The Secret 00.5 The Prelude of Ella and Micha Read Online Free PDF Page B

snap wide. Reality painfully crashes over me.
    “Oh, my God … Did we just …?” She trails off with a deer in the headlights look.
    I open my mouth to say—well, who the fuck knows? Maybe something that could possibly make the situation even worse. Thankfully, Ella’s friend Renee comes bouncing up to us and stops our conversation.
    “What were you two just doing?” she asks with speculation, her gaze flicking back and forth between us.
    “Nothing,” Ella sputters, scooting forward and putting space between our bodies.
    Leaving me feeling cold.
    Renee assesses us closely. “Okay …” She shakes her head then focuses on Ella. “Well, anyway, I think you guys need to come have some fun with me.” She grabs Ella’s hand. “We’re about to play truth or dare and need more players.”
    Ella throws a glance at me yet easily lets Renee drag her across the room with me trailing at their heels.
    “Truth or dare?” Ella questions. “What are we, like eight?”
    Renee snorts a laugh. “Yeah, right, Ella. You’re the biggest daredevil I know, so don’t pretend like you don’t love the idea.”
    Ella reaches back through the crowd as we squeeze toward the bedrooms and catches my hand. There’s no clear reason as to why she does, but I don’t care. I just grasp on for dear life.
    “Who’s playing?” Ella hollers over the music.
    Renee releases Ella’s hand as we reach a shut door at the back of the house near the kitchen. She brushes her chin-length hair out of her eyes then extends her hand for the doorknob. “Mara, Jonny, Grantford, Tammy…” Renee yammers off a list of people.
    Ella makes a face at the mention of Tammy, shooting a dirty look at me, probably because I hooked up with Tammy a couple of weeks ago. I’d be offended, but I think I might detect a slight bit of jealousy in her eyes so I’m more elated than anything.
    Renee opens the door and we enter a room that has zero furniture inside it. The only thing occupying the shaggy orange carpet are the people Renee yammered off along with a few others I don’t know and my friend Ethan Gregory.
    Ethan starts to give me a chin nod, but then his gaze darts to Ella’s and my hands clasped together. As his brow arches in perplexity, I shrug. I might be kind of slutty, but I’ve never gone around holding a girl’s hand; I’ve never had a girlfriend, just hookups. Right now, I’m sure Ella and I look like a couple, but that’s more than fine with me.
    “Okay, Ella.” Renee nudges Ella in Grantford’s direction and our hands slip apart. “You take a seat over there.” Then she shoves me in the opposite direct. “Micha, you go sit by Tammy.”
    As I look over at Tammy, who’s batting her eyelashes at me, I realize that not only is everyone sitting in a circle, but there’s also an empty beer bottle in the center of them.
    “Wait.” I glance back at Renee. “I thought you said we were playing truth or dare?”
    “Did I?” She thrums a finger on her lips. “You must have misheard me.”
    Fucking Renee. She’s always lying and tricking people into doing shit. Although, I have the slightest bit of suspicion that Tammy played a part in this. Ever since I hooked up with her, she’s been following me around at school, asking me when we’re going to get together again.
    Blowing out a frustrated breath, I plop my ass down in the empty spot next to Tammy. Ella has already sat down by Grantford, who gawks at her chest when she rests back on her hands and crisscrosses her legs. She appears a little dazed, lost in her thoughts as she stares at the bare walls and closet door of the room.
    Even when the game gets going, Ella remains oddly out of it. I half expect her to leave at any moment, not because we’re playing spin the bottle, but because Ella’s the kind of person that will get riled up over the fact that Renee lied about the game. Instead, she twirls a strand of her hair around her finger, oblivious when Ethan kisses Mara.
    Then