"Yes, but you were sitting in the first batch of tub water when you cleaned the surface stuff away, and it may have gotten everywhere. Best to do a thorough job," he said, sounding cheerful and a bit breathless himself. His fingers slipped away as he turned to switch the empty jug for a fresh one, and then he repeated the process, once again ending between her legs.
Drina bit her lip as his fingers ran over her, sure Harper was punishing her for her earlier teasing when she'd been using the water-and-vinegar solution. On a bright note, though, as her life mate, she knew he was punishing himself as well since he too was experiencing the excitement he was stirring in her.
"Last bottle." Harper's voice was gravelly now, but she was amazed he could speak at all. She didn't think she could, and then the cool liquid was pouring over her for the last time, little red rivulets running over her shoulders and down her arms.
This time Harper didn't waste time moving the liquid over her derriere but immediately slid his free hand between her legs as he poured. Drina curled her fingers against the tile surround of the tub and moaned. When the bottle was empty, and he retrieved his hand to turn and set the jug on the counter with the others, she turned and leaned weakly back against the cool tiles, glad to still be on her feet. She'd begun to worry her shaking legs would collapse under her by the end.
Harper turned back and eyed her, then stepped to the edge of the tub, caught her arm, and pulled her forward for a kiss that did little to settle her excitement. His hands moved over her briefly as he thrust his tongue into her mouth, and then he broke the kiss and stepped back to begin removing his T-shirt.
"Going to scrub my back?" she asked huskily, sinking back against the tile again as the T-shirt hit the floor.
"Your back, your front, your top, your bottom, and everything in between," he assured her, and reached for the waist of his joggers, only to pause as a knock sounded at the door.
"Drina?" Stephanie's voice called. "I'm sorry to bother you guys, but this is the only bathroom, and I really have to go."
Drina bit her lip as Harper closed his eyes on a sigh.
"You don't have to get out of the tub, Dree," Stephanie added now. "Just pull the shower curtain closed if you want. I don't mind. But I really, really have to go."
"One second, Steffie," Drina said finally when Harper bent to retrieve his T-shirt and quickly pulled it back on. He leaned forward then to kiss her again, a quick, hard one, and then tugged the shower curtain closed and turned to open the bathroom door.
"Sorry, Stephanie. Go right ahead," Harper said as he slid from the room.
Drina sat down in the tub with a little thump, grateful to get off her shaking legs. She heard Stephanie enter and a rustle as the girl announced, "Teddy sent up some joggers and a T-shirt for you. I'm putting them on the counter."
"Thank you," Drina murmured, picking up the washcloth. She soaked it in the tomato juice in the tub and began to scrub herself as her nerve endings slowly began to calm.
"The tomato juice and stuff must have worked. It only smells a little in here now, and I think that's from the sheet." Stephanie's words were accompanied by a rustling Drina supposed was the girl preparing to "go."
"Yes, I think it worked. I can actually smell the tomato juice now, and I haven't been able to smell anything for hours," Drina said.
"Lucian still hasn't called Anders back," Stephanie announced, and Drina suspected the girl was just talking to try to hide the sounds as she relieved herself. "You don't think Lucian will make us go back to Toronto now that Casey Cottage is temporarily uninhabitable, do you?"
Drina heard the worry in the girl's voice and frowned, but the suggestion worried her as well. It would be harder to hide Stephanie's abilities-and trouble handling them-from Lucian if they were in Toronto . . . and Drina was worried about what he would do. She wanted to help the girl learn to block the voices and perhaps deal with the electricity and energy she claimed to feel around life mates, and had spent a good portion of her night in the kitchen considering how to do that. The problem was that it was the complete opposite of what new turns usually needed to learn, and she had no idea how to go about it.
Realizing she shouldn't be thinking about this with the girl so close, Drina pushed the thought from her head, and said, "I don't know, sweetie. But if so, I'll be with you. Don't worry. And it would probably only be temporary until Casey Cottage was habitable again."
"Right," Stephanie murmured. She was silent for a minute, and then said, "Sorry to interrupt your bath."
"You aren't interrupting," Drina said with amusement, scrubbing the tomato-soaked cloth over her leg.
"Yeah, but I mean, you probably want your privacy and stuff."
Drina chuckled at the suggestion. "Steffie, when I was young in Egypt, servants would help me with my bath. They would pour water over me and so on. And in Spain, I always had a maid who helped me bathe. Well, until that went out of fashion. I am not bothered by your being here."
"Really?" Stephanie asked curiously. "Did they have soap in Egypt?"
"Not the hard bars used today. Ours was a cream made up of lime, oil, and perfume."
"That sounds nice." Stephanie sighed. There was a rustle, and then the flushing of the toilet, followed by the squeak of the taps being turned.
Teddy needed some oil on that, Drina thought absently as she continued scrubbing.
"Well, I guess I'll go back downstairs," Stephanie announced, turning off the taps. "Do you want to play cards or something when you come down?"
"Sure," she said easily. "I'll be down in a minute."
"Okay." Drina heard the bathroom door open and thought Stephanie was leaving, but she suddenly said, "Oh, I forgot, Teddy went out to pick up sandwich fixings before heading to the police station. I was going to make myself a Kitchen Sink sandwich. Do you want me to make you one too?"