“Yeah, but how could it pick up on that when I wasn’t physically standing there?”
“I don’t know, but do you also remember how that clockmaker with the long white hair in that other realm or plane—or wherever—was able to snatch your candle away from you as if you were standing there with Cornelius and me?” She, too, had sensed Doc’s presence, even though he was not physically present. Hell, Cornelius and I hadn’t been physically present either officially, but yet we weren’t invisible.
I shook my head. Hardly any of this supernatural shit made any sense to me, but this was the hand I’d been dealt, so I would keep bluffing and upping my bet until I won the pot or lost it all.
“Yeah,” he said, his hand on my leg paused. “That was the first time I’d ever experienced something like that.”
I chewed on my lower lip. “If it’s a matter of a scent or something like that giving you away when we’re together, it’s getting more dangerous for you to be in there with me.”
He scoffed, lacing his fingers with mine. “There’s no way I’m letting you go in alone, so you can stop that train of thought in its tracks.”
“Fine, but we have to try harder to keep you hidden.”
“And how do we do that?”
“I don’t know. Maybe there is some kind of shielding voodoo charm or protective amulet that will disguise your astral body when we’re inside that other realm.”
“Astral body?” He chuckled. “Listen to you, Killer, throwing out paranormal terms like you’ve been schooled in the supernatural a time or two.”
“More like forced learning via hands-on experience.”
He lifted my hand to his mouth, kissing the back of it. “I like it when you practice hands-on education.”
“If you like what I can do with my hands, you should see what I can do with my mouth.” I rubbed my leg suggestively over his hip, playing along until he put a stop to it.
“I’m familiar with the power of those tempting lips and your sweet tongue, vixen.” He shifted onto his side, facing me, propping his head up on his hand, too. Unlacing his fingers from mine, he pulled my leg on top of his and ran his hand over my hip. “I have a feeling that ward at the base of the Hellhole is meant to block the other two creatures you ran into down there from coming through.”
“That would make sense.” I wrapped my leg around his and pulled him even closer, skin pressed against skin except for where my satin chemise and his boxer briefs played interference. “It would also explain why Jane’s ghost had warned us to steer clear of the Hellhole.”
“I wonder where that right fork in the tunnel went to,” he whispered, sliding his fingers under the satin hem of my top.
“You’ll just have to keep wondering about that, because I’m not going back down there to meet that red-armed growler face to face if I can help it.”
“Not without your mace, at least,” he added, his fingers tickling their way north of my navel, roaming over hill and down dale.
I leaned into his warm palm as he cupped and strummed. “I have to find that lidérc.”
“I know,” he said absently, preoccupied with what was hiding from him under my chemise.
“I probably pissed it off with that ball of fire.”
“Uh-huh.” His thumb circled, making my body perk up and hum. His body liked it, too, from what I could feel.
“I’ll ask Aunt Zoe about that mirror in her shop in the morning.”
His gaze moved to my mouth. “Sure.”
“Doc?” I made a show of wetting my lips.
He groaned, his hand squeezing as his hips pressed against mine. “Yeah?”
“Are you going to kiss me or what?”
“Or what,” he growled and rolled my way, partially pinning me under his weight. He pulled up my chemise while tugging down my underwear. “Damn it, Boots. What have I told you about wearing too many clothes to bed?”
I chuckled, lifting my hips so he could remove the lower half of my unmentionables. “But it’s fun to watch you struggle to take them off.”
He grunted and yanked them down, his mouth returning to mine. “Wrap your legs around me,” he said between blistering kisses.
I did as told, only to freeze at the sound of my phone buzzing on the nightstand.
Doc buried his face in my neck, nipping his way along my collarbone. “Ignore that,” he whispered.
I wanted to, but … “It’s late.”
“Even more reason not to answer it.” His teeth grazed my earlobe.
I arched in spite of the continued buzzing, brushing against him. “But what if it’s Nat and she’s in trouble?”
He stilled, his breathing heavy, his muscles straining. “Fine,” he said and reached for the phone, frowning at what he read and then held it out to me. “It’s not Natalie.”
I took the phone. It was Cooper. “Why is he calling me so late?”
Doc rolled away, lying on his back. “I doubt it’s to congratulate us on almost having sex.” He growled at the ceiling. “Coop has the worst timing, I swear. You better answer it, or he’ll come knocking on the door next.”
I sat up and hit the answer button. “It’s late, Cooper.”
“No shit, Parker.” He sounded pissed. “Golly gee, I hope I didn’t interrupt anything.”
Hey, I was the one who should be irritated, not him. “Well, you did, damn it.”
“Great, because what I’m about to tell you screwed up a good thing I had going.”
I heard Natalie’s voice in the background saying, “It’s not her fault, Coop.”
“Yes, it is. She’s the one who batted the little shit out the window.”
“Oh, crap.” I looked down at Doc. “What did the imp do now?”
That caught Doc’s attention. He frowned back at me.
Cooper huffed. “You’ll see soon enough. Get dressed. You’re going with me to Lead.”
“Right now?”
“Yes, right now, Parker. Detective Hawke is insisting I bring you with me.”
“What?” Had he said “Detective Hawke”? “Why does he
