Page 38 of Sunshine & Sinful

Sunshine smiles in that ovary-exploding way—lopsided and too damn charming. “Think about it. Then you'll have an answer when I ask again, ’cause I will.”

“Um. Okay,” I mutter like a flustered idiot.

How is this real? I don’t know if I’ll ever have an answer. The last time anyone proposed, I was still a teenager, and it was his son. Sunshine was there. He’d bought the ring. Dark didn’t even know what it looked like when he got down on one knee in the backyard ofSunshine’s old home, where we all lived together until we married. Beneath the maple, he asked those four simple words.Will you marry me?It was spring. I cried ugly tears that sting your nose and make your mascara run. They didn’t care. Dark took my blubbering as a yes, which it was, then held his hand out to his father, who produced a ring box. It was simple. Gold with a solitaire diamond—dainty yet perfect. Unable to part with it, I keep the sentimental token of my past in the top drawer of my dresser.

“Now.” Sunshine jostles me from my thoughts. “Why don’t we spend time with our girl before she goes home, and you go on your lunch date with Todd? We’ll talk later. We’ve got all the time in the world.”

Just like that, the conversation ceases, and Sunshine lifts me off his lap. But before I can leave or start to digest all this madness, he cuffs the side of my neck and pulls my body flush to his. I tilt my head back to look up at him, and he once more shocks me to my very soul when he leans down and presses the sweetest, warmest, softest kiss upon my lips. It lingers there, seeping down to the bone. My belly flutters and my heart wallops alongside those raven butterflies. He emits the sexiest satisfied hum against my mouth before he pulls away and delivers a panty-melting wink.

Unable to move, speak, or do anything, I stand in my living room in surprise and brush my fingers over my lips where he was. He kissed me outside of the bedroom. A frog leaps up my throat at the knowledge this is real. We had sex, and now he’s asking me… to marry him.

How did we get here?

Sure, we’ve spent years together.

But this? Here? Now? Why?

Skating past me, Sunshine pecks my cheek before he claims Lily, and they go hand-in-hand out the backdoor to my greenhouse, chatting animatedly as if none of this is weird and I’m the odd man out.

Once they’re gone, I collapse onto the couch and drop my face into my hands.

What is going on?

We’ll talk?

We’ve been saying that for days.

I have a date with Todd this afternoon and must be on. There’s no margin for error if I’m to spy on him. The deal is, after lunch, I’m to lure him back to his place for sex. Sex brings down a person’s walls—especially men. Then, when I get up to use the restroom, I’m to find any evidence I can bring back to Dark and Cell. Sunshine hates the idea. He said as much yesterday. Now I can see why. There’s no way I can have sex with Todd after last night. Not only because my vagina can’t take the subpar penetration, but I can’t do that after everything else. I’m not a cheater, and having sex with Todd feels a whole lot like cheating on that man outside playing with his granddaughter.

Speaking of her, how did she even know about a ring?

That’s yet another question I’ll need answered after the date I’ll have to improvise on. Dark’s gonna hate it. But I don’t see any other option, and it’s not like I can discuss alternatives in the presence of an eight-year-old. This is wholly up to me. I’ve got this. I can do it. I’m a professional.

Dragging a hand down my face, I expel a pent-upbreath and sit up straight. I slap my palms on my bare thighs, determined not to overthink too much and make the best of the day. First step, spend time with Sunshine and Lily. Second step, shower and prepare for my date with Todd.

What could go wrong?

THIRTEEN

Seated across the vintage Formica tabletop at the local greasy spoon near my house, Todd regales me with another batch of dull stories that would put the most enthusiastic person to sleep. Perhaps that’s his objective. Tire me out so I don’t discuss what happened at the restaurant. Though, I haven’t planned on it unless he brings it up. That was part of my strategy with Dark and Sunshine—don’t rock the boat. I’m supposed to be easy breezy even if that’s far from my nature.

Pasting on a smile, I nod and twirl the straw in my water, rattling the ice around the cloudy plastic cup that should have been replaced a decade ago.

We already ordered our lunch, and he opted to have the same as me again, but I didn’t say anything.

“Has your ex and his father been around much?” Todd asks out of nowhere and leans down to sip from his straw, eyes on me, judging my reaction.

I deliver nothing more than a blank face and a half-assed shrug. “They’re in hot water after what happened,” I reply, which is partly true.

Todd hums around the straw and continues to suck water in deep pulls, filling his cheeks like he’s either nervous or dying of thirst. If I had to guess, I’d say the former. We haven’t spoken much after the incident, and he’s treading lightly. I can tell. As much as Sunshine and Dark paint him to be some bad guy mastermind, he acts like all the rest of the stalkers—friendly but unassuming. Nothing about him stands out, including his typical black Dickeys and a muted blue, collared shirt. He’s the poster boy for a golf outing. I guess that’s the point. He blends with the patrons, which I rarely do unless I’m working a job where the objective is to be a chameleon.

Today, I’m no chameleon. I dressed to make this fucker eat his possible villainous heart out—orange high-rise, wide-leg, flowy cotton pants paired with a cream crop top sans bra and my cropped motorcycle jacket. It’s a total boho meets biker vibe. My brown, half-up, half-down hair, braided along each side and pinned in the back, adds a touch of whimsy. Add in the smokey eye, a nude lip, and layers of necklaces, and I’m setting a new fashion statement in our cozy town. I’ve gotten more than a few looks since I strolled in with my oversized purse tucked into the crook of my arm.

Todd was already seated at our booth when I arrived.

He brought me daisies to smooth things over.

Before we lapse into any conversation of merit, our food arrives—two club sandwiches, extra tomatoes, and extra bacon with a side of seasoned fries. Our young, bubbly waitress refills Todd’s water with a pitcher and topsmine off. “Enjoy!” she sings, wearing the brightest customer service smile before turning to the next table, her blonde ponytail swaying down her back.

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