LITMIR.BIZ

      1

      Ten Years Before

      “GENNA, YOU’RE CRAZY. You don’t have to do this.”

      “Of course I do. You dared me.” Genna Reilly gave her best friend a wide-eyed look. The one she used whenever she wanted to appear extra sweet and innocent.

      The sweet part was usually an act. The innocent part was pure truth, though. But fingers crossed, tonight was going to change that.

      “I didn’t dare you. Dina did. You could just take the truth instead. C’mon, I’ll even ask a different question,” Macy said, her desperate tone matching the intense worry in her eyes. She grabbed both of Genna’s hands, hanging on tight as if her body weight could anchor her to this spot. Since Genna was a lean, mean five-ten and Macy topped out at five-two, as anchors went, the girl wasn’t very effective.

      “That’s not how the game is played,” Genna said, carefully extricating her hands, not wanting to hurt Macy but desperately wanting to be gone already.

      She’d had no idea tonight’s slumber party would turn wild. Oh, sure, the potential was there. That’s why they always had sleepovers at Dina’s, because her mom fell asleep by ten and didn’t do spot breathalyzer inspections like Genna’s dad. It was easy to sneak out and do fun things. Like play truth or dare.

      She’d figured on a fun weekend with three of her best friends, one of the last leading up to graduation. But she’d had no idea it would be this fun.

      She needed to do this. Now, while the anticipation was still zinging through her system, making her feel brave enough to take on the world. Or, in this case, to take down the sexiest bad boy of Bedford, California.

      She wanted Brody Lane.

      But he had practically made a career of ignoring her existence.

      Time to end that.

      Class vice president, squad cheer captain and the daughter of one of the most influential men in town, at seventeen Genna was no stranger to attention. Her exotic looks, long silky black hair and sky-blue eyes ensured that she got plenty of male attention, and not only in her high school classes. Nope, even though they were three years her senior, her brother’s friends were always staring and flirting with her, too.

      But she wasn’t interested in any of them.

      Not the boys in school.

      Not the guys her brother ran with.

      Not until he’d started hanging out with Brody last winter.

      For the first time in her charmed life, Genna was smitten. Hooked. Hot....

      Over a guy who was deemed off-limits. Not only by her parents, who were ridiculously overprotective. But by the town itself, all of whom considered the Lanes just this side of the devil’s minions, and Brody as a hell-raiser with an overdue ticket to prison. Heck, even her brother, Joe, had told her not to be stupid when he’d caught her checking out Brody’s butt.

      And Brody? He looked right through her as if she were made of cellophane. It wasn’t as though she expected everyone in the world to adore her. But the guy could drool a little when he saw her in shorts, couldn’t he? Or at least stare when he showed up to give Joe a ride and found Genna in a bikini, strategically washing her car.

      But did he?

      Noooo.

      The guy acted as though she wasn’t even there.

      Genna wasn’t the contrary sort. She’d never had to be. But no matter who told her or how many times, she couldn’t get Brody Lane out of her head.

      So tonight, thanks to Dina’s dare, she was going to do something about it.

      “Genna,” Macy pleaded, as

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