Page 61 of The Devil's Ice

This was, she realized with a start, their actual first date. It was also the night after they’d first slept in the same bed together, and they hadn’t even had sex beforehand; it was the night before Ice headed to another state on a rescue mission from which he might not return.

She’d known this man sexually for years, first as a casual fuck buddy, then as an exclusive fuck buddy. She’d barely known him as aperson, though, not really. So did she now know enough to promise him that she’d be here, when he came back from whatever wild and murderous adventure he was embarking on the next day?

He was standing there, those ridiculous slippers in one hand, the bottle of wine in the other, and he looked so nervous, she could scarcely believe that this was the fierce and fearsome Ice Johansson, the man who struck terror into the hearts of terrifying men with a single cool, menacing look. Butthiswas him too, this was part of who he was – and nobody saw it but her. Hetrustedit with nobody but her.

So she had to trust him too.

“Yes, babe,” she said now. “It’s enough for me stay.You’remore than enough to be with when things are like this, and when things are better, and when they’re worse, too.”

“You sure?”

“I’m sure.”

“Then I need to ask you to do something else for me, Vix.”

“What is it?”

“I want you to let one of King’s guys take you to stay with Zoe and Keira. You know that he’s got them in one of his safe houses, being guarded by two of his people, and I’d feel a whole hell of a lot better if you weren’t on your own while I was away, and not just to protect you. Zee said that she can help you with getting around, getting dressed, all the physical stuff… and Keira wants to see you desperately.”

“Yes.”

He paused. “Just – just ‘yes’?”

“Yes. Just yes.”

“Holy shit.” He looked stunned, like he’d just been whacked over the head. “Thank you. I was worried that there might be a bit of push-back about it.”

Vixen smiled at him, looking to break the tension a bit. “Hey, you know what I just thought about?”

“Tell me.”

“This is our first date.”

“Huh.” He blinked at her, as if seeing her for the first time. “Actually – that’s right.”

“So shall we end it with a bang?”

“What kind of bang are you talking about, baby? Seeing as our banging options are limited.”

“Now, now, no need for that kind of dirty talk.” She gestured at the slippers. “Isn’t it time to send them to meet their maker? Who I’m assuming resides in hell?”

“You wanna do the honors, then? Seeing as you hate these things with the blazing heat of a thousand suns.”

“Oh, God, yes.”

She took his hand and he carefully pulled her to her feet, handed over the slippers. Without a word, she threw them into the fire. The horrible brown, orange, and mustard material flared and flamed, the soles started to split apart, and she wrinkled her nose at the acrid stench.

“Howis it that they smell worse than they look?” she asked Ice. “These things are truly,trulydiabolical. We might need an exorcist if they start to reform and rise out of the fire.”

Ice moved behind her now, gently wrapped his arms around her waist. Vixen leaned against him, felt his muscular chest rising and falling against her back. Standing there, in the circle and safety of Ice's arms, already looking forward to another shower with him, and sleeping with him next to her, she found it hard to believe that anything bad or hurtful or harmful could ever happen again, to anyone, anywhere at all. Vixen knew that was naive and stupid – especially with where Ice was going tomorrow – but in this moment, it feltpossible.

She had no way of knowing just how wrong she was. She didn’t know that a woman and her daughter – who had been living a peaceful, hidden existence nine states away and for almost ten years – had just come to the attention of Viper Grant and Preacher Hughes.

Chapter Twenty

The next morning

Dux and Drake grabbed their duffel bags, walked down the stairs to drop them at the front door, before heading into the kitchen.

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