Falling Up

17. The Game

Riley gathered herself together as best she could, wiping a tear from her cheek after her laughing fit had left both her and Kendra breathless. Her eyes came into contact with Kain and for a moment she was expecting the usual scowl on his face. To her surprise, she saw a breathtaking smile and he seemed amused at her more than anything else, which was rare for her to see. Once their eyes made contact, his smile fell away, quickly replaced by his usual harsh glare.

"Can't handle someone dishing back shit on you?" said Kendra as she only caught the deepening scowl on Kain's face.

"I can handle anything dished out at me," said Kain calmly, staring directly at Riley. "Even a few lame comebacks."

"Lame?" retorted Riley. "Please! That was pure gold and you know it."

"A couple of words here and there aren't going to impress me," he said, crossing his arms across his broad chest, causing Riley to gulp as she watched his biceps flex against the movement.

Just looking at Kain's smugness, despite the fact that he looked very hot with his piercing blue eyes and confident stature, was enough to irritate Riley. And she was sure something was seriously wrong with her when she said her next words. But she was feeling confident for a change, a slight buzz to the atmosphere that she hadn't noticed before now.

"I don't need to impress you, Kain. You know I was hoping for a battle of wits but you appear to be unarmed."

Kain raised his eyebrow at the statement while a collection of giggles from onlookers continued. He pondered for a moment before walking closer to her. "You want a battle? Then how about a game? Since you seem to think you're so much better than me, you shouldn't have a problem winning a simple game."

Riley moved closer to him, getting even more irritated at his cocky little stance as she stared up at that stupid face of his.

"Name it," said Riley as they faced off, chest to chest.

Kain looked around, as he decided on the game, then smiled when he looked back at Riley.

"Let's agree on the stakes first."

Riley thought for a moment. "If I win, you help me study for the next exam," she said, knowing that he was easily passing everything with top marks in the class. It's not as though Riley was failing classes or anything, but she could really use a hand in the family law side of things for her next exam and a free tutor sounded like a win for her.

"And if I win, you'll clean up the frat house tomorrow," said Kain, pointing in the direction of the house, which already looked like a mess with plastic cups thrown about on the lawn. It would take her all day to clean it, but she didn't care. She was going to win whatever game he threw at her.

"Deal," she said, turning back around to face Kain as he reached his hand forward, grabbing Riley's hand and shaking firmly. The deal was sealed.

"And the game?" asked Riley.

A mischievous grin crossed over Kain's face. "Beer pong".

In the back of her mind, there was a small nagging notion that told her every single reason why this was a bad idea. She wasn't supposed to be drinking, but just the look on his face pissed her off and for the chill mellow feeling coursing through her body had her giving zero fucks for any consequences of her actions. The only thing she wanted to do was to wipe the smug ass smile from Kain's face.

"You're on."

Kain grinned in acceptance of the challenge while motioning his hand in the direction of the house and pool table which was setup for beer pong.