AllFreeNovel
Share Us
‘Oh yeah?’ I ask, afraid to know what other promises he’s kept for people he has casual relationships with.
‘I entered a hotdog eating contest at the state fair when I was eighteen.’
‘How many wieners did ya swallow?’ Laney asks the question in the most perverted way possible, but River laughs.
‘Twenty-eight. In ten minutes.’
‘Wow!’ I say. ‘You are full of fun information tonight. With every moment we spend together, I wonder a little more why you’re single.’
‘He-he,’ he smirks. ‘It’s by choice,’ he says. ‘Mostly.’ His tone is less than thrilled with this fact. But I can’t imagine a woman turning him down for anything. He’s incredible to be around.
It takes two people to bring out our burgers, mainly because River’s requires an entire man to carry. They set the food in front of us, the staff back off, and Jovi chants for River. They’re going to cheer on his death. That’s cute.
‘Eat it. Eat it. Eat it.’
‘That’s what she said,’ I say under my breath, making him laugh.
‘Eat it!’ Laney hollers.
River looks at me nervously. ‘I can’t possibly not do it now. I’ve got fans.’
With his new fan club’s encouragement, River attempts his first bite but can’t even get his mouth around the thing. He does his best, and the crew and Laney cheer. He raises a fist into the air.
‘I got this!’ he says to his cheerleaders.
But after ten minutes, I can tell he doesn’t got this.
‘Someone distract me,’ he says, the meat sweats kicking in causing him to lift the bottom of his shirt and wipe the sweat from his brow. Laney and I glance to one another, both our eyes on his very chiseled abs.
‘Ai-yi-yi,’ Laney says, fanning herself while River isn’t looking. Thank God. How embarrassing would that be. Though she’s not wrong. River is beautiful in a very underwear model kind of way.
‘Let’s play a game,’ he suggests, his mind on his challenge rather than Laney and my ogling him while he sweats out an upcoming coronary.
‘Truth or dare!’ Laney exclaims. Of course. Her go-to game. No birthday party we went to as kids was complete without it. It’s how I had my first kiss.
‘Dare!’ River answers immediately, even though we haven’t established any rules. ‘You should know I’ve never turned down a dare, and considering I’m attempting to die via cheeseburger right now, please go easy on me.’
‘Never turned down a dare, huh?’ Laney asks. ‘What a man you are,’ she teases.
I raise my hand, and Laney and River look at me, confused. Slowly, I lower it realizing I’m not in the third grade with a question. ‘Sorry, that was nerdy. But I’ve got a dare. Sort of.’
‘Let’s hear it,’ he says between bites.
‘Tell us about the most out-there dare you’ve ever done?’
He wipes his hands on his napkin with a smile. ‘Let me think.’ He taps his forehead with each word, sipping his drink. ‘Got it. You ladies ready for this?’
Laney and I both nod. ‘Lay it on us, Evel Knievel.’
The smile creeping on the side of his face is cute.
‘I like that you were raised by parents who also kept the eighties alive. That Evel guy was straight nuts. This dare isn’t quite his level, but it has always stuck with me, and only three other people on this earth know.’
‘Oooh,’ I say, my soda cup in my hand. ‘Must be good if it’s a secret dare story.’
He nods, taking another bite of his burger. When he’s done chewing, he takes a deep breath and starts telling the tale of the man who does any dare.
‘About a month after Caitlin and I broke up, me and a buddy, Dax – you’ve met him – we decided to hike the Pacific Coast Trail. We’d been doing overnight weekend hikes for a few years to get into shape, so we weren’t novices or anything. We had good gear and experience. Hiking the full trail would’ve been too much, so we started in southern Oregon on the California border. The plan was to hike to the Washington border, then have my dad pick us up. It would take us a couple of weeks, but I’d hoped it would clear my head of all the shit I’d been through with my break-up. But all this trip did was add a new horror to my nightmares.’
