Page 49 of Sharing Shane

She shook her head and picked up her coffee. “Nothing, never mind.”

“Veronica,” he said, trying not to sound pissy. “What?”

“I don’t want to ask now,” she said, her mouth going mulish. “It might make you uncomfortable, and it’s not important.”

He reached for his forgotten can of Mountain Dew. “It was important enough for you to think of it, so spill it.”

Her teeth dug harder into her lower lip, indecision in her eyes, and he gestured with the can. “If you don’t ask, I’m calling the hotel.”

“That’s a pitiful threat that shouldn’t work.”

He sipped his soda and grimaced. It had gone lukewarm. But he needed something to do, so he kept sipping while she tried to stare him down.

She finally gave up with a sigh. “Fine. I talked to Wyatt last night.”

He nodded. “He told me. Go on.”

That made her pause. “Oh. Did he tell you what we talked about?”

“No. He just said he’d seen you on the beach.”

“Oh.” She nibbled her lip again. “Well, he ended up explaining a lot more about your relationship. The whole non-monogamy thing, and how it works for you guys.”

“Okay.

“And, well, something he said got me to thinking. I was going to ask you about it, but...”

“Just ask, already,” he said, exasperated, and took another drink of lukewarm pop.

“Do you want to fuck me?” she asked, and he spewed Mountain Dew all over the counter.

Eight

Veronica eyed the wet counter, then lifted her gaze to Shane’s. “Is that a yes or a no?”

He glared at her, still coughing, and grabbed a dishtowel. “What the hell kind of a question is that?”

“An honest one?” she ventured.

“Did Wyatt put you up to this?” he demanded, mopping the Mountain Dew out of his beard and swiping at the countertop.

“Of course not,” she said, offended, then wrinkled her nose. “Well, kind of? He said he told me how your relationship works because he wanted me to know that if we slept together, it wouldn’t be cheating. Which, honestly, I appreciate. And he said you probably wouldn’t ask me, because you were worried I’d feel pressured since we’re sharing the cottage. So, I guess, in a way, he sort of put me up to it, but he didn’t tell me to ask you, if that’s what you’re asking.”

He was staring at her, the dishtowel hanging limp in his hand. “I’m not sure I followed all that.”

“Oh. Do you want me to say it again?”

“No.” He set the towel down. “But I do have a question.”

“Okay.”

“Do you want to fuck me?”

“Um. Well. Yes.” She chewed her lower lip and tried to project both sexual confidence and indifference. “But not if you don’t want to.”

He stared at her for so long that she lost her nerve. “Okay! Well, good talk,” she babbled and slid off her stool. “I think I’m going to head into town, maybe do some shopping. Is there anything you want me to pick up for you? More Mountain Dew, maybe?”

She took a step toward the closet where she’d stashed her bag, keeping her eyes resolutely ahead, and didn’t see him move until he was right in front of her.

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