Chapter 492: Dare

Chapter 492: Chapter 492: Dare

Owen Warren lost the third round.

The spinner slowly came to a stop.

[Give a piggyback ride to a person of the opposite sex and carry them around the perimeter once.]

The moment this dare was revealed, whoa, everyone got fired up.

Was this a punishment? This was clearly a reward! They wished they could take his place!

Owen Warren was ecstatic. He immediately stood up, his torso emerging from the water.

He happily made his way toward Lily Hart, sending ripples spreading across the water that lapped gently against the others.

The ripples were light, almost imperceptible.

But to the others, it felt like a thousand tiny cuts, each one slicing at their hearts.

Owen Warren quickly reached Lily Hart and turned his back to her.

Lily Hart climbed onto his back without any fuss, wrapping her arms around his neck and patting his shoulder lightly.

"Alright, let’s go!" Lily said.

Owen Warren then started carrying Lily Hart around the perimeter, passing in front of everyone.

His expression was slightly smug, as if he had just acquired a priceless treasure.

The others had mixed feelings. Finally, the lap around the perimeter was over.

Owen Warren set Lily Hart back down in her spot before returning to his own, his expression clearly overjoyed.

Frost Shaw lost the fourth round.

The spinner slowly came to a stop.

[Feed a piece of food to a person of the opposite sex.]

Everyone fell silent in unison again, except for Frost Shaw, who let out a goofy laugh.

’This is great! Another reward!’

As it happened, there was a plate of cut fruit Roman Rowe had brought over to the edge of the hot spring. Frost Shaw picked up a clean fork.

He speared a piece of watermelon for Lily Hart and eagerly held it to her lips. She obediently opened her mouth and took it.

She gobbled it down in one bite and swallowed smoothly.

Frost Shaw even felt like the dare should have specified a longer duration or more pieces of fruit. Once was just not enough.

Everyone watched in silence, with no energy to even tease them. The festive atmosphere felt like a skewer through their own hearts.

Leo Colby lost the fifth round. How perfectly balanced—one loss for each of them.

His dare was: [Interlock fingers and maintain eye contact with a person of the opposite sex for ten seconds.]

Roman Rowe even complained, "Why are all the dares about doing stuff with the opposite sex? Give us something to do with the same sex!"

Seth blurted out, "No way! Doing this stuff with another guy would be gross!"

While those two were talking, Leo Colby had already moved in front of Lily Hart.

Lily Hart felt like a prop, used by everyone to complete their task.

And now, a new task had arrived.

She held out a hand as if going for a high-five, and Leo Colby mirrored her posture.

Their palms faced each other. For a moment, Leo Colby was too shy to take the initiative and clasp her hand.

Lily Hart moved forward herself, interlocking their fingers and meeting his slightly flustered gaze.

Leo Colby froze. In that moment, his world narrowed to her: the tendrils of hair at her temples, slightly damp from the water; her rosy, vibrant cheeks; her slightly parted lips.

Her hand was so soft, too. In short, everything about her was perfect.

One, two, three, four, five, six...

Someone off to the side was counting, but all Leo Colby could feel was his own heart beating faster and faster.

It was about to leap out of his throat.

Nine, ten...

Frost Shaw had finished counting to ten, but neither Leo Colby nor Lily Hart let go.

He was quick to point out, "Time’s up."

Leo Colby snapped back to his senses. Regaining his usual composure, he calmly released her hand and returned to his spot.

But the warmth of her hand lingered in his palm, and the image of her earnest expression moments ago gradually filled his mind.

Stan Sterling lost the sixth round.

His was: [Hug a person of the opposite sex until the end of the next round of Truth or Dare.]

Man, another dare, and another great reward.

Stan Sterling couldn’t help but lift the corners of his mouth as he silently moved toward Lily Hart.

Just then, Cynthia Whittaker arrived in a swimsuit, leading Sue Sutton.

"What are you guys playing?" Her question cut Stan Sterling’s advance short, freezing him in the middle of the hot spring pool.

Lily Hart looked up. "We’re playing Truth or Dare. Want to join?"

Cynthia Whittaker was interested and pulled Sue Sutton down into the water. Luckily, the pool was big enough to accommodate so many people.

One of the two wore a brilliant smile; the other, an icy expression.

Roman Rowe said mischievously, "Well, now there are other women here. You’ve got options."

Only then did Cynthia Whittaker and Sue Sutton see the line of text on the spinner.

They immediately fell silent.

But anyone with eyes could see that Cynthia Whittaker and Sue Sutton were a couple, so of course Stan Sterling wasn’t going to pick them.

He continued toward Lily Hart.

The prop was back in action.

Stan Sterling was still thinking, ’How should I hug her? From the front or the side?’

’Should my arms go under hers, or over her shoulders? Ugh, I have no experience with this.’

While he was still agonizing over it, Lily Hart had already taken a step forward.

She wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her cheek in the crook of his shoulder, looking completely practiced.

The only thing was, in this position, only Lily could see everyone else. Stan Sterling could only see Lily’s back.

And her perky butt.

But that was fine. Stan Sterling was very content. He slowly wrapped his arms around her and gently stroked the back of her head.

’So soft. It’s like hugging a cloud of cotton.’

Frost Shaw urged, "Hurry up and start the next round."

After all, Stan Sterling had to hug her until the end of the next round. Every second they wasted was another second he got to hold her.

He couldn’t stand watching!

The others didn’t want to see it either, so they all hurried things along.

Stan Sterling, on the other hand, now wished time would slow down. Frost Shaw explained the rules to Cynthia Whittaker and Sue Sutton.

Sue Sutton lost the seventh round. As she spun the spinner, she actually seemed a little nervous.

She couldn’t help but hold hands with Cynthia Whittaker under the water. Okay, the nervousness was fake, but the desire to hold hands was real.

[Link arms and drink with a person of the same sex.]

Sue Sutton immediately looked at Cynthia Whittaker. She would obviously be drinking with her; there was no hesitation needed.

But where were they going to get wine for the toast?

Not to worry. Like a magician, Owen Warren immediately produced two disposable cups and filled them with mineral water.

It would serve as the wine.

He eagerly handed them to Sue Sutton. "Here you go, please drink up."

They each took a cup. After sharing a look, they clumsily linked arms. It took a few tries, but they finally managed to drink the water from each other’s cups.

They both laughed and placed the cups on the edge of the pool.

The moment they were done, Frost Shaw announced, "It’s over! It’s over! Stan, you can let go now."

Stan Sterling regretfully released his hold. After giving Lily Hart a smile, he returned to his spot.

While hugging him, Lily Hart had found it very difficult to watch Cynthia Whittaker and Sue Sutton drink with linked arms.

It made it hard to even cheer them on.

Lily Hart lost the eighth round. Her dare was: [Maintain eye contact with a person of the opposite sex for thirty seconds.]

When the spinner stopped, all the guys held their breath. ’Who would she choose?’

’It seemed that no matter who she picked... the others wouldn’t be happy...’

But Lily Hart never worried about such things. She just followed her heart. And her previous eye contact with Leo Colby had been quite nice.

’Might as well continue that.’

She extended a finger and pointed at Leo Colby. He blinked, not having expected to be chosen.

He’d thought it would be Frost Shaw, Roman Rowe, or Owen Warren. Boss Hart usually hung out with those three the most.

But it was him. A giant stone seemed to fall with a CRASH into Leo Colby’s heart.

It sent out huge ripples, striking his heart again and again.