"Olivia! Fuck..."

I feel strong arms wrapped around me pulling me close to a firm body. With all the strength I can muster I try to kick the person holding me, and writhe furiously in an attempt to break free.

"Let me go!" I scream desperately. "Noo!"

"Liv. It's me, Zach!"

I freeze and open my eyes. Zach's hazel eyes are fixed on me, and he's watching me with concern all over his face.

"Shh...it's okay." He caresses my back and places a gentle, lingering kiss on my hair.

"What happened?" I ask hoarsely while my eyes cling to his to find some comfort. My heart is racing, and my t-shirt is soaked from sweat.

"You had a nightmare. A terrible one, I guess," Zach explains without loosening his grip around me.

Very slowly, the memory returns into my head, and I remember bit by bit of my horrible dream. Terrence's mouth and hands all over my body, and then Jack's disgusting remark about fucking me.

The recollection of all the things Terrence did to me is too much for me, and I bury my face in Zach's chest and start sobbing.

"Hey...shh...it's okay. It's over now. I got you, baby!" Zach keeps whispering soothing words into my ear until my sobs subside.

"Zach?" I mutter into his drenched t-shirt.

"Yea?"

"Terrence is dead, right? He's not alive anymore, isn't he?" I ask lowly and level our heads to meet his gaze.

"Uh...Yes, I shot him that night, don't you reme..."

"But you know for sure he is dead, right?" I interrupt him impatiently. I need to know that my dream was just a really bad dream and not something like a bad omen.

"The officer confirmed his death, Olivia," Zach reassures me with a serious expression. "Why are you even asking me that? Was your dream about T?"

I nod and tell him my full dream. When I'm finished, Zach's face is pale, and he clenches his teeth.

"Shit... That's fucked up! Come here," he states lowly and pulls me close again. "I promise you I won't let Jack or anyone else harm you again!"

I breathe in the soothing scent of him and slowly, my body starts relaxing in his strong arms.

After a few minutes, I reluctantly pull away and swing my legs out of bed.

"I need a shower. I'm sweaty all over," I mutter and walk off towards the bath.

While the hot water is coating my exhausted body, my thoughts wander to tonight. It's New Year's Eve. The night I was so excited about. There's this huge party which takes place in our hotel and at midnight all the guests gather on the rooftop to watch the firework together. Right now, I don't feel like partying at all, but I'm determined to change that.

When I step out of the bathroom, Zach is already waiting to use it as well.

"Do you feel better now?" he asks softly.

"Yea. That shower felt amazing!" I retort with a warm smile.

It's true. I feel much better after washing off the sweat and all the bad energy of my dream. I think I'm ready to have a nice day with my friends.

"Good," Zach states, returning my smile before his eyes wander down and linger on my body which is only covered by a set of lace lingerie.

"Damn, Liv," he mutters, biting his bottom lip and steps closer. As he lifts his arms to wrap them around my body, I take a step backwards and shake my head.

"Don't touch me yet. Not until tonight," I say with a wink and walk into the walk-in closet to get dressed, leaving Zach behind with a deep frown on his face and with his lips slightly parted. A big smirk plays upon my lips as I go through my suitcase to decide what to wear. I don't know how my mood could change that quickly, but I'm very glad it did.

We're supposed to meet the girls and Benjamin in the hotel lobby in half an hour to go out for lunch and a bit of city exploring. I quickly change into my worn-out jeans and a white turtleneck and slip on my tan colored cord jacket. A glance in the full-length mirror tells me I look okay, so I leave the closet and start blow-drying my hair.

Just when I switch off the hairdryer, Zach steps out of the bathroom. Dripping wet and bare ass naked. My eyes automatically wander down to his exposed manhood and I make a step towards him, biting my bottom lip.

God, that wet body screams sex, I can literally hear it.

"No touching until tonight, baby," he teases as I lift my hand and nearly touch his damp hair. It's just too tempting to rake my fingers through it, pull on it, but I quickly compose myself and draw back my hand again.

I growl in disapproval but chuckle at the fact that he just used my own words against me.

"We'll see who will win this game," I challenge him and turn around to apply some mascara.

"The winner gets to choose the way we do it tonight!" Zach suggests, earning an amused laughter from me.

"Deal!"

Well. That is going to be interesting. And awfully hard. Especially for him when I think of the outfit, I picked for the party tonight. With a big grin on my face, I finish getting ready.

An hour later, we're gathered around a table in a cozy restaurant in downtown Vancouver and are currently waiting for our ordered food.

"Oh my god, I'm starving!" Hailey cries out with a desperate face.

"Relax, sunshine!" Ben chuckles and wraps his arm around Hailey.

Sunshine. What a fitting name for Hailey. With her light blonde hair and her bright mood, I couldn't think of a better nickname for her.

"Yea, we literally ordered two minutes ago," Abbey states with an amused eye-roll.

I look around our group. It feels great being around all the people I love. I got to see my family yesterday, which was something I was eagerly looking forward to, but tonight is going to be the most amazing night in a very long time, and I can't wait for it. Spending New Year's Eve with my best friends and my boyfriend makes it very special for me and I'm utterly excited for the party tonight.

"So, Livie. How was seeing your family again?" Sadie asks me with a warm smile.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spot Zach looking at his phone again with a deep frown on his face. I'm definitely not going to ask him again who's pestering him. At least, not today. I want to enjoy this day without any fight or sorrow. The nightmare I had last night was already enough trouble for me.

"It was wonderful. And you should see Jude with his current attitude. He's so pubertal, it hurts," I retort, and push away my worries, deciding I'm not giving them any space in my brain today.

"Oh lord, I'd love to see your little baby brother again," Abbey whines. When we were younger, she used to keep me company when I had to babysit Jude as my mom was out playing gigs at nearly every weekend.

"Well. There's not so much left of that baby, I'm afraid," I chuckle and take a sip of my water.

"Oh, I can still remember him as a cute kid," Abbey retorts with a nostalgic smile.

We're interrupted as the waitress starts serving our order, and the next fifteen minutes everyone is quietly digging in the tasty food.

"Holy lord, I needed that," Sadie states, and pats her stomach. "I might burst any second now."

We all laugh and chat for a while until we decide to take a little stroll through the city before returning to the hotel.

"I'm going to use the restroom real quick," I say, and jump up.

Just when I turn off the water after I washed my hands, a knock on the door is to be heard.

"Livie?" Zach's voice rings out through the closed door. I unlock it and the next second, Zach is standing in front of me, locking the door behind him.

"Hey! What are you doing here?" I ask him with confusion in my voice.

"Well, I just wanted to remind you of our little game," he retorts and slowly walks closer.

"Zach! The others are probably thinking we're having sex in a public restroom at that moment!" I state frowning, but I can't help swallowing as he comes to a stop right in front of me.

"You know, I already have an idea how to fuck you tonight," he whispers close to my ear, completely ignoring my objection.

I take a few steps backwards until I feel the cool tiles pressed against my back.

"What?" Zach asks with a devilish smirk on his tempting lips. "Where are your words now?"

"Who said you will win that game?" I ask lowly and bite my bottom lip. I'm not going to give in that easy. If he wants to play, I'm all in.

Zach's eyes wander down to my lips, and I can't bite back a chuckle as he takes a sharp breath.

"Well," he mutters hoarsely and places his hands on the wall on either side of my head, caging me between his arms. "We'll see!" His mouth is only inches away from mine, so that I can feel his breath brushing my lips. God, he looks so good with his tousled hair falling into his forehead, and his hazel eyes which are drilling into mine.

Before I can reply, he draws back, unlocks the door, and vanishes towards the guest room, leaving his masculine scent lingering in the air. I take a deep breath and recollect myself. before I join the others as well.

"Wait! What's that?" Hailey asks and looks between me and Zach when I approach them again. "On a public restroom, Liv? Seriously? Are you that needy?" she asks with a giggle.

Zach shoots me a shrewd smile and winks at me.

"What? No!" I stutter, and feel my cheeks going crimson.

"We don't even want to know, honey," Abbey chimes in and wraps her arm around my shoulder. "Now let's go!"

We spend the next two hours strolling through Vancouver and exploring the city. Zach and I are both determined to win our bet and take every opportunity to make the other one lose. With all the creativity I can muster, I try to get Zach to touch me, but neither my flirting glances nor asking him tricky questions which could bring him to touch me are successful. After a while, it starts exhausting me a bit. Zach on the other hand, seems to enjoy our playful exchange and his attempts to make me lose get trickier and trickier the longer we are on the go. Except for some wondering glances from Ben and the girls, no one seems to be bothered by our strange behavior. We blindly follow them wherever they go. They could lead us anywhere as we're hardly paying attention. Hailey and Abbey shop for some clothes whereas Sadie buys a cute photo album to fill with memories from this trip once we're back in Calgary.

When we arrive back at the hotel, I'm full of pent-up frustration and on the verge of giving in.

"How do you feel, baby?" Zach asks me after closing the hotel room door behind him. "You look a little tense," he states with a smug smile.

I sigh deeply and turn around. "Zach, give me a break!" I whine and slip out of my jacket.

"No way," Zach retorts and vanishes in the bathroom. "I'll take a quick shower."

While Zach is using the bathroom, I think of how to surprise him when he returns, and I already have an idea. I quickly strip down to my underwear and wait for Zach to return. When he does, I burst out laughing.

"Seems like you've got the same idea, huh?" Zach states, laughing as well.

He steps closer, and my eyes wander down to the little towel which barely covers his lower body.

"All right, I give up!" I say and lift my hands in surrender.

"Already?" Zach asks with raised eyebrows and comes to a stop right in front of me.

"I don't want to spend the whole evening avoiding to give in the urge of touching you," I say and feel a weird sadness washing over me.

"Hey," Zach lifts my chin with his thumb and forefinger and makes me face him. "What's bothering you, Livie?"

His teasing, dirty expression is gone, and his eyes are warm and tender.

"I don't know. I guess my dream from last night messed me up more than I thought," I answer quietly, and a single tear runs down my cheek.

"Why didn't you tell me how you feel?" Zach asks and wipes away the tear with his thumb, leaving his hand on my cheek. "I would've stopped this stupid game right away."

I just shrug my shoulders as I don't really have an idea what's gotten into me. This day was funny, exciting, and nice, and I also enjoyed the game between Zach and me. Until now.

"Come here!" Zach pulls me into a tight embrace and gently caresses my back. "I missed this!" he mumbles into my hair.

"Me too," I retort and soak in Zach's shower scent. "You lost, though," I then remark with a sweet grin.

"If this means you're smiling again, I'm happy to lose against my beautiful girlfriend!" Zach chuckles deeply and places a soft kiss on my temple.

"Let's say we both won!" I pull away and place my hands on his damp chest. "And now I will change into my party outfit. Close your eyes and don't open them until I tell you so!"

Zach licks his lips and smirks down at me.

"Okay," he mutters deeply and closes his eyes.

*****

Sooo. New Year's Eve is just around the corner. Next chapter is going to be the party. Excited for it? 🍾

And what outfit do you think Liv has chosen for this special occasion? 💃🏽

Please don't forget to vote and comment.✨

Katie🤍