Flame Series #8: Death Train

Chapter 1

Kansas City

Kitty linked her fingers together and stretched her arms up toward the fancy carved headboard. Once she had worked out all the kinks, she wiggled back down into the soft, warm blankets. "What are you doing in there?" Her voice was somewhere between a purr and silky smooth. After a few moments of silence, she sang his name like a sweet tune, stretching out the four simple letters. "M-a-a-t-t"

An adorable frown inched its way across her lips and she sat up, holding the sheet around her naked body. The melody in her voice was gone, replaced with concern. "Matt Dillon, answer me!" Two small feet slipped out from under the covers and touched lightly on the thick rug beside the bed.

There had been no sounds of a crash or a thud, so she was becoming more annoyed than worried. "If you make me come in there-" She stopped suddenly, realizing those were the same words used to threaten her children.

Just out of reach, in the chair by the window, lay her robe. It had been recklessly abandoned the night before when Matt had literally pulled it from her and tossed it across the room. With the window between her and the chair, she was apprehensive to give up the sheet. One last time, her eyes traveled from the closed bathroom door, to the window and then settled on the chair. With a heavy sigh, she decided to go for the robe.

Matt opened the door just enough to see into the bedroom. He watched Kitty chew on her lip as she tried to figure out how to get the robe. When he didn't respond to her second call, he knew she would come looking for him. Just as she threw back the sheet, he barreled through the bathroom door, bellowing in a deep, husky growl and snatched up her naked body before she could reach the chair. The sound and movement caught her totally off guard, as was clearly evident by her screams and flailing arms. He knew he would startle her, but he hadn't expected this degree of resistance.

Matt held Kitty's naked body against his chest; his bellowing growl had been replaced by laughter. However, it was only his laughter surrounding them as she had not found his antics to be that funny. "You scared me half to death!" Kitty squirmed in his arms, attempting to get free. "Sometimes, you can be such a child!"

Before she could berate him any further, they were both silenced by a demanding knock at the door. The knock was accompanied by an announcement. "Hotel security. Mr. Dillon, please open the door."

Matt bit his lip to keep from laughing and tossed his wife unceremoniously onto the bed. Kitty scrambled to cover herself with the sheet. With continued amusement, he snatched up his own robe and slipped it on before obeying the man's instruction.

When Matt opened the door, he was greeted by a large, burly man. The head of security flashed his badge with the name of the hotel in small print and the name 'Pringle' in big bold letters.

To anyone other than the marshal, this Pringle fella probably would have been intimidating, with his chiseled features and dour expression. "I was...just passing by and heard a woman screaming. It came from this room."

Matt cleared his throat in an effort to assume a professional manner. It was obvious; that this man took his job seriously. "Yes, my wife…saw a mouse." The grin that he flashed worked wonders on females; but on Harvey Pringle, not so much.

"Could I speak with your wife, Mr. Dillon?" Although it was put forth in the form of a question, both men knew it was an order.

Matt could hear the nervous gasp from behind him and knew it was spawned from the fact that his spouse had not been able to retrieve her robe. "Speak to my wife?" He repeated the question as a question, though in a pitch slightly too high for himself. Matt could see that Mr. Pringle was quickly losing his patience.

He called over his shoulder to his wife. "Kitty, Mr. Pringle needs to hear that you are okay." Matt smiled at the hotel detective, expecting her to promptly call out to the concerned man. The two men continued to stare at each other, in silence—a long…awkward…silence.

"Kitty? Honey?" Matt broke the visual connection with Pringle, long enough to glance back at his wife. Kitty was sitting up in bed, completely enveloped in the blanket. A smirk resided proudly on her face, as she stared back at him in amused silence.

Matt pursed his lips in an air of defeat. "Listen, I'm a US Marshal and-"

"Then you should know to respect authority. Please…" Pringle motioned again for Matt to step forward.

Matt stepped out into the hall and watched as Pringle stuck his head in the doorway, while maintaining eye contact with his prime suspect. "Are you all right, ma'am?" As Pringle waited for a response, tired blue eyes were beginning to pass judgment on the fidgety lawman.

One moment of silence turned to two, then three; then Matt began to envision himself being drug off to jail. Just as he was picturing himself in prison garb, he was granted a reprieve.

"It's Mrs. Dillon," she called out at last. "I am so sorry. I saw a mouse and… I am such a coward. Please forgive us for causing such a disturbance."

Matt listened to that voice, that sweet, sugar-melt-in-her-mouth voice. He watched Pringle's harsh features mellowed, as he fell victim to his wife's charms—even without seeing her. "As long as you're all right, Mrs. Dillon." He backed out into the hall "Hope you have a pleasant stay at the Eldrige."

Pringle turned from the room and cast Matt a look that only another man would understand. "Mouse? Uh-huh." As he started to walk away, Pringle leaned in and quietly advised. "Try to keep the noise down, Marshal."

Matt nodded, accepting the man's council. As soon as the house detective was out of sight, Marshal Dillon turned back into the room and slammed the door behind him. He leveled his gaze onto his target, while slowly easing toward the bed. Clearly, he wanted retribution.

Kitty's giggling trickled into a nervous silence. "Now, Matt, you had that coming. You started it."

"Maybe. Maybe not." he responded quietly. Too quiet. "You thought about letting him take me to jail."

"No! Huh-uh. No…" She shook her head in an exaggerated move "I would never have done that."

He leaped toward the bed just as she attempted to run. Matt pulled her back into his arms, pinning her naked body beneath him. He straddled her slender form with his massive girth. "You deserve some sort of punishment. What shall I do?" Pinning both of her hands to the mattress, he leaned down attacking her lips first.

In hindsight, he realized that was where he gave up the power. Those lips. Those sweet, luscious lips drove any thought of retribution from his mind. His thoughts quickly followed last night's agenda, which left them both, satisfied and breathless once again.

Kitty rested atop her lover, her ear pressed to his heart. She hummed a purring sound, while he lazily brushed his fingers through the long red locks splayed across his chest. One demure hand lay curled by her face. Matt reached down, taking her small hand into his large, yet gentle one, and brought it to his lips.

As he covered the fingers and palm with kisses, he whispered in a voice steeped with contentment, "I'm seeing a whole new side to Kansas City. I think I like it."

"See what you've been missing all these years? If you had just brought me with you…"

Kitty's words were drowned out by Matt's husky laughter. "If I had known this waiting for me in Kansas City…" He leaned down taking another kiss for himself. The kiss ended so slowly, so sweetly it was almost like falling in love all over again.

For a moment, they were caught in each other's gaze; but the serene mood was broken by a sound that did not match a pair of sated lovers. Matt pulled back, his eyes resting first on Kitty's stomach, then inching their way back to her face. Her blue eyes danced with a girlish shyness, matching tightly pinched lips that tried hard to conceal her grin.

"Was that your stomach? What do you have in there?"

Kitty smacked at him playfully, "There is nothing in there! That's the point. I'm starving!"

Matt rolled back enough to let her sit up. Kitty brushed the loose hair from her face and brought the sheet up to cover her nakedness. "Why didn't you say something?" His words were attached to a pitiful expression.

The expression didn't work, as Kitty returned a heavy sigh and used her body language to let him know his apology was not going to fly. "I DID tell you. I told you after we made love this morning. And again around noon; but you had…other plans. Remember? Now, it's suppertime and my stomach is speaking for itself."

His sorrowful grimace did little to absolve him of his guilt. "You did. But that wasn't my fault."

Kitty, mildly stunned by his answer, let her hands drop to her lap, allowing the sheet to fall. "Whose fault was it then?"

Matt pulled himself upright, assuming an indignant countenance. "Yours! You did that—that!" he pointed to the perfectly shaped set of bare breasts before him. "Revealing those, it's kind of like…hypnotizing me. Then you said you were 'getting up,' but you dragged your naked body over me—what was I supposed to do!?"

Kitty was amazed that he was not only trying to blame her, but his sincerity was almost making it believable. Her eyes remained wide, but she managed to close her mouth. "I don't believe you. You—are—incredible!"

Again, his laughter filled the room, as he pulled her into his arms. "I'm sorry baby. Sometimes, you just make it so easy. Why don't I get room service to send something-"

"NO!" She pushed him away and pulled the sheet back up, "You, slip on some pants and go downstairs to get some coffee. While you are gone 'I' will get dressed and we will go out for a real dinner."

Matt had reclaimed his sorrowful expression, "Come on, hon; let's just get dressed and go."

The obstinate redhead pulled herself up to her knees, still clinging tightly to the sheet. She tossed her head back, forcing the loose hair away from her face. "No deal. I know what happens when I…hypnotize…you. I will not get out of this bed as long as you are standing there."

"Kitty... Sweetheart, come on. I'll behave." Matt assumed his 'awe shucks' façade, in both speech and looks.

"Really!" Kitty cocked her jaw to one side, and eyed him with mock contempt. "You call this behaving?" Before he could react, she ripped away the blanket he had been hiding beneath. They both stared down at his body, or at least the part of his body that seemed to be the main subject of this problem.

Matt offered a chagrined look shaded in red. "Oh. That." His blue eyes were filled with such sincerity "Does it mean anything that you're the one who did this to me?"

It did mean something…and she was about to lean over to kiss him, when her stomach rumbled again. Before she could speak, Matt threw back the blanket and grabbed his pants from the back of the clothes rack. "I'm going!" She couldn't hang on to her irritated expression, as she watched her husband hop around the room in an attempt to hurry up his dressing. Finally, all the pieces were in place and he cast a glance down his giant girth and back up, to make sure he was ready. "Can I kiss you good-bye?"

Kitty brought a manicured finger up to her cheek, tapping a specific spot. Like a chastised little boy, Matt placed a chaste kiss where she directed and with a defeated sigh, he shoved his hat into place and left the room. Just to be safe, Kitty waited until she heard the distinct sound of his footsteps disappearing down the hall before allowing the sheet to completely fall from her grasp.

TBC