If You Dare (Dare Series Book 3)

by Shantel Tessier

  “What did you find?” he asks, ignoring her.

  I take in a long breath and say two words. “Austin Lowes.”

  “As in Bruce Lowes?” he asks her.

  Silence follows.

  He chuckles. “Well, well, well, I didn’t know he had a daughter.”

  “We don’t have time for this,” I growl. She’s useless to me at this point. We could have had some fun with her but not anymore. She’s the daughter of the man who raped Cole’s mother and got her pregnant. He’s wanted to make that bastard pay for years, so he’ll make her pay. Not only because of who her dad is, but because of what she saw. I stand and pull my gun out of the back of my pants. “Let’s just kill her.” She’s already dead anyway. He won’t let her walk away. Not after what she saw.

  “Put the gun away,” he orders.

  He can’t be serious. “But …”

  “Now.”

  I tuck it back into my pants, biting back a growl. “Let’s take her with us. I don’t trust her not to call the police afterward.”

  “I’m not going anywhere with you,” she snaps.

  “You’ll do whatever the fuck we say,” I reply flatly.

  “She won’t call them,” he tells me as if he knows what this bitch will and won’t do. “Will you?”

  She clamps her mouth shut.

  I snort. “You don’t fucking know that.”

  “No one will believe her,” he says. “She’s covered in his blood. It’s underneath her fingernails from where she scratched my chest. It’s on her clothes. In her hair. As far as they’re concerned, she will be an accessory to murder.”

  “You fucking bastard—”

  “What did you guys do with the body?” he interrupts her, asking me.

  “Kellan got a call and had to leave; he rode with Bennett, so they all left. I told them we would take care of it.”

  “Perfect. Call my phone with hers.”

  I all but roll my eyes. What is he up to? “What? Cole, we don’t have time …”

  “Call my phone with hers, Deke,” he snaps.

  I let out a huff but look down at her phone and see it’s still unlocked. I type in his number, and seconds later, it starts ringing in his pocket, but he doesn’t answer it.

  I don’t expect him to explain himself.

  He stands up, and she takes the opportunity to try to scramble away, but he grips her hoodie and yanks her to her feet. Wrapping his hand around the back of her neck, he starts shoving her forward up the hill. She twists in his grip, and his hand slips, allowing her to get a few steps ahead of him.

  What the fuck is he doing?

  He runs after her, fisting her hair to pull her back against his front. Wrapping his free hand around her waist, he says, “We’re not done, sweetheart.”

  “Where are we going?” she demands.

  He doesn’t answer her, and I don’t say shit ’cause I have no fucking clue what he’s doing. Maybe he plans on burying her with Jeff’s body. Anything is possible when it comes to Cole.

  He walks her over to where he knows we had Jeff. And I shine my flashlight on the body. She shows no sign of fear as she stares at the dead man. She saw everything we fucking did. How did she know where we were? How long had she been following us? The Lowes estate is just down at the bottom of the hill, but it’s over a hundred yards away. There’s no way she heard us.

  “Hold her,” he demands, shoving her into my arms.

  “Let me go, you son of a bitch!” she screams as she bumps into me.

  Her small fist makes contact with my face. “Fuck,” I hiss. “She punched me,” I say, irritated with this turn of events. She’s like a fly I want to flatten under my hand.

  I grip her hair with one hand, dropping my flashlight, and wrap my now free hand around her neck. I choke her, taking away her air. I’m not gonna go easy on this bitch. I don’t care what Cole plans on doing with her. She tries to fight me, but just like when Cole held her, she has no chance.

  I hear him digging into our black bag, and he pulls out the knife. “Pin her to the ground. Face down.”

  I smile and shove her to her knees with my hand in her hair. She grunts and cusses me as I force her to her stomach with my knee in her lower back.

  Cole grabs his flashlight and shines it down on her. I straddle her ass, her hands pinned in mine against her back.

  He kneels beside us and yanks her sleeve up. “What are you doing?” she asks in a rush.

  “Insurance,” he replies and then drags the blade against her forearm.

  She cries out in the cemetery as the skin gives and blood starts to pour from the wound. He then takes the knife and stabs Jeff in the chest. “Now your DNA is in him with the murder weapon.”

  I chuckle. This bastard …

  “You go to the cops. They dig him up and investigate his murder, and you go down with us.”

  “Fucking …”

  “And you called me. More proof that we were communicating the night of the murder. Around the time of death.”

  Her body lies stiff under mine, and her breathing is labored.

  “Return her phone and let her go so we can bury this body,” he tells me.

  I release her, and then I stand up, hovering over her. She crawls away from me, and I toss her phone to the wet ground. She stands up on shaky legs, holding her arm where he cut it. We both shine our lights on her.

  “Get the fuck out of here before I change my mind,” he growls.

  She turns and runs.

  “We should have killed her,” I say, not really knowing what the fuck he’s doing with her. She could still talk.

  “That wasn’t part of the plan,” he argues.

  I fist my hands. “I don’t fucking care about the plan. What I care about is not going to prison. We should, at the very least, have taken her with us.” Even I knew that wasn’t a possibility, but what other choice did we have other than killing her? Bruce Lowes is a fucking evil bastard. How do we know his daughter isn’t just like him?

  “Did you want to take her home?” He arches a brow. “Keep her as a pet?” Then he shakes his head. “She won’t say anything.”

  “She will …”

  “She won’t. She’s Bruce Lowes’ daughter. We kill her, and they start looking for a missing girl. Then that brings questions.”

  “They’d never find her body, and you know it,” I add. It may be the first time we’ve ever committed murder, but we know what we’re doing. Our fathers have trained us for times like this. We were raised to be fucking sharks. Just like them.

  “I wasn’t worried about them finding her body.”

  “Then why not let me shoot her?” I growl, confused by what the hell he is doing. “Two birds with one stone.”

  “Not yet,” he responds.

  I run a hand through my hair, finally understanding his intentions. “You want to fuck with her.” I chuckle. He wants a toy. “This will be fun.”

  He smiles.

  Oh, Austin Lowes, he’s gonna make you wish he would have just killed you.

  That night was the beginning of her torment and our fun. One thing after another, he put her through hell. Who knew she would survive it? Or that Cole would fall in love with her? I sure as hell didn’t see that coming, but even I can’t deny that they were made for one another.

  “Ah, come on, baby.” She glares at me. She hates it when I call her baby, but I don’t care. “You had fun. It’s okay to admit it.”

  “Cole.” She growls his name.

  He gets out of the water and walks over to her. Placing his hands on her hips, he remains silent. “Did you hurt her?” she asks him, knowing exactly what I meant by had some fun.

  He shakes his head. “I didn’t do anything. Just stood there.”

  “You didn’t try to stop him?” Her mouth falls open.

  He doesn’t respond because he already answered her once.

  She sighs. “Do I know her?”

  “No.” We both lie in unison.

&nb
sp; She pulls away from him. “You said you were done.”

  “I am.” He nods.

  “But now you’re playing some sick game with someone.”

  “It’s not what you think,” he argues.

  She places her hands on her hips. “Then explain it to me.”

  “Not my place.”

  She looks at me, and I give her a big smile. “I’m a rock, baby.” I’m not telling her anything. Can’t take the chance she’ll run off and tell Becky. I don’t want to have to deal with her more than I already do. I want to fuck her, not listen to her bitch. And I think my warning was very clear. Demi will keep her mouth shut, and she’ll stay the hell away from me.

  Austin leans over to pick up her clothes and then storms off into the house.

  Cole turns and looks at me over his shoulder. “You got her?”

  I nod. “We’ll be fine. Won’t we, Lilly?”

  She giggles. “Let’s dive for rings.”

  He turns back to the house and goes in after her. I have no doubt they’ll be fighting it out with her on her back and him between her legs.

  ________________

  An hour later, I’m in the shower washing away the chlorine water when I hear a knock on my bathroom door. “What?” I ask.

  Cole clears his throat, and I pop my head out of the frosted door to look at him. “You have a visitor.”

  My jaw tightens. It’d better not be my father. I’m still avoiding that fucker, but I don’t put it past him to show up here in Texas to make me talk to him. “Who?”

  He gives me that Cole Reynolds smile that I know all too well. His previous argument with Austin forgotten, so I know he told her. He didn’t have to say it, and I didn’t ask. Austin can be relentless when it comes to wanting to know what’s going on. It’s better for her to know than to bother me twenty-four seven. “She’s downstairs in the living room waiting on you.” He slaps the bathroom door. “We’re on our way out. You have the house to yourself for at least three hours. Make them count.”

  DEMI

  I sit on Cole and Austin’s couch scrolling through Facebook on my phone. I’ve been waiting for over twenty minutes in silence. Cole and Austin left with Lilly. Austin looked at me strangely when she answered the door and I asked if Deke was here, but she didn’t question me. At first, I thought it was pity and then confusion. I didn’t want to get into it with her. I would prefer her to not tell my sister that I was here. Maybe she thinks my visit involves Becky. That I’m here to save her from the big bad wolf. Maybe I’m here to tell Deke to leave Becky alone.

  If only.

  “Well, well, well. I must say I’m surprised to see you here.” Deke enters the living room dressed in nothing but a pair of gray sweatpants. I look away as my face heats. I hate that after he left me lying on my bed last night, horny as hell, I finished what he had started. “Come to play some more?” He plops down across from me in a white leather recliner.

  I take a chance to look at him, and he has his muscular arms crossed over his smooth and defined bare chest. His skin tan from spending so much time out in the pool over the summer. His dark hair is wet and pushed back off his forehead. His baby blue eyes twinkle as they look me up and down. My legs tighten, and my breathing hitches when he stops on my chest. I remember his lips … my eyes drop lower, scanning over his defined abs. I’ve never seen a boy look so much like a man. It’s hard to believe he’s only eighteen and a fucking bastard.

  His eyes move to my bruised wrists. “I’m a little disappointed.” Then they return to mine. “I’d hoped your hands were still tied behind your back.”

  My heart begins to race at his words, and my body heat rises. God, it’s like I just walked into a sauna. Sweat breaks out across my forehead, and I rub my hands against my denim-clad thighs. “I came to call a truce.” The words burn my throat as if I just downed a shot of acid.

  He tilts his head to the side. “Truce?”

  “Don’t act stupid, Deke. We both know you’re not.” I roll my eyes, ignoring the throbbing between my legs.

  I’m testing him. And myself. I’ve always been a competitive person by nature. I have to win. And that is exactly why I’m going to take Deke away from my sister. He doesn’t know it yet, but she wants him back. They’re playing this little cat and mouse game right now, but she has no idea she’s got competition. Neither one of them will ever see me coming. Not until it’s too late.

  He smirks and stands. My head falls back to rest on the cushion in order to look up at him, towering over me. His stomach muscles flex when he lifts his hands, running them through his wet hair. A smirk plays on his lips while he watches me take him all in. My eyes drop to his sweatpants and the fabric leaves nothing to the imagination—the outline of his impressive dick clearly visible—and he’s not even hard. My mouth begins to salivate. He steps forward, placing his hands on both armrests. Leaning into me, he lowers his face until it’s inches from mine. The smell of his masculine body wash hits me, and I bite my inner cheek to keep from moaning.

  “You’re right.” He lowers his voice and licks his lips. “I’m not stupid. And neither are you. I knew you’d fold. I don’t call you Becky for nothing.”

  “What the fuck does that mean?” I demand. My hands itch to slap him across his pretty, perfect face to see what he’d do. Instead, I clasp them together. Don’t show all your crazy at once, Demi. You’ve got to leave a little surprise.

  His blue eyes drop to my chest. I suck in a breath when they linger. Is he thinking what I am? Did he like what he felt last night as much as I did? My boobs aren’t small, but they’re not as big as my sister’s. Did he like mine more or less?

  He smirks to himself before pushing off the chair and walking out of the living room and down the hall, ignoring me. His back muscles on full display. I stay transfixed on the way they ripple at his movements. His gray sweatpants sit low on his hips, and my mouth waters at the way the fabric pulls against his round ass. I know he came down here to see me only half-dressed on purpose. He knows how to play the game. It’s also the same reason I dressed up for him. He dated Becky, after all. He likes girls who look a certain way. Even if it’s not the real me, I can pretend.

  “Deke?”

  “I’m guessing you can see yourself out,” he calls over his shoulder before he turns and walks up the stairs.

  “Deke?” I growl, only to hear the door to his room slam, and my fists tighten. Don’t follow him. That’s what he wants you to do.

  That’s what Becky would do, and you’re not Becky.

  But that’s why I’m doing this. That’s why I allowed him to touch me in the first place. To make him look like a fool. Walking out the front door means he wins, and I’m not about to give in.

  “Nature of The Beast” by My Darkest Days begins to play loudly from upstairs, and I grind my teeth at his choice of song.

  I take the stairs two at a time and open the first door to my left. A black wooden framed king-size bed sits up against the wall with a deep red comforter. Black glittery pillows decorate the bed along with a couple of others that match the bedding. A large picture of Cole and Austin hangs above the headboard. She’s wearing a beautiful red dress, and he’s dressed in a black tux with a bow tie that matches her. Nope. Definitely not Deke’s room. The moment I open the next door, I don’t even get a chance to look around because I’m yanked inside, and my back is slammed into a wall.

  “Curiosity killed the cat.” Deke chuckles.

  He was expecting me. “Are you gonna kill me?” I almost smile.

  He tilts his head to the side and bites his bottom lip as he contemplates that idea. My body heat rises like it seems to do when I’m around him. “Is that what you want?” he asks, reaching out and taking a lock of my hair. He rubs it between his fingers. “Want me to hurt you, Demi?” I swallow nervously because I know this man would do exactly that. I’d have to give him a reason, but once I pushed him to that limit, he wouldn’t think twice. “Is that why you keep coming around me?
” He chuckles, and I don’t miss the innuendo.

  “No.” My answer is nothing more than a whisper. Not true, but not totally wrong.

  I come around you because I hate you. And I want my sister to smell my perfume on you. I want her to know I’ve been near you. Touched you. I want to watch her go crazy knowing I have taken something from her. Something she was so sure would be there when she decided to quit being a fucking whore and come back.

  The corners of his lips turn up. “Liar.” My heart begins to pound, and he leans forward, his lips now inches from mine. “You’re more fucked up than I originally thought,” he whispers.

  “Excuse me?” This coming from a monster. We’re more alike than you could ever imagine, Deke.

  “I stood outside your room while you watched that documentary. Into murder, are you?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about …”

  “You lie as bad as your sister does.”

  I hate that—the way he compares us—more than anything.

  “Is that why I turn you on?” he asks, and his eyes leave mine to admire my lips.

  “You don’t—”

  He chuckles, cutting me off. “Another lie. I bet you’re wet right now, baby.” His knee pushes between my legs, easily spreading them apart. I’m panting at his closeness. His free hand comes up and cups the side of my face. His touch so soft, it has to be fake. There’s nothing tender about this man. I know he’s fucking with me, but my body isn’t getting the memo. I lean into him, wanting more. Wetness pools between my legs when he lowers his lips to my neck and kisses the sensitive skin there, sending a shiver up my spine. But I feel it’s a threat. He’s pretending to be gentle just to get close to me. He can strike easier from here. Rip my throat out with his teeth. Too bad I don’t care.

  I reach out and grip the waistband of his sweatpants as his lips trail up my neck to my ear. He laughs when I moan.

  My hands fist the material. My knuckles skimming the smoothness of his defined V. I have a thought of pulling them down just to see what he’ll do from there. I doubt he’ll be laughing then. “You are such a fucking …”

  My words are cut short when his lips slam on mine. He doesn’t ask for permission, and I don’t push him away. His hands hold my face in place as his tongue enters my mouth. He tastes just as good as the other night at Silence. Like sin and cinnamon. It stirs something in my stomach, and I pull him closer to me. A moan escapes me as I open my lips, wanting him to take my breath away.