Craved by the Wrong Volkov-Chapter 162: Truth or dare part 2

Braelyn’s POV

The real game had finally kicked off, and the room buzzed with that dangerous kind of energy only an Orlov like Ivan could stir up. I know where Lucien got his dangerous edge from.

"Truth or dare, what’s it going to be?" His gaze swept the circle before landing on Adelina. The poor girl looked like she might bolt, but she blurted out "dare," anyway.

Ivan’s laugh was low and wicked. He shot Mikhail a quick glance before leaning back. "You’re trembling, little one, but don’t worry, I’m saving the best for last." He was dragging this out on purpose, building the tension everyone secretly craved.

I was genuinely curious how crazy this night would turn out. "Before we start I will explain the order of things." Ivan started.

He laid out his twisted rules: start with the women who didn’t actually play cards, then move to the men who’d folded in the other room. That conveniently left Adelina dead last. Adel relaxed for a moment and I tensed up, I had a feeling I would be first

And I was right. His eyes turned to me first. Great, "Lynn, truth or dare?" My stomach twisted. Ivan’s gaze met Lucien, and a challenging smirk graced his lips.

I didn’t even hesitate. After everything I had learnt about him tonight, I wasn’t about to give Ivan the satisfaction of a dare. "Truth."

He smirked like he’d been hoping for that. The question that came out was sharper than I expected. It was a bit personal, but not necessarily cruel. "What was your first opinion of Lucien?"

Relief loosened the knot in my chest. I exhaled and let out a small laugh. "I thought you were going to go full psycho on me." I nervously laughed before answering the question. " Honestly? I thought he was insane and still do. Whom the hell kisses a complete stranger like that?"

Laughter erupted around the room. Lucien’s lips curved into that infuriating half-smile. "Your eyes were begging me to."

I shot him a glare sharp enough to cut glass.

"You’re not wrong about the psycho part." Ivan shook his head, clearly amused, and moved on to Karis. She surprised everyone by picking dare. Benji let out a low whistle. "Someone’s feeling brave tonight."

Xander’s head snapped toward her. "Seriously?"

She shrugged like it was nothing.

Ivan’s grin widened. "Perfect. I dare you to give Benji a lap dance."

The room went dead silent for half a second then a crystal cup flew straight at Ivan’s head. He dodged effortlessly; it shattered against the wall behind him.

"That was expensive," Mikhail drawled, more amused than annoyed. He wasn’t bothered he just lost an expensive piece

Xander was already on his feet, jaw tight, looking seconds away from rearranging Ivan’s face. "Come on, man. Stop being a dick, she was just watching."

"It’s fine," Karis cut in coolly. "It’s his petty revenge. I can handle it." I was confused, weren’t he and Xander buddies? Why were they on each other’s necks now?

Ivan shrugged, completely unrepentant. "She chose dare. No one’s forcing her. But if she can’t or won’t do it, then someone has to strip instead."

Xander barked out a laugh that held no humour. "Fine, I will get back at you for this,"

Before anyone could stop him, he shrugged off his jacket, then reached for his shirt. My brows shot up. He was actually doing it. For her. Without hesitation.

I felt a sharp glare on me, and I forced myself to peel my eyes away and give Lucien a wary smile. He scoffed at me, but his jaw was twitching.

"Don’t push your luck Viper." He sneered like I was the one forcing Xander to strip

"You can’t control my eyes.." I hissed. He smiled, a smirk played on his lips

"Then be my guess, Viper.." his tone sent chills down my spine. I snorted while trying to steal a side glance under Lucien’s gaze. I was just curious, and in my defence, I was in an open marriage. I was starting to see the perks of it.

He peeled the shirt over his head, revealing a singlet underneath, but he didn’t stop there. The singlet came off next, and damn. Shirtless Xander was... one word distracting. A massive dragon tattoo curled across his back, intricate and fierce. I tried not to stare, but it was hard not to appreciate the view.

While lost in the view, my sight was suddenly blocked. Lucien’s palm covered my face. His breath fanned against my sensitive neck as he whispered. "You are really begging for it ". That sent shivers straight into my spine.

"Stop staring at him. He might be a devoted husband now but Xander is a psycho. There is a place for only one psycho in your life, and it’s me." He added, his lips brushed my skin giving me that tingling sensation.

"Do you understand?" I nodded at him. He scoffed; he knew there was a chance I wasn’t going to listen anyway. He let go of my eyes and under his sharp gaze I turned my gaze elsewhere from Xander although my eyes twitched to look

It was a shame.

Adelina, sitting to my left, was clearly struggling with the same problem. I had caught her earlier peeking, then snapping her eyes shut like she’d been caught stealing. A second later, one eye cracked open again. Poor girl.

Then the temperature seemed to drop. I glanced over to the source, Mikhail was staring straight at Adelina with that icy glare of his. I felt like laughing watching their lovers fight but also sympathised with her

She immediately fixed her gaze on the nearest wall, as if it were the most fascinating thing she’d ever seen. Smart move.

Ivan finally called it. "That’s enough, Xander. A shirt’s barely stripping." He turned to Karis with a mock pleading look. She was coming for his blood later. My lips twitched, I must be a sadist for finding this hilarious. "Come on, be reasonable," Ivan added. Karis’s sharp gaze remained.

Xander just scoffed and dropped back into his seat, still shirtless, while Adelina continued her intense relationship with the wallpaper.

Next was Benji, who picked dare, and Ivan forced him to pull up the most humiliating university photo imaginable. It was an image of Benji dead-drunk, sprawled in some ridiculous pose. The room burst into laughter, easing the mood from earlier. I had to wonder why he even still had that picture... and how Ivan knew about it.

Casper went with the truth. Ivan, never one to miss a chance to stir the pot, asked, "On a scale of one to ten, how bad of a boss is Mikhail?"

Casper grinned. "Solid eight. Overworks me, threatens to dock my pay every time I complain. If I didn’t own shares in Genesis and wasn’t the only one who could tolerate him, I’d be long gone."

Mikhail rolled his eyes. "Stop whining like a little bitch."

Lucien jumped in smoothly. "Maybe give the guy a break. Not everyone treats their best friend like that."

Mikhail’s gaze sharpened. "And not everyone dates their nephew’s wife, dear Lucien." Ouch, that wasn’t targeted at me, but I felt it.

The air went electric. My stomach tightened. Lucien just smirked, unfazed. "Not my fault the nephew couldn’t appreciate what he had."

Lucien, being Lucien, remained as smug as ever. I was expecting a judging gaze, but his friends just didn’t give a fuck at the revelation. Well, they already knew long before.

Lucien and Mikhail stared each other down, silent daggers flying, until both scoffed and looked away.

Ivan raised his hands, acting like a peace advocate, but he wasn’t. "No punches tonight, boys, please, especially not at the birthday boy." He said with a taunting tone and that unmistakable smirk.

"Birthday was yesterday," Lucien muttered. "It’s past two a.m. now." He said as a matter of fact.

Mikhail’s smile was all teeth. "He’s welcome to try. We both know who’d walk away."

The room felt too small suddenly, the air thick with barely restrained violence. My fingers curled tight in my lap. The last thing we needed was these two psychos throwing punches in the middle of a party.

I exhaled slowly, willing the game to move on before someone actually bled on the rug.