Page 22 of Deadly Deception
I agreed wholeheartedly. “He needs a medium.” With a heavy sigh, I sat down on the edge of the bed. My shoulders slumped and I bent forward. “But I think a talented medium might be harder to find than a necromancer.” I had no idea how to go about finding the real deal. “The Magical Usage Council might be able to point us in the right direction, but I’m not sure how helpful they’ll be since we’d need one for a necromancer.” I hated saying those words. I hated more that they were true. It wasn’t just humans that disliked necromancers.
“Then this Magical Usage Council is foolish,” Aurelia answered confidently. “Phlox seems to have a differing opinion, although he is part of this so-called council.”
Phlox… Phlox…I knew that name and then it hit me. “Agent Frost.” Franklin perked up.
“That’s the pixie-slash-shifter Captain Cicely told me about,” Franklin said.
“Yup. Why didn’t I think of that before? I’m not sure if he can help or not, but at least he’s someone I know and I think he’d be willing to at least talk with me.” He’d been an integral part of bringing down the werewolf alpha, Arie Belview. We’d sort of gone to battle together, and I hoped that might give me an in, so to speak.
“I have no idea what the pixie will do,” Aurelia stated unhelpfully before looking at the kitten and ordering, “Creature, come here.”
The kitten didn’t so much as glance Aurelia’s direction. Aurelia wasn’t deterred in the slightest. “It is an obstinate thing.” Ignoring the sudden hissing and spatting, along with the arched spine and bottle-brush tail, Aurelia reached under the chair and pulled the kitten out. Small but sharp teeth clamped onto Aurelia’s finger. Aurelia didn’t so much as flinch and the kitten’s teeth didn’t make a dent. Far from upset, Aurelia actuallysmiled. “At least it has tenacity.” And with that, Aurelia, the kitten, and the odd backpack vanished from the room.
Quiet filled our small space, the sound of the heater kicking back on our only background noise. Finally, Franklin asked, “What the hell just happened?”
Still sitting on the end of the bed, I shook my head. “I have no idea. Most likely, that’s what that poor kitten is wondering too.”
“Should we hold an intervention?” Franklin asked cautiously. “I can’t decide if this borders on animal cruelty or not.”
I considered Franklin’s words and weighed them against my own concerns. Finally, I answered, “Knowing Peaches, he won’t let anything tragic happen. He’s too soft-hearted for that. Besides, oddly enough, I think Peaches might be on to something.” Time would tell, but I could actually understand the method behind this seeming madness. It wasn’t an option I would have considered. It would either turn out to be genius or catastrophic.
I rubbed my temples and asked, “Can your brain hurt? I’m not talking about headaches. I’ve had plenty of those. I’m talking about the entire brain, because I believe today has just about done mine in.”
Franklin’s deep chuckle resonated through the room. Rising from the bed he’d been sitting on, Franklin cleared the remaining pizza and boxes from the room. I was still in the same slumped position when he returned. Standing in front of me, Franklin’s thick fingers wrapped around my biceps, and he gently tugged me into a standing position.
“You’ll feel better after a shower. We both need to get the airport gunk off us.”
“And the sheriff’s office germs,” I whined as Franklin frog-marched me toward the bathroom.
“That too,” he agreed easily.
True to his earlier words, Franklin turned on the water, made sure it was a steamy temperature, stripped us both down, and helped me into the shower, joining me soon after.
“Hmm…this does feel good,” I mumbled as Franklin’s hands swept up and down my body, spreading soap and igniting fires I was too tired to make good on.
Franklin’s quiet, steady presence soothed me almost as much as his magic fingers massaging shampoo and then conditioner into my hair. The tender care he took was a physical reminder of his affection.
We rinsed off, both of us sporting erections. It was hard for my lower brain not to get aroused when Franklin was around, especially a wet and naked Franklin O’Hare.
Franklin pulled the covers back, and I scooted my naked ass across the sheets. When he looked to the other bed, I grabbed Franklin’s wrist and said, “I don’t mind cuddling.” The queen-size bed would be tight, but what I’d said was true. Anytime I could wrap my body around Franklin’s was a good day. Thankfully, he’d never made me believe he felt differently.
“A single with a king-sized bed would have been nice,” Franklin answered as he climbed into bed next to me. “Too bad all those rooms were already taken.”
“Oh, I don’t know. This is cozy.” I draped my leg over Franklin. A hiss escaped his lips as my knee bumped into his thickened cock. My fingers tangled in Franklin’s chest hair as I worked them farther south. “You want me to take care of that for you?” I might not be up for intense calisthenics, but I figured I could easily manage a hand job.
“What man would turn down an offer like that?” Franklin asked, his voice a little breathless.
I chuckled and answered, “Not many,” before wrapping my fingers around Franklin’s velvety, hard length. It didn’t takemuch to send him careening over the edge, and Franklin’s ensuing soft snores guiding me to satisfied, peaceful slumber.
Chapter
Eight
Franklin
I woke needing another shower. Erasmus and I’d both fallen asleep before we had a chance to clean up. My bladder screamed that I hadn’t woken to relieve it during the night. Easing out from Boone’s octopus grip, I hurried to the bathroom, took care of business, and took a quick shower. When I walked out of the bathroom, Boone was sitting up in bed, his hair a discordant riot after going to bed with it wet.
“What time is it?” Boone asked on a wide yawn. Rubbing his eyes and getting his fingers helplessly tangled in his haphazard hair, my heart swelled with affection. Boone was sexy as fuck. He was also hopelessly cute this morning. It made for a lethal combination. Or at least a nonproductive combination, because all I wanted to do was climb back into bed and mess him up further.
