CHAPTER 314: THE GAME SHE LOST

Evaline:

Being alone with River in one room was already enough to make my heart hammer, but now... now the entire mansion felt too quiet.

Draven and Oscar had just left, their laughter still faintly echoing in my ears, but their absence was loud. Too loud. It was just me and River now... well, and the servants and guards somewhere in the distance, but they didn’t count. Not when every step River took seemed to resonate through me, every quiet glance stealing my breath.

I couldn’t even disappear into my bedroom to avoid him. My legs refused to move, my heart was doing somersaults, and instead of fleeing, I stood rooted in place like some deer caught in headlights.

Fumbling with my fingers, I darted glances everywhere except at him - the polished floor, the crackling fire in the living room fireplace, the grand staircase. Anywhere but his face.

And then, inevitably, I did look.

He was standing a few paces away, hands in his pockets, watching me with an expression that didn’t belong to him... or at least, not the him I thought I knew. There was no coldness. No rigid mask of duty. His deep green eyes which usually looked sharp and unreadable, now held warmth. His lips were curved, ever so slightly, into the gentlest trace of a smile.

That softness... it didn’t belong on River Thorne’s face. He wasn’t supposed to look at me like that. He wasn’t supposed to have this kind of tenderness hidden beneath his armor. And yet, here it was... like some secret he was quietly offering me, one he never showed to anyone other than his brothers.

The realization made my chest tighten painfully. I wasn’t ready for this side of him. I didn’t know how to respond. So I stayed quiet, hoping he would take pity on me and break the silence first.

Thankfully, he did.

"Do you have any plans for the evening?" he asked, his voice steady, calm.

I shook my head quickly. "No."

He nodded, as though he had expected that answer. "Then how about this... we play a game."

My brows lifted. "A game?"

He tilted his head slightly, studying me with quiet amusement. "Yes. If I win, we spend the evening my way. If you win, we’ll spend it your way... even if your idea is simply to have dinner and hide away in your room."

I swallowed. Oh, he knew me too well. The temptation was strong - victory meant I could retreat to safety, tuck myself beneath my blankets, and pretend none of this heart-racing nonsense existed.

It actually sounded fair, maybe even fun. So I nodded, curiosity outweighing my nerves. "Alright. What game?"

For a moment, he didn’t answer. Instead, he started walking toward me, each step measured and deliberate. My pulse skyrocketed. He stopped when there was barely any space left between us, and before I could process, he leaned down, bringing his face level with mine.

"Tell me," he murmured, his voice impossibly soft, "what game are you terrible at?"

My lips parted, but no sound came out. My mind blanked completely. I could barely remember my own name, let alone answer him. The closeness, his gaze, the low timbre of his voice... it unraveled me in ways I couldn’t explain.

And why was he asking about what game I was terrible at? So that I end up losing?

He was studying my reaction while I struggled to understand what he up to. And then, for the briefest heartbeat, he smiled. Not the tiny, polite curve of lips he sometimes gave others, but a real smile. Bright, amused, unguarded. It lit up his face, transforming him into someone even more breathtaking than his usual handsome face that something inside me stumbled, hard.

I must have looked ridiculous, standing there frozen, because he straightened quickly and cleared his throat, as though hiding the smile he hadn’t meant to show. "Truth and dare," he said, his composure sliding neatly back into place. "Whoever fails their turn loses."

Truth and dare. My nerves prickled. A part of me was telling me this wasn’t the right game. Still, I nodded. "Okay."

"Good. I’ll start." His voice carried a quiet confidence, like he already knew the outcome. "Dare."

I blinked. Already? My brain scrambled for something that might challenge him. Something outrageous. Something he would never accept. The first thought that popped into my head slipped out before I could stop it.

"Give me a month off from internship without cutting my salary."

The words hung in the air, bold and ridiculous. My eyes widened. What did I just say?!

But what turned out even more ridiculous was his response. He didn’t hesitate. Not even for a second. "Done," he said smoothly, as if I had asked him to fetch me a glass of water.

My jaw nearly hit the floor. "You-you can’t be serious."

He arched an eyebrow. "A dare’s a dare."

I just stared at him, stunned, trying to process the fact that I had essentially dared him into doing something I knew he would never agree to... and yet he had. Casually. Effortlessly. Like bending rules for me wasn’t a big deal at all.

Before I could recover, he leaned forward slightly, his voice low. "Your turn. Truth or dare?"

"Truth," I blurted, thinking it was safer than another disastrous dare.

He moved closer again, lowering himself just enough that his eyes were level with mine, his face so close I could feel his warm breath. "Have you started liking me?"

The question slammed into me like a tidal wave. My heart stopped, then raced so fast I thought it might burst. My lips parted, but no words came. I was drowning in his gaze, in the intensity of the question, in the unbearable closeness that made my thoughts scatter into nothing.

Say something, Eva. Anything.

But nothing came out. Not even a whisper.

His eyes softened, but he didn’t let me look away. And in that moment, I knew... I had lost the game.

Was it so hard to say no? Absolutely not!

What I actually found impossible was to say... Yes!