Page 38 of Shapes of Love
“Loser has to do whatever the winner wants?” Kai says, sweeping his gaze between us and squeezing my shoulder. I guess it’s a given that Kai and I are a team, and Asher is on his own.
“Deal.” Asher shakes my hand, then Kai’s. “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”
“Kai.”
“Kai.” Asher tries on the name like he’s trying lines for a script. The prolonged eye contact from a celebrity would be enough to get most people to shrink, but Kai refuses to drop his gaze. I swear I’ve never seen two people stare at each other so intensely. “You’re on.”
The three of us strap our harnesses to different carabiners and pick a similar route, all marked 6A. Mine has a green shell at the top, Kai’s is blue, and Asher’s red. Unfortunately for me, a group of people have spotted Asher and gathered around, aiming their phones at us. So not only am I going to lose miserably, but it’s going to get posted all over social media.
I adjust my harness and resign myself to my fate. Maybe if my butt looks good enough, I can distract people from the fact that I have no athletic ability whatsoever.
“Give him hell,” I say to Kai when he comes to check my harness in thegentle first loveway Marissa would like. He spares me a soft look, as if sayingSorry I got sucked into this.
I wave a hand at him. It’s nothing new. I’m aware of his competitive spirit. Mia used to take advantage of this to get him to learn K-pop choreographies with us when we needed a third member using a “bet you can’t do it” or a “she is obviously a much better dancer than you.”
He always took the bait.
“Okay, ready?” says a guy Asher has finessed into timing us. “Go.”
Pitbull’s “Fireball” starts blaring from someone’s speakers. At the firstfirebaaall, Asher and Kai are off, leaping from hold to hold.
I take my time with the climb, straining against the harsh feel of the holds under my hands. My chest expands with shallow breaths, but I push forward, wiping sweat from my brow.
The crowd cheers as Kai and Asher tackle the final stretch. Kai’s got a bit of an edge as he latches on to a section where the wall shifts to a steep overhang, shuffling his leg sideways for a better hold. Asher grunts when he realizes he’s fallen behind. His movements are getting sloppy, his chest rising and falling like he’s having trouble breathing.
People cheer louder from below us as Kai tackles the lastthree holds. My heart races as he ascends. I know he’s on the safety line, but—
“Argh.” Asher grunts when he goes for a bold leap, but his hand slips, and he drops. The lifeline catches him, but the swinging tosses him around without direction. “Kai, look out!”
Kai barely has time to move before he and Asher collide midair, the violent motion slamming his leg against the wall. Kai’s ankle hits a large hold, twisting with a sickening crunch that sends shivers up my arms.
“Kai!” I scream, scrambling for him, but the lifeline carries him and Asher back to the mat before I can reach them.
I undo my harness as Kai doubles over on the mat, his forehead pressed to his knee. He’s bleeding, just a scratch, but he clutches his ankle as if trying to contain the pain.
“I’m okay,” he gasps. He squeezes his shin, then my hand, as if trying to reassure me. His eyes scan the room, his lips pressing into a hard line, like he doesn’t want to look pained in front of strangers.
Asher sprints toward us. Sweaty strands of hair fall over his forehead, and even though people are still recording, he doesn’t seem to care.
“Shit, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to—” His breaths come in short spurts. He kneels in front of Kai, helping him take off his shoe. “Are you all right?” Kai’s ankle is swelling fast. When Asher presses his fingers against it, Kai flinches. “You may have twisted it.”
“Can you walk?” I ask.
Kai pushes himself to his feet but stumbles. “Give me a minute.”
The click of a camera echoes through the air, followed by the sound of laughter nearby. This time I spot him, a paparazzo hiding in the bathrooms, snapping shots through the half-opened door. When he notices me staring, he angles the camera at my face and sneers. “Smile, love! You’ll look cuter.”
I paid for this.The thought fills me with anger.I’m no better than any of them.
I don’t know what possesses me to stick up my middle finger and flip him off.
CHAPTER 10
“What were you thinking? A picture of you flipping someone off?” Marissa’s voice crackles through the phone.
“I’m sorry.” I pace the length of Asher’s bedroom, trailing a hand across his spotless shelves. We had wanted to rush Kai to the emergency room, but one of his bodyguards (I didn’t even know he had them) confirmed it was a minor injury.
Asher insisted on at least taking us to his penthouse, since the building has a medical bay, and we could be away from the media frenzy. He made a couple of calls, and by the time we arrived at his place, a doctor was already waiting.
