All In No Regrets Except Losing Her Chapter 02
I look up at Silas.
“A bet’s a bet. But my birthday literally just started. You really that sure I already lost?”
He grins. Slow. Knowing.
“Three years I’ve been waiting. One more night won’t kill me.”
I stand up. Turn to Ivy. Loud enough for the whole room.
“Ivy. I want a bet. You and me. Right now.”
The music cuts out for a beat.
Everyone freezes.
Kai and Keller snap out of it first. Start banging on the table.
“Yes! Zane lost the ceremony — Quinn can win it back!”
“Bro, I already got my suit fitted! You’re not wasting that! One more round, let’s go!”
Zane’s face goes flat.
“Quinn. Stop it.”
“I said a bet’s a bet. Ceremony’s after college. Done.”
Right on cue, Ivy covers her mouth. Gags like she’s about to throw up.
Zane grabs her arm. Steadies her. Turns to me, voice cold and clipped.
“She’s wasted. Don’t pull her into another bet. You wanna play that bad, pick someone else.”
I watch him hold her. Steady her. Like she’s the one who needs protecting.
That last shred of hope in my chest shrivels up a little more.
“Fine.”
I grab the dice cup off the table. Shake it hard.
“Then you. High or low?”
I stare into his eyes. Something reckless surges up in me. All or nothing.
Here’s the thing.
There’s nothing in that cup. No dice.
I’m not trying to win. I’m trying to see what he does.
If he says yes — if he gives me one fair shot — I’ll burn every last bit of luck I have to undo Silas’s bet.
I’ll wait. However long it takes.
We’re all gamblers when it comes to love. Aren’t we?
But Zane’s face darkens.
He looks at me. Cold. Disgusted.
“You lose, so you just keep pushing till you win? Seriously, Quinn? Where’s your dignity?”
Got it.
Bitterness floods in.
“You won’t even take one bet with me?”
“You really think I’m trying to trap you?”
Whatever warmth was left in me drains out. Slow. Final.
I lift the cup. Hold it right in front of his face. Tip it open.
Empty.
Everyone stares at the hollow cup.
A few seconds of dead silence. Then Kai mutters under his breath.
“Empty cup… that’s an automatic loss.”
I force a smile. Look Zane right in the eye.
“I was never trying to beat you. So why are you acting like I’m some kind of threat?”
Zane chokes.
He stares at the empty cup. Something shifts behind his eyes. Like it finally clicks.
He reaches for my hand.
“I just didn’t want you to lose—”
You already made me lose. Everything.
I pull away.
His hand hangs in midair. Then he recovers. Smooth. Easy smile back in place.
“I know you want this. But it’s just a few years. You don’t trust us? You don’t trust what we have?”
“Or are you the one who’s gonna bail? Because I won’t. Not ever.”
I almost laugh.
Three sentences, and somehow I’m the one who doesn’t believe in us.
The tension spirals. Finally someone stands up.
“Okay, okay. It’s past three. Let’s just call it.”
Everyone bolts up like they’ve been released from jail.
Zane pulls Ivy to her feet. Turns to me.
“I’ll walk her back first, then come get you. It’s on the way.”
I smile.
“Don’t bother. I’m going with Silas.”
He opens his mouth—
Silas is already at the elevator. Holding the door.
“Quinn. Let’s go.”
I walk in. The doors close behind us.