the Viper like a race car, shaving significant time from the three and a half hours it would take the majority of people to make the drive in the middle of the night with no traffic. One of his gifts, which Absinthe could never quite figure out, was how Transporter managed to know when they were coming up on cop, or when one was in the vicinity at all. He seemed to be a human radar detector. He always slowed and obeyed all traffic laws.
Transporter delivered the two of them to their front door and with a wave was gone, leaving Absinthe alone with Scarlet, and he immediately lifted her into his arms and carried her over the threshold, nuzzling her throat. “Should have done this that first night, baby. Don’t want evil demons following us around anymore. We’ve had our share.”
She settled her arms around his neck. “Yes, we have.”
“Clothes off,” he ordered, nibbling on her neck.
She unbuttoned her blouse and he carried her through the house, peeling off her clothes as she unfastened them, leaving a trail to the back deck where the hot tub was. She was naked by the time he got her there. Naked and laughing. He loved her laugh. Loved the way her eyes lit up. The moonlight spilled down on her red hair, turning it into a blaze of fire. She already had the silken mass piled on top of her head, twisted into some kind of knot.
He liked very hot water, so his outdoor tub was blazing hot and she gasped as she sank down into it. “Absinthe. This could take your skin off.”
“Or take all the kinks out.” He scattered his clothes down the hall from the front room to the outdoor deck almost on top of hers, making it seem as if they had come through their living room and couldn’t quite make it outside before they were all over each other.
She rolled her eyes. “I don’t think that’s ever going to happen. You’re always going to be a little kinky and I like you that way.”
He caught her around the waist and pulled her onto his lap, cupping the weight of her breasts in his hands, kissing her upturned mouth. “That’s a good thing, baby, because I’m crazy in love with you.”
The doorbell was loud and demanding. Absinthe went from a deep sleep to instantly alert. His body was curled around Scarlet’s, his arm locked around her waist, his cock snuggled in the seam of her cheeks. She rolled with him.
“Cops,” he announced, peering into the security screen, which clearly showed the two men at the front door. “Don’t get dressed, baby. Put that nearly transparent long shirt on, as if you hastily threw it on. Wear a thong. Come out right after me, hair falling down, very messy, and look sleepy as hell.” He’d marked her skin, so she looked well used and very his.
He dragged on a pair of the silky drawstring pants and called into the intercom. “This better be important, Jonas. I’ll be right there.” He strode down the hall leading to the main part of the house. When he opened the door, he was barefoot, bare chested, hair rumpled from sleep, and he wore only the thin drawstring pants.
Jonas Harrington, the local sheriff, and Jackson Deveau, the deputy, both stood on his verandah, eyes sharp, taking in every detail, including his woman’s fingernail scratches at his shoulders and the little bites at his neck.
“What’s wrong?” Absinthe demanded, waving them inside. “Is everyone all right?” He looked around for his phone. “Damn it. Blythe? Czar? The kids?”
There was a little whisper of feet and Scarlet rushed in, looking sexy, disheveled and very upset. Beneath the long boyfriend shirt she’d “thrown on” hastily, her full breasts were bouncing as she ran. Her red hair tumbled around her face, falling in a mass of silk, yet anyone could see the marks of his possession on her neck and down to the curves of her breasts. Bite marks, strawberries, an obvious night of wild possession.
“Honey? Is something wrong? Someone hurt?” Scarlet skidded to a halt, one hand going defensively to her throat when she saw the two uniformed men. She backed up a couple of steps. “I thought it was Czar.”
Absinthe picked up one of the throw blankets on the chairs and wrapped it around her, covering her body. “It’s all right, miledi. They were just about to tell me why they’re here. Scarlet, this is Jonas Harrington