A Good Day for Chardonnay (Sunshine Vicram #2) - Darynda Jones Page 0,132
already cast his vote. Did you vote for or against me?”
“The vote must be unanimous.”
“Ah. I didn’t know that.”
“Then are you?” he asked.
“Am I what?”
He leaned closer until his mouth hovered at her ear. His warm breath fanned across her cheek, as he asked, “Are you Dangerous?”
After a twinge of arousal laced up her spine, she said, “Hardly. But if you mean, did I accept? Then, yes. We both did.”
“Good.” He went back to the bathroom to finish his routine.
She followed him, but only to the door.
“I didn’t want my presence, or my membership, to sway your decision.”
“For or against?” she repeated.
He smiled as he lathered the bottom half of his face with a shaving cream that smelled rich, like cologne. “Against, of course. I figured if you knew I was a Sordid Son, you’d run the other direction.”
“You figured wrong. And here I thought you were good at complicated problems.”
He stopped and studied her before raising his chin and gliding a razor up his neck, the deep bronze of his skin so at odds with the white of the foam.
Sun’s world tilted just a little. That was about the sexiest thing she’d ever seen, and she’d seen a lot of sexy. Almost all of it revolved around Levi Ravinder in one form or another, but still.
His whiskey-colored irises sparkled in the low light. He shaved in the mirror and yet never took his gaze off her.
Of course, she didn’t take her gaze off him, either. Fair was fair.
The bruises seemed to be fading, but as they did, a larger variety of vibrant colors surfaced. The subconjunctival hemorrhage in his left eye remained a dark, ominous red. And yet none of that did a thing to lessen his startling appeal. Surprisingly, the bruising on his body had faded much faster. She wondered how he felt, though. It still had to be tender. There was a reason people didn’t enjoy getting hit by trucks.
“You are complicated, Vicram. I’ll give you that.” He flashed her a nuclear smile, his teeth as white as the foam.
She cleared her throat. “So, how is your evening going?”
“It could be better,” he said, gliding the razor over his skin again.
“How so?”
“You could be naked.”
Her breath caught in her throat. It was now or never, Vicram. Stop being a wuss. She lifted her chin and charged ahead. “What if I were?” When he arched a scythe-shaped brow, she asked, “What if I was standing in front of you right now, naked as the day I was born? What would you do?”
Without missing a beat, without a hint of hesitation, he said, “Ask for consent.”
Wow, was that ever the right thing to say.
She loved everything about this man. Not just his physical appearance. It was him. Levi. The noble being she’d been in love with since she was a kid. He’d almost died saving his friend’s life. He’d saved Auri’s life. He’d come to Sun’s rescue many times and in more ways than one. He’d brought his family out of the dark ages and given them something to be proud of. He was brilliant and clever and disarming.
He was still watching her as she fought for the courage to complete her mission.
She set her shoulders while he wiped the remnants of shaving cream off his jaw, the ritual ending far too soon in her opinion. After taking another moment to reconsider, she lifted her chin, and said, “Levi, the truth is …” Wait. What was the truth? Ah, yes. She bit down and glared at him. “The truth is, fuck you.”
The corner of his mouth twitched.
“Fuck you and the horse you rode in on.”
It inched heavenward. “What exactly did my horse do?”
“Life is too short and I’m in love with you. I have been since I was six. Maybe five. No, wait.” She counted on her fingers, and said breathlessly, “Four-and-a-half. And I want to have a crap ton of sex before I get too old.”
He pressed his mouth together and nodded, taking her offer into consideration.
“There. That’s done. If you want to talk, you have my number.”
She started to leave, but he said, “I just have one question.”
“Okay.” She turned back to him, fighting her flight response tooth and nail. The adrenaline dump was taking its toll. “That’s certainly fair under the circumstances. What is it?”
“What do you consider too old to have sex?”
Oh. She hadn’t thought that far ahead. “I don’t know. Maybe ninety-three? Ninety-four?”
The grin that stole across his clean-shaven face was so stunning, it