Page 26 of Lorran
He pulled back, sitting on his heels but still crouched before her. Fabric stretched over his thighs, and she appreciated the solid bulk of him and the way his pants fit, especially the way it left little to the imagination.
Noteworthy indeed.
He tilted his head, a smirk on his face.
Wyn rolled her eyes and gave him a solid shove, rocking him back on his heels. “Looking is not the same as kissing.”
“Would you trade a kiss for another cookie?”
She was very treat-motivated and had the junk in the trunk to prove it…but his proposition felt wrong. Gross, even. Lorran turned on his greasy charm like a faucet, and Wyn had seen that before. Oscar had an oily way about him, playing the seriousartistewho only produced a handful of paintings while Wyn went to the day job for those mundane things like eggs, bread, and milk.
Wyn hated being manipulated then by a charming, shallow man, and she didn’t appreciate it now.
“No,” she said, “but how about we play Truth or Dare? Just keep the dares PG.”
“I do not know this game. Explain.”
“We take turns. You can answer a question or do a dare. Your choice.” She explained the rules as succinctly as possible. “And PG means no touching and no skin. Keep it clean.”
“That is disappointing, but I am intrigued. Give me a dare.” His eyes sparkled.
Wyn looked around the cockpit for a dare. Helm? She wasn’t sure of the technical word. The front of the shuttle was a massive screen. Outside was black and more black space, interrupted by a scattering of starlight. The scenery was peaceful, almost serene in its coldness.
“Okay, I dare you to sing a song,” Wyn said.
“Sing? Any request?”
“Anything.”
Lorran bounced to his feet. With a hand on his chest, he gave an enthusiastic if toneless rendition of a jingle for coffee. It was ridiculous.
“How do you even know that?” Wyn said, trying her best not to laugh.
“It is my turn. You will have to live with the mystery,” he answered. “Truth or dare?”
“Truth,” she said.
“Why are you no longer with your former mate?”
Well, that went right to the stuff she didn’t want to talk about. “Is it too late for a dare?”
“Yes. Give me your truth.”
He sounded like Sonia in that moment, but Wyn had to wonder why Lorran was so curious about Oscar. Was he looking for a reason to send her home? Trying to find a defect?
She took a breath. “I don’t really know. Shit, that’s not true. I was engaged, not married, for five years. We met at school. I don’t think Oscar loved me, but he loved that I had a job and he got to be a stay-at-home house fiancé. He’s a painter, and I was happy to support his art.” Her words came out in a tumble. Now that she had lanced the hurt, she felt relieved as the poison drained away. “At least one of us got to be a full-time artist. I guess that wasn’t enough. He just got bored and left to follow his muse. I wanted to hate him, but we weren’t happy. It was for the best. And yes, he was using me. Yes, I see that now, but I didn’t at the time. Satisfied?”
Lorran nodded, the motion sending his hair forward in a tumble across his brow. “Thank you.”
“Truth or dare?”
“Dare,” he said, eyes sparkling.
Maybe this wasn’t the best idea to get to know each other if he kept picking dare. Fine, he wanted to be a smartass about it—
“I dare you to let me sit in the forbidden chair.” Wyn pointed to the navigator’s seat.
“I cannot. Access to the controls is restricted.”
