseburger with extra cheese and…” he looks at the drink selection, “Cranberry juice, please.”

  “Ugh… I miss Hunter,” Jade says. “I keep expecting him to appear at any moment.”

  “Yeah, I’m driving Kao insane with texts,” Fallon chuckles.

  “He loves all the attention,” Noah tells her, and he even gives her a warm smile.

  Damn, that jealous twinge.

  Fallon’s gaze snaps to Noah. “Yeah? Did he tell you that?”

  Noah nods, and taking his phone from his pocket, he shows Fallon a message which makes her laugh.

  Our food comes, and my eyebrow pops up when I watch Fallon take the garnish from Noah’s plate.

  Why can Noah be so close with my cousin, but with me, he’s worse than the Grinch?

  ‘Because she’s not in love with him. He can be comfortable with her,’ my mind answers the question, and it leaves me feeling torn.

  Should I give up? Should I try to find a way to love Noah as a friend? It would be better to have any kind of relationship with him, instead of him running at the sight of me.

  It’s not the first time I’ve considered giving up on Noah. I would try for a week, but then I’d see him, and all my resolutions would go up in smoke. But that was before we had to live in the same suite. Now that we’re continually running into each other, my unrequited love is becoming a problem for both of us.

  Since Noah rejected me the first time, the cracks covering my heart keep tearing open every time I consider giving up. How do you let go of the one thing you want more than your next breath?

  I focus my attention on my meal, glad it’s nothing big because my appetite is missing in action.

  As soon as I’m done, I wipe my mouth and get up from the chair. “Catch you all later.” Walking away, I impersonate Dori from Finding Nemo, “When life gets you down, you know what you gotta do? Just keep swimming.” I let out a chuckle, and heading out of the restaurant, I murmur, “Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming.”

  Yeah, I’ll just have to do my best to get over Noah. Whether it’s something I can actually do, remains to be seen.

  NOAH

  I’m not the type to party. Just like my best friend Kao, I’d rather stay in the shadows. It saves me from having to interact with people. It’s not that I’m a hermit like Kao, but rather that I struggle to communicate. I don’t understand people, and they don’t get me.

  When Forest mentions they’re staying in, I figure I have to try and be social with them, seeing as we’ll be fut
ure business partners. I might not get along with Carla, but damn, I’ll have to work with her one day.

  I have to admit, she hasn’t given me any shit since Tuesday night.

  “What game are we playing?” Forest asks.

  Remembering all the games Jase had us playing, I mention, “We can play fear pong.”

  Aria glances at me, and she asks, “Fear pong?”

  I quickly explain, “Yeah, we write dares on the bottom of the cups, and you either do the dare or drink. The winning team wins two hundred dollars.”

  “Team?” Carla asks, her eyes locking on me. She lets out a chuckle. “God, this is going to be priceless.”

  Shaking my head, I ask, “Enlighten me as to why?”

  Then she smirks at me. “You and I. We’re on a team.”

  Shit. I should’ve thought of that.

  Hoping this doesn’t bite me in the ass, I mutter, “Fuck.”

  The girls leave to change into comfortable clothes, and the second we’re alone, Forest asks, “Will the two of you manage to not kill each other tonight?”

  I let out a chuckle to set him at ease. “Yeah, don’t worry. I’ll take it easy on her.”

  While Forest goes to his room to change, I grab the solo cups and whiskey bottle from the cupboard.

  Lord knows I’m going to need alcohol to get through tonight.

  When everyone is ready, we take our places on opposite sides of the island in the kitchen. The girls check something on their phones, and when they start writing the dares under the solo cups, I begin to worry.

  Carla better not write dares like kiss your partner or this game is over.

  Forest reads one of the dares, “Tell the opposing team about a dirty fantasy you would never actually do in real life? Seriously?”

  Carla shrugs. “We got the dares online.”

  Unable to resist, I mutter, “I have a dirty fantasy. It involves tape and Carla’s mouth.”

  An image involving Carla, rope, and tape flashes through my mind, causing an unexpected wave of heat to rush through me.

  What the fuck was that?

  I clear my throat as Forest snorts. Pouring myself some whiskey, and as I take a sip, Carla looks at me. “Yeah? You don’t want to hear mine.”

  Finally, something we can agree on.

  Lifting my chin, I pin her with a stare. “Let me hear it.”

  “It involves you having three Adam’s apples,” she sasses me.

  It actually makes the corner of my mouth lift. I’d rather take Carla’s threats over her flirting with me.

  Carla gets to go first, and she sinks the ball, making my eyebrow lift. She lets out a happy shriek next to me.

  Forest reads the dare then asks, “So, I have to do whatever Aria tells me?”

  “Pretty much,” I murmur. “Or you can drink.”

  Forest takes the dare, and when he throws the ball, it misses. “What now?”

  “You both drink,” Carla grins at them. They each down a shot of whiskey.

  When it’s my turn, I sink the ball. Aria checks the dare, and then she lets out a snort of laughter. “Act out your three favorite sex positions, roles reversed.”

  I let out a bark of laughter. “This is going to be good.” When Aria begins to act out the positions, I crack up with laughter. It’s funny because she’s half the size of Forest.

  Carla wipes tears from her face. “I wish I could’ve recorded that. Best ever.”

  Aria gets the ball in, and she and Forest high five each other.

  I pick up the cup and read the dare. “Aww, fuck,” I mutter. “Let your partner cut off your shirt.” I glance at Forest and Aria. “I fucking love this shirt.”

  Carla surprises me by saying, “I’ll let you change into one you’re not too fond of.”

  Not giving her a second to change her mind, I say, “Be right back.” I rush to my room and change into a plain white shirt. When I get back to the kitchen, I give Carla a look of warning. “Don’t stab me.”

  Maybe this isn’t such a good idea. Carla might just take the chance and bury the scissors in my gut.

  “Damn, there you go and ruin it for me,” Carla mutters while she gets the scissors from a drawer.

  There’s a mysterious gleam in her eyes, which I don’t like one bit. I watch her closely as she takes hold of my shirt, and then she cuts right through it.

  I’m just about to let out a sigh of relief when she sets the scissors down, but then she looks up at me and moving her hands under the fabric, her palms glide over my skin as she pushes the shirt off.

  An unwelcome burst of desire courses through my body, and reaching for my drink, I take a huge gulp.

  Don’t go there, Noah. Carla is way too innocent.

  Feeling uncomfortable, I try to focus on the game, but then Forest gets a ball in one of the cups, and when a smile spreads over Carla’s face, I know I’m in deep shit.

  I hold my breath while I wait for her to read the dare. “Fake an orgasm with your partner.”

  At least it’s not a kiss or anything physical we have to act out.

  Or so I thought.

  Carla turns to me, and she comes to place her hand on my shoulder. She lifts herself on her toes, and when I feel her breath flutter over my ear, my body reacts in a way I never expected it to. My cock goes from minding his own business to taking notice of Carla’s body so close to mine.

  Then she lets out a moan that has my heartbeat speeding up, “God, Noah… Harder.”

  Fuck.

  “Ah… ah… yes, right there.” Carla presses her body tightly against mine, and my hand instantly grabs hold of her hip.

  I can feel her body’s heat through our clothes. Every curve press against me, and it confuses the hell out of me because I’m not into inexperienced women. Especially not in the bedroom.

  She lets out a breathy moan, “Ah… God, I’m going to come…”

  Images of Carla in the bikini that didn’t cover much, begin to flash through my mind, and then it leads straight to flashes of her quivering on my bed.

  Yes… Fuck, Noah.” My mouth dries up, and I swallow as my cock reacts, hardening at the speed of light.

  Fuck. This is Carla. Don’t go there.

  And then she lets out a fucking cry that has my cock straining against the zipper to get to her and my hands itching to explore her curves. There’s a burst of desire to dominate her, and I struggle to breathe through the overwhelming feeling as Carla pulls back.

  She gives me an I-told-you-so look, then says, “You can wipe the drool off your mouth. The show’s over.”

  I suck in a deep breath, hoping none of the emotions are showing on my face. Needing some distance from Carla, I say, “I think we should take a break and order in.”

  “Yeah, sure,” Forest agrees. He grabs a menu. “What are you all in the mood for?”

  “Noah wants a cold shower,” Carla taunts me, and I worry that she felt my cock hardening while she was pressed up against me.

  Wanting to distract everyone and get back at Carla, I open the freezer, and taking ice from it, I turn to her. Her eyes instantly widen, and she tries to dart away, but I grab hold of her arm and yank her back to me. Her soft scent fills my lungs, and there’s a crackle of electricity between us. Dropping the ice down the back of her shirt, I whisper close to her ear, “This will help you cool down.”

  “Oh God!” Carla shrieks. She begins to shake and wiggle her body to get rid of the ice.

  Everyone laughs, and it has me chuckling. “It looked like you were overheating, so I thought I’d help out.” Wanting to fuck with her, I wink at her before taking the menu from Forest. “Should we get platters?”

  Chapter 4

  NOAH

  I could’ve graduated years ago with my high IQ, but my parents wanted me to have a normal upbringing. For the first time in my life, I regret not fighting them on it.

  If I had finished my studies sooner, I wouldn’t have to share a suite with Carla now.

  After la
st night’s game, I’ve been sneaking in and out of the suite like a damn burglar, doing my best not to run into Carla. Figuring out what I’m feeling is like trying to solve the mystery of life itself. It’s damn near impossible.

  I was awake half the night, replaying what happened in the kitchen. Even though Carla is beautiful, I’ve never felt an attraction toward her… until she fucking touched me.

  It’s probably just a physical reaction from having a female body pressed against mine. Right? Then again, I’ve never had a strong response like that to a girl before.

  What really bothers you, Noah?

  The fact that Carla made you feel something or the fact that you’ve never felt something so intense before?

  I’ve tried dating a couple of times, but it’s not something I’m cut out for.

  Luckily I’m helping Kao drive all their stuff to the new house while Carla’s helping Fallon unpack everything.

  “Remind me again why you didn’t hire a moving company?” I ask Kao as I’m busy driving us back to his house.

  “Fallon and I want to do this ourselves. It’s part of the whole experience,” Kao explains.

  “What experience? Working yourself to death?” I mutter as I pull up the driveway. They bought a ranch-style house, much to my surprise. I always thought Fallon would want a mansion like the one she grew up in.

  Kao reaches for the door but stops when I say, “Can we talk?”

  He relaxes back in the seat and looks at me. “Sure. What’s up?”

  I take a deep breath, then mutter, “Carla.”

  A smile begins to form around his lips. “What about Carla?”

  Scratching the back of my head, I let out a sigh. “Things are weird. I don’t understand it.”

  “How weird?” Kao asks his full attention now on me. “What happened?”

  He knows Carla told me she loves me, and back then, he agreed I did the right thing.

  “She’s not giving up,” I tell him. “Things have been volatile between us. Last night we played fear pong, and she had to act out dares with me.” I shake my head, then admit, “I felt something… with her.”