Page 27 of The Scandal You Started
She was trying to shave his foam-painted jaw, but she’d made little to no progress. He was more interested in yapping away questions like a starry-eyed child about the“glass cuboid in the corner with the watering can in it”to the humming of the fan in the background, and the blue shaving gel turning white in the palm of his hand.
“But what causes the chemical reaction?” he asked, dipping his chin just as she brought the razor to his face.
“Dominic,” she snapped.
He lifted his wide, curious gaze to her. Two clean-shaven streaks exposed a permanent shadow on his chiselled jawline.
She brandished the blade. “Sit. Still.”
He grinned sheepishly. “Apologies, sweetheart.”
Washing his unbandaged hands in the bathwater, he faced her again, then crossed his bulky arms over the flat rim of the tub with all the laziness of a big cat. She held his chin and began shaving the rest of his cheek, trying and failing not to sneak appreciative glances at him every time she washed the razor in the small bowl gripped between her knees.
It irritated her that she couldn’t tame her own eyes, but she told herself most people would have struggled not to notice the masculine nakedness of him.
And there was a lot of him.A lot of attractive parts.
Not that her belly hummed at his attractiveness. No, no. Just...objectivelyspeaking.
The stark contrast between the white of the bathtub and his bronzed skin spoke volumes for how much time he spent in the sun shirtless, because the tan blended evenly from his thick neck all the way down his chest. With how close he was, his shoulders seemed twice the size of hers. And she could try to count each indent of muscle, but she’d be counting for ages.
He was hairy too—a nice kind of hairy all over. The fleece she’d glimpsed on his arms and chest earlier in the day painted what she’d seen of his legs too and down his torso to under the soapy water. She absolutely hated that she knew the colour of his nipples, but with the hair on his chest wet, it was impossible to miss the distinct flat pebbles of copper brown.
She was almost thankful for the distraction when he started talking again.
“No woman has ever shaved me before,” he muttered as she cleared the last strip of white foam from one cheek. “I am beginning to wonder why. It is rather pleasant watching youconcentrate so sweetly, while your delicate fingers touch my face.” He sank closer. “Then again, I doubt it would feel thus if it were anyone other than you, sweet Rayna.”
Her eyes flattened into unimpressed slits, making him grin. She pinched his chin and jerked his face away rougher than necessary, so his other cheek was visible. He hissed a little discontented sound, but his gaze never left her.
“You’re a lot happier about this now than when I suggested it,” she said.
“Well, how could I not have some reservations when this is an entirely unnatural situation? That is not to say I did not want it. But whileyouhave no concern for your virtue, I am still inclined to consider your modesty. I am not a man who takes pleasure in ruining women.”
She opened her mouth to argue, but he beat her to it. “But ruin is not possible, is it?” He defied the grip of her fingers and faced her. “Which is why I am shamelessly basking in your attention like a feline under the sun.” He traced a single finger against her jaw and tucked it under her chin. “You are as temptingly warm and as beautiful as a summer’s sky, Rayna.”
He chucked her chin lightly, and she couldn’t help grinning with her brows pinched.
His flirtatious words were so disgustingly poetic. The kind of romantic, cheesy nonsense that Rayna didn’t care for, which made it all the funnier and cringeworthy.
“Shameless you are,” she agreed with a shake of her head. “And warm I won’t be if you don’t turn your head and let me finish.”
Technically, she should have been discouraging him from flirting with her. But it was harmless entertainment, and it wasn’t as if it would lead anywhere, so she didn’t see the point of telling him to stop. She doubted he’d go down without a fight anyway, which wasn’t worth the effort.
Once Dominic turned his face, she finished shaving his cheek, upper lip, and under his jaw. Then she took the razor, bowl, and can of shaving foam back to the sink by the door and soaked a small flannel in warm water before taking it to him.
“Close your eyes,” she instructed.
He didn’t, instead choosing to watch her closely as she wiped his face of any residue. And damn him, because the weight of his piercing stare was impossible to ignore, and it made the simple, innocent task feel unnecessarily intimate.
It wasn’t until she pulled the towel away that she noticed the murky look of concern and regret dimming his irises, his attention falling below her chin.
She knew what he was looking at and dipped her head. “I’m fine,” she said, swivelling to stand.
Dominic caught her around the elbow, holding her in place with a bitter twist on his lips. “You are not fine. You have marks on your neck that I…” He swallowed like it pained him and shook his head. “I should never have…I did not think—I did not even take a moment to look at you, but if I had, I would not have hurt you. Ishould nothave hurt you. I apologise, Rayna. I deeply regret what I did.”
He meant it with all his being. From the way his brows were drawn down to the little croak in his voice as he apologised. And if she’d needed to forgive him for strangling her, she would have right then and there.
“I meant what I said, Dominic. It’s fine.I’m fine. I completely understand your reaction. You were scared and angry, so you lashed out, and I can’t fault you for that. Neither am I pitying you, so don’t try to act all big and tell me that wasn’t the reason for it. You did what you did to protect yourself.” She shrugged and stood up, his hand slipping from her arm. “And anyway, it’s not as if I didn’t know that you might react like that before I went in.”
