Page 34 of Radiant Exception
Without uttering a word, I pointed at Rion. He shrank back, not wanting the attention from Ethan, but I could see a gleam of vindication in his eyes that Ethan surely missed.
“Fine, then what’s your type?” Ethan turned the tableson me.
I gave him a pointed stare. Of course the correct answer would be to say that Vaughn was my type, and truthfully, he really was. It was terrible how handsome and rugged and muscular I found him to be, and how everything about him, even the way he fought with me, turned me on. It wasn’t fair.
“Well, you have terrible taste, especially considering you slept with the captain practically the second you met him,” Ethan grumbled.
“Ethan.” Rion smacked his arm in protest.
But according to the story we were peddling, that was what we’d insinuated. “What can I say, I know what I like.” I gave him a wide smile. If I showed even a hint of embarrassment, he would jump on it.
There were bits of Ethan that reminded me of Xavier, and despite how close we had always been, he’d been merciless with his teasing, but just as ruthless of a protector.
“You can be honest with me, Mrs. Vaughn—”
I guffawed at the title.
“It was supposed to be a one-night stand, wasn’t it?” Ethan continued.
Now I knew the starshine was most certainly kicking in. The room and my senses were beginning to slightly blur around the edges in the most delightful way. But the other typical consequence of my own inebriation was kicking in, and all sorts of amorous thoughts were taking flight in my mind.
Ethan’s mention of a one-night stand sparked this awful and likely delusional train of thought that maybe if I offered Vaughna one-night pass to fuck me seven ways until Sunday, no strings attached, that he just might take me up on it.
He was definitely interested; that much was clear. I didn’t think it would really be so difficult to coax him into a quick tryst with me. If we hadn’t been interrupted in his office, who knew what would have happened. It felt so good to be in his lap and feel how much he needed me even through the thick layers of our uniform fabric.
Giving up on teasing me, Ethan turned the topic to Vaughn. “You know, we thought he might not be interested in anyone after a while. He’s had plenty of men and women and everyone else in between throw themselves at him at port after port, but he always came back to the ship alone. Then he showed up with a fucking exception.” Ethan shakes his head in astonishment. “I’m assuming the sex must be amazing for him to give you the time of day, especially since he got married to the first girl he—”
“That’s enough, O’Malley,” Vaughn’s deep voice boomed from the door to the mess.
“I was talking you up, Cap.” Ethan grinned.
I could feel Vaughn bristling behind me. The heat rolling off that muscular body of his, and getting a brief whiff of his musky aftershave, had me melting.
I looked up at him when I felt his hand settle at the small of my back.
His gaze met mine, that molten chocolate always assessing. “You’re drunk.” It came out as a statement of fact.
A sudden bubble of laughter erupted from my lips, because yes, I was drunk. I felt good. And I wanted to make him feel good.
“It’s called starshine.” I giggled.
Vaughn scoffed before scooping me up and throwing me over his shoulder, like an absolute caveman.
“Vaughn!” I screeched, struggling in his hold.
“Let’s get you to bed, Trouble.” He punctuated the sentiment with a quick slap on my ass, eliciting a squeal from me.
“Show ’em who’s boss, Lark!” Ethan hollered after us.
Despite her height, which I’d heard her complaining about on multiple occasions, Lark weighed practically nothing slung over my shoulder.
“Okay, you can put me down now. They’re out of earshot,” she protested as I made my way to my quarters.
“We’re almost there, quit whining.” I chuckled. I rather liked having her in such a compromising position, and I enjoyed the noise she’d made when I’d spanked her earlier. I wouldn’t have minded doing that again in the privacy of our room and seeing what she had to say about it then.
Once inside the room, I gently set her back on her feet and nudged her toward the bathroom.
“Fine, I’m going.” She stuck her tongue out at me before spinning on her heel and marching into the bathroom.
