“Hey, Nina, are you playing?” Niall asks as soon as I arrive. The boys are sitting at a table, drinking and playing cards. I tilt my head and shake it.
“Have fun, you two,” I say with a kind smile.
Alex grabs me by the waist, pulling me toward him, and I end up sitting on his lap. I glance at his cards.
“Just don’t say what they are, he jokes. I smile slightly, resting my head on his chest, the strong scent of cigarette smoke filling my senses.
I glance at Alex, watching him take a drag.
“I say we go for a double,” James says.
Everyone shrugs before placing several fifty-pound notes on the table.
I bite my bottom lip as I feel Alex’s cold hands on my thighs. My skin prickles as I look up at him.
“You’re cold,” I laugh lightly. He removes his hand from my thigh, but I grab it and place it back. “But I like it,” | whisper. Alex smiles sideways.
“What are we doing tonight?” Elijah asks out of nowhere. Everyone exchanges glances.
“I say we hit our favorite club, he suggests with a shrug. “I’m buying.” He sets his cards down, and everyone groans. Elijah scoops up the pile of money and begins arranging it.
“You guys go. Nina can’t come with us, so I’ll stay with her,” Alex says simply. I look at him.
“Come on, man. You don’t always get the honor of having us all here,” Landon exclaims as everyone boos Alex.
“I can stay with Emily,” I shrug. Alex looks at me directly and shakes his head.
“Or Emily can stay here,” Niall suggests. I raise my eyebrows at him, but he avoids my gaze, taking a sip of what looks like beer. “It’ll just be a moment, man. We’ll be back soon,” he shrugs.
“Emily can stay here with me,” I whisper, and Alex looks at me uncertainly. “It’s your birthday. You should have fun with your friends,” I nod. He makes a face, and I add,
“We already had fun yesterday,” whispering in his ear. I pull away and watch as he licks his lips.
“Okay, but just for a little while,” he agrees, and I smile sideways.
Not even fifteen minutes pass before Alex kisses me goodbye. I’m startled when he squeezes my ass in front of his friends. I push him lightly, and he laughs.
Feeling the heat rise to my cheeks, lower my gaze.
“How’s your ass?” he whispers in my ear. I smack his shoulder, and he laughs.
“Hey, I care about you,” he shrugs.
“I’m fine, thank you, I reply. He looks at my lips, then my eyes, and gives me a quick peck.
“Go on, they’re waiting for you,” I laugh.
“Just don’t look at any women,” I warn him.
“With a girlfriend like you? Impossible,” he says. I raise an eyebrow and lick my lips.
“I love you,” he murmurs, pulling me closer.
” love you, I repeat. He smiles, showing his teeth.
“Come on, lovebirds!” Louis calls from the door. “I’m dying for a whiskey,” he groans.
I separate from Alex, say goodbye, and close the door. As soon as I do, I sigh.
I started walking around the kitchen, trying to find some snacks to eat while waiting for Emily to get here. Sadly, ever since Alex decided to start watching his figure, it was nearly impossible to find junk food in the house.
I needed to have a serious talk with him. I mean, his figure was already perfect, but he insisted he needed to take better care of himself so that I liked him more-ha, as if that were even possible.
The doorbell rang, snapping me out of my thoughts. I glanced at the screens and saw Emily standing at the door. Frowning, opened it, only to see the three of them
there.
“You little brat, you never said anything about living in a mansion,” Luke laughed, clearly impressed. I shot a glare at Emily.
“What are you two doing here?” I asked sharply.
James raised his eyebrows, clearly amused. “Of course Alex wasn’t going to leave me alone with Emily for the night.”
James told me he was asked to pick up Emily as a favor, and since I was with him, well… here I am. But hey, James, I find it more tempting to stay here with the girls for a while than to go watch football at your apartment, Luke says, looking around.
“Oh no, I don’t…” I start, but Luke interrupts.
“I’ve got alcohol with me,” he says, and I raise my eyebrows and shake my head.
“Come on, Nina, it’ll be fun,” Emily says, giving me a pleading look. I frown, but after a moment, I sigh and nod.
“Just a little,” I agree, and James looks at me uncertainly. I shrug in response.
“Let’s play a game!” Luke says, pulling two bottles out of his backpack-one of vodka and one of tequila. I frown.
“Where did you get tequila?” I ask, eyeing the bottle as he holds it up.
“I have contacts,” he winks at me, then opens the bottles. “Let’s play ‘Never Have I Ever,'” he suggests, shrugging his shoulders. “Do you have shot glasses?”
I make a face and head over to the small bar Alex had, which almost overtooked his backyard. I grab four glasses and walk back into the living room, where everyone is sitting on the floor.
“Great,” Luke says as he takes the small glasses from us.
“I can’t drink; I’ll be driving,” James says.
“Come on, man, it’ll be fun,” Luke shrugs, and James tenses his jaw. I walk over to James and whisper in his ear, “Let’s do this for Emily.”
He looks at me uncertainly, then sighs. “Shit, okay,” he snorts, and Luke smiles.
We sat in a circle, glasses in hand, as the game started to get more revealing. Luke, with his usual mischievous grin, made the first move.
“I’ve never been embarrassed by any of my dates or girlfriends,” he said.
Emily and Luke took shots, while James just shrugged.
“I’ve never watched porn,” Emily said confidently.
Luke and James both grabbed their drinks, taking quick sips.
‘I’ve never done it from behind, Luke declared with a smirk.
Emily and I exchanged looks before taking our shots. The boys’ faces lit up with surprise, but I just laughed it off.
“I’ve never done any drugs other than alcohol, I muttered, lifting my glass slightly.
Luke took another sip, and James gave him a worried look.
“Dude, you’re going to get alcohol poisoning,” James warned, but Luke waved him off.
“We’re drinking less than half a glass each time. Besides, three strikes equal a full shot” Luke said nonchalantly.
“‘ve never had wet dreams, Emily announced, a sly smile on her face.
James and Luke both took their shots, and the group burst into laughter.
The game continued like that, secrets spilling and everyone becoming more uninhibited as time passed. After about half an hour, I could tell that Luke, James, and Emily were no longer fully in control of their senses.
“I’ve never slept with someone more than five years older than me,” Luke said, raising his eyebrows when I took a shot.
“I’ve never had sex with someone while thinking about someone else,” I declared.
Luke and Emily exchanged glances before taking their shots together.
“I’ve never slept with a teacher,” Luke added, clearly testing me.
I took a shot without hesitation, and his expression shifted to one of surprise.