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“Yes?”
“Fuck,” she whispered and balled her fists. Then she reached down and pulled off one of her heels. She wiggled her bare toes and I could resist. I pulled her foot on my lap and ran my thumb down the middle. Up and down until she closed her eyes.
“Hit me with another truth,” I said.
“Mmm… that feels nice.”
I chuckled. “That doesn’t count as your truth. I still get a turn.”
“What are you most afraid of?” she asked with her eyes still closed.
The question caught me off-guard but I searched my heart for an honest answer. “Being fooled by someone I love.”
“Did this happen to you?”
I nodded. I knew I didn’t have to answer the rest, but if I wanted her to open up, I’d have to do the same.
“Everyone thought my aunt and uncle cared about us and took in the orphaned Crawford brothers when their parents died. But it was all a lie. They didn’t care about us. My aunt acted like the perfect mother in front of strangers, but at home she barely looked at us. She was more concerned about her next fix.”
She pulled her foot away and sat up with her legs tucked underneath her. She placed her hand on my shoulder. “Your aunt was a junkie? Did you… did you ever see her overdose?”
“No, thank god. But she rarely left her bed. She usually sent me to the pharmacy to pick up her meds. I don’t know how she got the prescriptions, but I imagine she paid a doctor a good amount to keep writing them.”
She nodded but her eyes looked sad. I shouldn’t have shared the story.
I grabbed the hand on my shoulder and caressed it with my thumb. “Your turn.”
“Dare,” she said, nodding.
I was hoping she’d let me in this time, but she still wasn’t ready.
Maybe…
“I dare you to dance.”
She stared at me. Her face hardened. But she shook her head and kicked off her other shoe.
She wouldn’t give me any answers tonight. She would hold on to her truth and end up naked.
It was what I wanted, so why was I disappointed?
“Truth or dare?” she demanded, tearing me away from my thoughts.
I held her eyes, wanting to know she was safe with me. “Truth.”
She nodded, ignoring my cues. “Tell me something that no one else knows.”
She wasn’t playing fair. She asked so much of me but gave nothing in return. I shook my head.
“Come on, Ryan. You picked this game, now you have to stick to the rules.”
I could refuse the truth and remove a piece of clothing. But I knew if I wanted her to reciprocate, I’d have to bare myself to her.
“My mother was having an affair.” All the air left my lungs at the confession that I’d never said out loud.
She inhaled sharply. “I’m so sorry,” she said and reached for my face. She cradled my cheek in the palm of her hand, and as much as I craved her compassion, I knew it would destroy me. So, I pulled back.
The words bubbled out of my chest, wanting to distract her and know her at the same time. “Why don’t you want to dance?”
