The room was buzzing with alcohol and reckless decisions. Someone had turned on music, a half-empty bottle of tequila sat on the table, and the air was thick with the kind of tension that only came with too much history and too little space.

You should have known better than to play Truth or Dare with this group.

You definitely should have known better than to play it with Josh Chen in the room.

And now?

Now, every pair of eyes was on you, and Josh was watching you with that damn smirk, lounging against the couch like he owned the world. Like he owned you.

"Well?" he drawled, tapping a finger against his knee. "It’s just a kiss, princess. What’s wrong? Afraid you’ll like it?"

Your fingers clenched into fists. Josh Chen was insufferable. Arrogant, cocky, the most annoying man you’d ever met. You hated him.

You hated the way his dark eyes flickered with amusement, like he knew exactly how to get under your skin. You hated the way his messy hair looked too good for someone who probably spent five minutes on it. You hated that his scrubs—because of course he came straight from his shift at the hospital—should not make him this attractive.

Most of all, you hated the way your pulse jumped at the thought of kissing him.

The group cheered and jeered, waiting for you to either back out or give in. You could feel your best friend’s gaze burning into you, could hear Jules laughing under her breath.

You refused to let Josh win.

So, before you could overthink it, before you could give yourself a chance to back down, you grabbed his face and kissed him.

You meant for it to be quick, dismissive, nothing special.

But Josh Chen was a menace. A tease. And he never let you win.

The moment your lips brushed his, his hands shot up, fingers digging into your waist, pulling you flush against him. His mouth moved over yours, slow and devastating, like he had all the time in the world.

The room faded. The cheers became background noise.