living room. When he went to the fireplace to warm the room for her, she took the remote from his hand.
“I don’t need that on right now. I’d rather sit with just the light coming in from the moon and the sea. I like the way it appears silver.”
Absinthe liked that effect as well. The moonlight reflected off the surface of the water and poured through the wall of floor-to-ceiling glass. Scarlet curled up in the wide armchair Lana had chosen for him. There was always a feeling of comfort in Lana’s furniture the moment one settled into it, and he could see that once Scarlet tucked her bare feet under her, she was much more relaxed in spite of herself and the seriousness of the situation.
He went to the bar and pulled out two icy glass bottles of water, trying not to notice how the shape and feel of those bottles reminded him of how sexy it felt when he pressed one into his little kitten’s heat. He opened a bottle for her first and set it on the table between the chairs before opening his and taking a long drink. He hadn’t donned a shirt and he pressed the icy bottle first to his forehead and then to his chest, trying to relieve the feeling of feverish heat sweeping through him.
It took a few minutes before he could force himself to sink into the chair beside Scarlet, and immediately there was a lightening of his heart, an easing of his burden, and he recognized Lana’s gift. She had said she had no gift, but there it was, and no one, including him, had ever managed to put their finger on it, when it was right there in plain sight. She eased that heavy load they all carried. She put herself into the furniture she chose, into the clothes she mended for them, the patches she stitched on their vests or jackets. He would have to tell her so she knew what a miracle she was. When he needed her the most, she’d come through for him.
“Start with Savage,” Scarlet said. “He scared me to death even when I asked him to help and I knew what he was going to do.”
“Did he touch you?” Absinthe countered. “Actually put his hands on you? You were naked, completely naked and vulnerable. He could have done anything to you. Did he?”
Scarlet thought about it. “He grabbed my hair and pulled it, that was scary, and it hurt a little bit. He threatened me mostly, just pacing behind me where I couldn’t see him and then when you didn’t respond, he took off his belt and cracked it. That was terrifying. He wrapped it around my neck, but after, I realized he put it over my collar.”
She raised her hand to her throat and rubbed her fingers along her skin. “I was having a difficult time really being afraid until that moment. I connected with his past somehow, when he was a teen. He had his shirt off and I saw the burn on his chest. Whip Master. I saw him whipping a girl. And then he fucked her. She seemed to want him to, but his eyes … He was so remote, as if he wasn’t really there.”
“Reaper was being tortured and assaulted to keep Savage in line,” Absinthe offered. “I’ll tell you more but I want to know what happened. Did he hurt you?”
“Not like you think.” She touched her hand to her throat again. “After he put the belt around my throat and threatened me, I was scared. I went back to being seventeen, that place where I was half-drugged and Robert and his friends attacked me. I felt helpless and so afraid.” She shivered and wrapped her arms around herself.
He tried to touch her and she jerked away from him, shaking her head. “I swore I would never feel that way again. No one would ever do that to me. I knew how Priscilla felt. How so many other young girls feel. I was so angry with him. With you. But mostly at myself. I can’t be that person you need, Absinthe. I can’t save you when you refuse to save yourself. When you won’t even try. I can’t. I’m not sacrificing myself. I can’t do that. Not even for you.”
She was crying and that turned him inside out. “Scarlet. I wouldn’t want you to sacrifice yourself for me. You’re exactly who I need.”
She shook her head. “I’ll