Page 70 of Vicious Games

“Discretion is my middle name.”

It’s not. It’s Giovanni—after my bio dad—but that’s neither here nor there.

I don’t keep secrets from Enzo either, so that rule I’m definitely breaking. But for now, I can hold my tongue.

“Also,” she continues, dead serious, “you’re not allowed to do anything I don’t ask you to do first. I call the shots on what I want to experience.”

“Fair enough.”

“And this has an expiration date.” She levels me with a glare. “The minute I have my grades high enough to graduate, I’m pulling the plug on this.”

“As you should,” I reply smoothly.

However, I hate the way that sits in my chest. Knowing there’s a countdown on whatever this is doesn’t sit right with me for some reason.

“One more thing.” She nibbles on her lip. “Don’t make fun of me.”

Something sharp twists in my gut at the sudden vulnerability in her light cerulean eyes.

I pull myself up and snake my hand around the nape of her neck, my thumb grazing her cheek. Her breath hitches at the light touch while I hold her stare.

“I would never do that.” It’s a vow. And I never break my vows. Mostly because I rarely make such promises, but in this case, it’s one that will be easy to keep. “Can I ask why you think I’d make fun of you?”

“You’d be surprised what people are capable of when they have the upper hand in life.”

“Not me, Frankie. You know I’m no good.” I lean in slightly, my voice dropping an octave. “I never hid that from you. But you’ve never heard a single thing about me teasing or bullying anyone. That’s not my style.”

“You bully me all the time.” She lifts her chin, eyes slit. “It’s what you’re doing right now.”

“That’s different.”

“How so?”

“Maybe what you call bullying, I call flirting.”

Her eyes expand yet again as if stunned by my reply, and I don’t miss how her gaze then flickers to my mouth.

“You’re flirting with me?” she whispers.

“Maybe a little,” I murmur, my own pulse thudding rapidly as I inch closer.

Her lips part slightly, her eyes searching mine.

“D-Don’t,” she stammers, but she doesn’t pull away. “No matter how this little…experimentgoes, I’m still going to take my vows after graduation. No amount of flirting will stop that from happening.”

“We’ll see,” I say with a cocky grin in place.

“Yes, we will.”

“So, are you ready for your first lesson?” I ask, anxious to start.

“Wasn’t yesterday my first lesson?”

“In a way,” I admit, smacking my lips, “but we barely scratched the surface.”

Her fingers tighten around the hem of her skirt. “You mean that kiss was mild?”

“Child’s play.”

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