Page 83 of Dark Verse

We begin to stand, each reaching for various items. Plates, wine and water glasses, utensils.

“So Via, Knox and I were thinking about going to a pumpkin patch tomorrow and picking a few up to carve,” Venny says as the cleaning continues. “Do you want to come?”

“Oh, fun! I haven’t done that in years. Cash?”

“Could be enjoyable,” Cash says thoughtfully.

Crash!

I turn at the sight and sound of glass shattering on the kitchen floor, red wine splashing everything in sight.

“Shit!” Raven shouts.

“Fuck,” Zeke exclaims, “I’m sorry, Ray!”

The remains of the red wine is spread out across the tile floor, the green bottle a glimmering mosaic of shards held precariously together by the white label.

She wears a gray shirt, but I can still see a large dark wet stain across Ven’s entire chest.

“You okay?” I ask her, concerned she might have cut herself.

“Yeah. I just wasn’t expecting to get wet yet.”

She winks up at me as I take her hand. I help her across the room and out of the kitchen.

“I’m really sorry, Ray,” Zeke repeats, looking at the mess left on the floor.

“It’s okay. Shit happens. I’m just going to change my shirt,” she tells us all, slipping away towards the steps.

I only hang back for a few moments before following her up the steps, watching as Zeke and Via work quickly to clean up the broken glass and mop up the wine. I’m just reaching for the doorknob of the bedroom when the door swings wide. Raven stands at the threshold. My gaze drops down to her chest, and I see she has thrown on an old Nightshades T-shirt that I’ve had for years, my name emblazoned across her breast.

She stole that from me on her last night in Colorado, saying it smelled like me, and I’m pleased to see her in it now.

More than pleased, in fact.

She is not leaving this room with that shirt on. In fact, she’s not leaving this room at all.

“Yes?” Venny asks, completely unaware of the dirty thoughts running a marathon in my mind right now.

Wordlessly, I run my hands across her hips, grasp firm and steady as I guide Ven backward into the bedroom.

“You have no idea how sexy you look right now, do you?”

She smiles, pulling my mouth to hers, our tongues caught in a wet duet.

Pulling back, she says, “Your standards remain exceptionally low, I see.”

Shaking my head, I say, “No, you just make everything look good.”

“Including an old T-shirt?”

I reach down between us and start to unzip her jeans.

“Including an old T-shirt,” I repeat, capturing her lips and biting them just hard enough to excite.

“I guess I should be thanking Zeke after all.”

“You can thank him in the morning.”