He stepped into the shower, and suddenly her view of him expanded so she could see his entire naked torso. He had set the phone on a shelf in the shower.
“What are you doing?” she mumbled.
He turned the silver faucet handle, sending a stream of water over his head. “Which is why I have a waterproof phone case.”
“You’re joking. You can’t shower right now.” She bit her lip and craned her head in a futile effort to see past the dip of his hips cut off by the black frame of her phone screen. “That is so rude.”
“A rinse. No big deal. I have to look pretty tonight for our date.”
“Don’t call it a date. Date sounds so...” Her words trailed off as she caught sight of him wetting his hair, his biceps flexed, and the length of his happy trail bobbed lower on the screen. He turned his head to the side under the stream of water and chuckled at her entranced face.
“See? I have to use all the tools in my arsenal to keep you honest during our impending interrogation.”
“If you show me your tool I’ll be as honest as you want.” She stared unabashedly, but shook her head, snapping herself out of it. She waved her hand. “I only have a few minutes, so hit me with it.”
She struggled to keep her eyes on his face when he grabbed an expensive bar of soap and began rubbing it over his forearm, then moving up the length of his biceps and over his left pec muscle.
“My first question is a tough one, so it’s okay if you crack under the pressure. I’m an extremely skilled litigator.” He scraped a hand through his hair, letting the water rinse out the shampoo. They weren’t even physically together, but the experience was acutely intimate. Even through the screen she could see the playful glint in his eye.
She cocked her head. “I can take it, Counsellor.”
“What is...” he paused, rolling his neck so a stream of water could run down his shoulder “...your favorite color?”
Perdie let out a laugh. “That’s what you want to ask me?” She looked up at the ceiling of her car, then back to Carter. “Okay, I actually do have one.”
“And?”
She lifted a shoulder. “It’s fuchsia.”
“Fuchsia?”
“You know, like a saturated, bright pink?”
He stretched an arm behind his neck. “Like the color of your toenails the first night we met?”
Perdie’s jaw dropped. “You absolute freak. How do you remember that?”
“I’m smart. I went to Harvard.”
“Oh fuck off. Next question.”
“And Yale,” he muttered, wiping water from his eyes. “Fine, the first one was too easy. But I’ve lulled you into a false sense of security. Next one is really tough. Ready?”
“Carter.”
He smiled. “If you were an animal, what animal would you be?”
Perdie giggled again. “Wow. So easy. Bananas, my pug, of course.”
“Learning something new. I didn’t even know you had a pug. Does he snore?”
“Is that your third question?”
“No, it’s an addendum. Question 2b.”
She bit back a smile as she let her eyes trail over the hard lines of his body, the carved vee of his lower abdomen. “Yes, he snores like a buzz saw. I share joint custody with my roommate, Lucille.”
“And you have a roommate.” He caught sight of her gaze and scraped the soap down his happy trail, rubbing the washboard of his abs with his hand.
She let out a huff of air. “We can’t all buy four-thousand-square-foot colonials on our own. Lucille...she’s my best friend. Sister, really. Soul mate. Love of my life. I’d live with her no matter how much money I make. And I’d gruesomely murder anyone who hurt her. Seriously. Decapitation.”
He nodded gravely. “Now I know who I have to impress. And who not to piss off.”
Carter reached to turn off the water, and then suddenly came into close view as he retrieved his phone and stepped out of the shower, toweling his shoulder and neck before tucking the towel low on his hips.
Perdie bit her lip, only getting a partial view of his actions, her brain filling in the blanks.
He hopped up onto the expansive white marble counter in his bathroom, the image of his torso obscured by the steamed-up mirror behind him. She wished it would clear up so she could admire the 360-degree view. And also those tattoos...
His voice brought her back to the task at hand. “Last question.”
“Last question, and then you drop the fucking towel.” Her words came out terser than intended.
A smile played on his lips. “And then we go on a date.”
“Ugh, leave it to two lawyers to construct such complicated rules of engagement.”
“Last question.” He ran his fingers through his hair, then shook it into place. He leveled his gaze. “Why won’t you admit you have feelings for me?”
