Page 87 of Vicious King

With another job done, I drive home in the dark and park in the garage, then wander into the quiet house, disengaging the alarms and then resetting them.

When I get upstairs, I check on Charlie first and find him sleeping peacefully in his bed. After pressing a kiss to his head, I stride down the hall to get my hands on my sunshine, but when I walk into the bedroom, she’s not in bed. She’s not in the bathroom or the closet, so I make my way back downstairs, and my phone pings, telling me that one of the doors or windows is open.

If someone has the audacity to walk in here and take my wife, I’ll make them pay.

It’s the door out to the pool that opened, and I rush down the rest of the way, through the kitchen to the doors, and when I get outside, I see her sitting on a chaise longue, dressed in a robe, watching the lights in the water.

“You’re up late,” I say as I join her, and she startles, her hand covering her chest.

“Shit, you scared me.”

“Sorry.” I scoot her forward and sit behind her, then pull her back against me and hold her tight.

“I wasn’t expecting you to be back until tomorrow.”

“I came straight home.” I kiss her hair, and she drags her fingertips up and down my forearms, giving me goose bumps.

“Is it done?”

I grin against her hair. “Of course.”

“Was it hard?”

“Only a little, but nothing I couldn’t handle.”

She’s quiet for a moment.

“How was New Orleans? I’ve always wanted to go there. I hear the beignets are to die for. Have you had them?”

I shake my head. “Can’t say that I have. If you want to go there, we’ll go.”

She sighs. “I’ve been sitting out here at night, after Charlie goes down and everything is quiet.”

“Baby, I was only gone for one night. Not to mention he should have been asleep hours ago.”

“He was. I’ve discovered that I don’t sleep that great without you.”

I like that. I like it a lot.

“I’m home now,” I murmur. “Let’s go to bed.”

Twenty-Seven

RINA

There are so many amazing things about being reunited with Carson, but this is the best one.

“Jesus fuck,” I moan.

He has me braced in his arms against the tile of our shower, and he’s fucking the hell out of me.

“You thought you could just sneak in here without me?” he growls against my mouth before pulling my lower lip between his teeth and biting down.

“You were asleep,” I say on a little gasp when he fists his hand in my hair and pulls, tipping my chin up so he can nibble my neck.

Actually, make that bite my neck.

“I don’t like waking up with my wife gone,” he says, still fucking me with a punishing, hard rhythm that makes my toes curl. “That’s a bad girl.”