July 16

It seemed to take forever to finally arrive at their room. Red hurriedly slid the key card, his thoughts on a very inventive evening upon which they were about to embark.

Lowering her eyes, Liz absently smoothed her fingers along the edge of her bag. "Red."

The man knew that tone, rolling his head about, kinking the sudden tension away. "...Yeah?"

"I'm worried about Steven."

"You worry about me." He scowled slowly, opening the door, his look a sternly chastising one. "Steven can take care of–"

"He's so sweet." Liz's expression softened. "Isn't he sweet."

"I'm sweet." Red reminded a little tersely. "And I'm a Knight... or whatever sexually starved persona you need me to be," He muttered the reminder, leading his woman further into the room. He turned down some lights as he went. "We had agreed to journey back to another more primitive time. Explore some history, as it were. Make a little of our own, mayhap."

"If Steven is getting some, you have had best reminded him of how to do so safely, Red Reddington."

Red sighed. "Hunter gave him a plethora of condoms. The guards are invested in this little venture as well, you see. I'm sure they coached and advised on every little aspect of the dating ritual."

Liz seemed to relax. "All well and good, then. I feel better."

Red ran his hand about the small waist, tugging gently. "You feel just fine to me." He nuzzled the fragrant neckline lovingly, his free hand easing over the full swell of one ample breast. He murmured his growing contentment, his fingers kneading the full mound sensually. "That little nipple responds so well to my–"

"A Knight wouldn't say that." The blue eyes cut to him critically. "They say things like, verily and dost thou knowest the time?" Liz was pretty sure.

"It be timeth to get thee to bed, fair maiden." Red picked the tiny form up in his arms, heading for the spot he most wished to be. He ignored Lizzy's giggle of compliance, entering the bedroom in a few purposeful steps. Once inside the room, he placed his bundle into the middle of the massive structure and crawled over her without further ado.

Liz gasped her surprise, the unexpected move on the man's part shocking her completely. The woman struggled to arise, having sank into the plush covers amid piles of luxurious pillows, but the man's weight impeded her effort.

Pushing the offending fluff out of his way, Red nuzzled Lizzy's neckline, grunting his pleasure. "It's about fucking time." He muttered. Now, finally, he could create that wonderful world he had been thinking about all day long.

"Uh," Liz turned her neck, allowing the man better access, "...what?"

"We were discussing the prospect of someone getting some?" Nodding, Red curved his fingers about the slender ones as he lifted Lizzy's arms gently above her head, careful not to aggravate her injuries. Moving his body astride her now prone one, he wedged his thigh between the warmth of her silky ones.

"We were speaking about Steven." The blue eyes blinked up at him, blowing some hair out of her face.

"You were speaking of Steven." Red nudged the dark strands out of his way, kissing a tender path down the woman's neckline. "I was speaking of me."

"And me." The pretty brow furrowed critically.

Red's eyes swept the soft swell of her breasts. "Oh, yeah...you." He lifted a willfully intent gaze. "Fair Maiden."

Liz settled back into the game. "I don't know you, sir."

"All that will change very shortly, my innocent." His eyes deepened at the thought. "I shall make it my life's ambition that we become very well acquainted in a remarkably short amount of time."

"I don't think that would be proper." She spread her legs more comfortably, snubbing such a suggestion, as by rights, she should. It was her duty.

"It most certainly will not be." Red could promise as much, his fingers tightening on her captured ones. "You have my word as a knight, my lady."

"You are too bold and unconventional for my tastes, sir."

"I will teach you to embrace bold, lady." Red's tone dropped into a seductive silkiness which vibrated along Liz's nether regions. "Or better still. Why do you not embrace my member within the warmth of your palm?"

Liz gasped with maidenly modesty. "How dare you speak to me in such a way, sir. That was quite a leap of faith on your part, just saying."

Stifling a smile, Red continued on. "I have complete faith in you, my lady," the man nibbled the tiny lobe of her ear, his breath sending chills up and down Liz's arms, "that you will allow me to persuade you to my way of thinking."

"Certainly not."

"But I am in such pain and..." the man moaned, grunting lasciviously, "so very hard for you." Red pushed against the heated valley of her crease with the evidence of his involvement. "You would sentence me to such a grievous fate when my agony could be soothed by the mere touch of your hand?"

Liz closed her eyes to the sinking feeling as the feel of the man's total arousal was presented for her approval.

"Stop..." Feigning a blush, Liz offered the man a demure smile. "Such speech is not only indecent, it is repugnant to a lady of any real breeding."

Liz's expression brightened considerably, a tiny squeal of excitement escaping her parted mouth. "Oh, Red. This is so much fun."

Red bit back a laugh when the woman's enthusiasm broke the mood. "Baby...you have to stay in character, remember. To make this work properly."

"I want to do that." She assured. "I really, really do, but I have to pee, Red. Pretty badly. Honest."

"Is the romance gone already?" Red asked lightly, releasing her hands slowly but surely before rolling reluctantly aside.

"Absolutely not. I demand to be properly ravished just as soon as I'm finished with my little task." Liz said, scooting to the edge of the bed.

"As if you had to demand." He mumbled, watching that cute little bottom swish hurriedly off. "I am at my lady's beck and call." He inclined his head minutely.

"Hold that thought." The woman hurriedly rushed off to do her business.

Rolling his head on the pillow, Red reached for his phone and sighed when he heard Lizzy rattling around in the bathroom. He supposed if there was to be a break in festivities, he might as well make the most of the time. Pushing from the bed, he retreated to the closet, shucking his tie as he went.

He was just pulling his shirt off overhead when Mark answered the call. "This is going to be short and sweet, so listen up."

"The old ball and chain demanding some one-on-one time?" Mark held his grin.

"No, the old criminal mastermind is." Red corrected any misunderstandings. "Anything on the accident report yet?" The man listened attentively for a goodly beat. "I didn't expect it would be easy. Keep on it, Mark, will you?"

Having the reassurance needed, Red lumbered to the bathroom, absently scratching the back of his neck, his thoughts with the problem of Steven's situation.

Making his way to the sink, he grabbed his toothbrush, following the accepted procedure. He noted Lizzy's reflection in the mirror before him, the blue eyes observing him thoughtfully.

"Ready to be ravished?" He asked around the stem of the toothbrush in his mouth.

Smoothing a large dollop of lotion on her arm, Liz tsked softly. "What a silly question." She sighed lightly, those blue orbs shifting mischievously. "Of course I am."

Red nodded amiably. "Just making certain we were still on the same page." He rinsed.

Leaning her hip against the counter, she tied the sash on her robe. "What was going on at the house earlier?"

Quickly filling her in on the status of the matter. "Everything will fall into place. Mark was already making inquiries, as I will tomorrow." Tossing his toothbrush into the provided holder, Red pulled the woman into his arms. "Enough of that..." he murmured. "I believe we have more important items on our agenda needing to be addressed."

Lifting to her toes, Liz wrapped her arms about Red's shoulders, kissing the man, her lips gentle and exploring the fullness of his.

"You mean," Liz rasped, her voice husky with emotion, "we're gonna do the sex thing?"

"Well... yeah." Red maintained a stoic expression. "It's what we do these days, thank God. And we are in a honeymoon suite. Can't waste all the atmosphere, can we."

She glanced at the other room. "Just so I know the game plan here," pursing her lips, Liz masked her amusement. "I think the evil knight thing is falling flat. It could be me." She took the hit. "I'm a little tired tonight, to be honest to put forth that much effort."

Arching a brow, Red offered a curious look. "It wasn't an evil knight, it was a disreputable one who just needed to get laid. I'm just clearing up that matter."

"We all need that in life, Red." Liz nodded musingly. "I'm thinking, if you just get your head between my thighs? Things will fall into place somehow."

"You are a hard woman, Elizabeth Reddington." The man shook a woeful head. "I've bargained with Guatemalan Guerillas who required less effort on my part, sweetheart."

Liz offered her own compromise. "Suck it up, Red." She drew in a cleansing breath. "I've got the sweetest pussy around these parts. I have it on the very best authority, I'll have you know. So my bargaining tool is pretty impressive." The woman lifted a proud head. "You're not going to win this one, sailor."

Red blinded his surprise, reading the innocently sincere expression offered over. "Oh, it is, huh." He scowled lightly. "Of which authority exactly do we speak?"

The woman leaned against his chest area, smiling prettily. "You'll enjoy what I have to offer, rest assured." She snuggled into the man's embrace, stroking her nose lovingly about Red's cheek. "It's just a given."

"Is that so." His brows lifted for the playful mood and dirty talk. "I'm already enjoying it, truth told." He informed her. "But I just have to question..."

"Snug as a glove, I believe the expression was."

Red's head whipped about, his look an incredulous one. "...Say what?"

"It's man talk for–"

"I know what it means." He almost snipped, smarting a bit for his play time offer being shot down, truthfully, but this new direction the woman was taking had his libido on high alert, he was reluctant to admit.

"Like a heated sauna." Liz repeated a phrase Silas had used once, describing one of the guard's conquests. "Hot and steamy...volcanic in nature, actually."

Red began to sweat. "I see."

"I'm just saying." Liz shrugged aimlessly. "You really shouldn't pass up the chance to experience what I've laid on the table. I think you'll regret it sooner or later."

"You think, do you?"

Liz nodded thoughtfully. "I surely do."

Red glanced to the bedroom. His eyes falling on the large structure in the middle of the space.

"I kind of like to see what I'm buying before I shell out any money."

"You don't have to buy it." Those blue eyes blinked over at him. "For you? It's free."

"Nothing is free in life." Red knew. One way or another, he would pay. He curled his hands into tight fists, for his fingers were trembling slightly, her fragrance surrounding his head, the sweet scent enthralling his senses. "Again...like to see the merchandise, if you don't mind?"

Liz smiled prettily, crossing the area, her hips swishing hypnotically. The silk of the robe clinging suggestively to those luscious curves.

That smile was the most invitingly sensual one the man had ever been given. The woman sat demurely, sliding the beautiful body back onto the bed. She hesitated, lifting perfectly arched brows, then slowly, agonizingly so...spread her legs for him.

Red kept his cool, but he couldn't prevent his gaze from dropping, no matter how hard he tried.

Liz untied the sash of the gaping robe, flicking the lapels aside, displaying her nudity unabashedly. "Now don't judge a book by its cover." That husky tone washed over the man like a sweep of a hot summer breeze.

Her fingers trailed a searing path down the plumpness of her breast, over the flat tummy onto the soft bush of her apex. "This thing is pretty impressive once inside...or so I've been told on numerous occasions."

"Numerous." Red repeated, jealousy eating away at his soul. He hoped she was referring to the numerous times he told her how lovely and precious her gift was to him. He wasn't sure though, and that was what was eating away at him. "Well then, lady," he sat, forcing a smile he didn't feel, "this is something I probably should judge for myself, don't you think?"

Spreading her legs, she allowed Red a good long look. "A discriminating man." Her breasts rose and fell with her breathing. Her nipple taut and peaked. "Well..." her mouth curved into a provocative tilt, "what do you think?"

Red's eyes traveled the amazing curves and slopes of her body, his thoughts very private along about now. "I think," he cleared his throat gently, having to start afresh, "I think...you remind me of a certain Gustave Courbet nude painting I once was privileged enough to see."

Liz glanced at her body. "Don't know the guy." She admitted.

"Though, I have to say, what you have to offer... is far more beautiful." Red's fingers ever so gently eased into the dark curls covering her mound, the very tips tenderly filtering into the cushy curls. "...It's so soft."

Liz closed her eyes, for the touch ignited her passion. She strived hard to keep the performance going for the man's sake.

"You are...stunning." His eyes swept her nudity possessively. "Exquisite."

The tip of his middle finger played about the tight hole, stroking lovingly. He watched his handiwork with a diligent stare. "I'm very pleased."

Liz's center of being ached poignantly. She forced a bright smile.

"Go ahead," Liz said, giving the man better access, "slip your finger in there... tell me you've ever felt a tighter fit."

Red lifted a smoldering stare. "...In here?"

"Sure." she encouraged. "Just try it on for size."

Red's gaze caressed the tiny opening. He spread the slick lips with his thumb and forefinger, his finger easing into the molten heat with a slow, probing slide.

Liz had to catch her moan in her throat, covering it by shifting slightly, grunting her supposed annoyance. "Have to move closer. Give you some room there, hum?"

Red cocked his head, his gaze deepening, his tone dropping. "There is no room in there."

"You'd be surprised." Liz stated quietly, her own gaze a tempting one.

Parting the small lips, Red inched his finger into her heat repeatedly, thrusting ever so slowly, in...out. His eyes closed to the sensation of the snug channel closing around his finger before hwe internal muscles tugged it inward.

"That is one tight, succulent little pussy." Red rasped, stroking the tiny entrance with a confident shove. "I've never felt anything so perfect. I bet that'll feel heavenly around my cock." He said, slowly rocking his hand back and forth. "From my own observations," he continued, "and if all you said is true, your pussy must be just as sweet to the taste."

"There's only one way to find out, isn't there." Liz blatantly called his bluff.

"You've never been like this with me." He moved closer, his arm going about her waist. He tugged her to his chest, leaning her to his will. "What brought it on?"

"Does it matter?" Liz questioned, making room for him between her legs, offering over her lips. Red joined his mouth with hers, the kiss urgent. His pent-up frustration filtered into the moist orifice, his tongue flicking sensually, dancing with her own bold one. He grunted, his arousal expanding along the lines where the woman's torso met her thighs.

"I need to know." He whispered huskily, roughly situating her into the coverlet of the bed, easing his straining body alongside her warmth. "So I can recreate this moment...anytime I want."

"You worry about the here and now." Liz nipped the scratchy stubble of his jaw, her fingers working their magic along his hairline. She threw her leg over his, intertwining with the masculine hardness pressed against her flesh.

The man trailed soft, warm kisses down the scented skin, hesitating at her breasts, drawing the

little nubs into his mouth. Caressing the rounded tips, Red grunted when he felt them harden under his tongue, the woman's groan causing his dick to swell all the more.

Closing her eyes, Liz stroked the soft hair on Red's head, sighing blissfully when she felt the gentle tug of his mouth on her nipples. The enticing brush of his five o'clock shadow skimmed the rounded edge of her breast, causing a pleasant heat to build between her legs.

Nudged the heavy weight of her mound with his nose, Red inhaled her intoxicating aroma.

"Your breasts are incredible..." he murmured, cupping the ample handful in his calloused palm. "A man could spend hours worshiping them." His eyes measured the plumpness with an artist's appreciation. "I plan to worship quite a few things on your body in the very near future."

"Such as?" Liz arched a brow, opening herself up to the possibilities presented.

"I would rather show you... later." Muttering the promise, Red rubbed his cheek against the dark curls at her apex. "I have another objective in mind at the moment."

Inhaling a sharp breath, Liz closed her eyes when she felt the soft cushion of his mouth lay tender kisses against her nether lips for some long few moments.

Closing his own eyes, Red luxuriated in the titillating aroma of Lizzy's arousal as his mouth caressed the smooth surface. "You are so warm and sweet."

Clutching the sheets in her fists, Liz gasped as the wide brush of Red's tongue parted her lips, languidly tracing the swollen ridge of her clitoris. Grasping his head, she arched into the sensation, whimpering when the throbbing in her core intensified with each brush of his hot tongue.

Liz didn't even have to glance down. The image of Red's face fitted between her thighs was etched in her brain, exciting and tantalizing her mind. Her body was on fire from the pressure of those full lips caressing her flesh so lovingly.

She could feel his tongue licking, flicking, sucking her defenseless body. Even now, the wide surface undulated along her clit and teased the frayed nerve-endings to new heights as his fingers explored her secret, intimate places with bold confidence.

"It's like kissing your lips..." the man murmured his growing contentment, easing his finger up the throbbing little hole with confident strokes. "Only...difference, because these lips," he ran the very tip of his tongue over the hard nub of her clit several quick, light strokes enjoying the woman's gasp of delight, "are so hot and full for me. And so...responsive."

That deep, hypnotizing voice thrilled Liz's senses. Red's attention to detail, his methodical approach to life in general, all came together to benefit his lover when in the throes of a passionate encounter.

He wasn't shy about sharing private thoughts with her, saying romantic, and sometimes downright naughty things that sent shots of adrenalin into the pit of her stomach. Liz knew the words came from his soul...whatever he was feeling manifested itself in actions and statements.

Some made her blush, but she was determined, more and more of late, to not be that woman she once was. She was married and liked to believe, somewhat experienced now because this man took the time and effort to teach her what he liked...how he liked it. He shared and connected with her on an intimate level no other male had even approached.

Red somehow tapped into her private fantasies. And right now? It seemed he was using that knowledge to push her over the edge...onto the very brink of that elusive, exquisite pleasure. Emotions she had never felt with another man, this man could make her experience with the mere touch of his hand.

His hands were not idle now either, touching, stroking, caressing...exploring with a tenderness which took her breath away. At other times, a roughness that excited and teased and tantalized.

Red Reddington knew how to touch a woman. How to kiss her. How to...love her.

He loved other things, of course, Liz knew. He had a predilection for fast cars, premium liquor... expensive cigars.

It was more though, when it came to sex. It seemed he was fixated on pleasing and being pleased. He could block out anything, or anyone, who attempted to take his focus from the moment.

He craved the adrenalin more and more these days. Liz sensed it. The rush of endorphins that were released with his ejaculate. There was an urgency to bond that was not there before. Liz adored the fact. Reveled in it.

She was doing something right, and she intended such a man never become bored or think of their sex life as mundane or somehow inadequate.

"I'm trembling inside." He whispered raspingly, having parted her legs wide, his organ long since pushed into her center of being, his strokes becoming rapid and unrelenting, pounding her body with a momentum which verged on obstinacy. "You've made me want you that badly."

His hands held her from escape as if she wanted her freedom from such sweet bliss. He moved into her, his essence surrounding her. That voice taking her farther and farther into a hypnotic void of fluctuating emotional surges.

His tone was edgy, vibrant, taut with need.

"Showing me my little pussy...inviting me in so sweetly." Red murmured tightly. "Spreading your legs so willingly...letting me know you wanted me inside you. That is the most erotic thing I have ever experienced."

"I do." Liz muttered lovingly, catching his mouth hungrily. "You know I do, Red."

"I do want you." He growled the statement. "Sometimes so much it hurts my cock. Just thinking about being inside you." He moved slightly, his cock buried deep inside the convulsing heat. His gaze sought the point of connection, a fixed scowl on the handsome features.

"You have to come to me." Liz lifted into his heat eagerly, but the man's hands held her hips from movement and he continued to...stare. "You have to tell me. It's bad, baby..." He grimaced, his free hand roughly kneading her breasts, his fingers tweaking the tender peaks from time to time, causing Lizzy to squirm about anxiously. "It's getting worse." Red brooded, his expression taking on a little boy quality that melted Liz's heart.

Liz glanced down, not sure what captivated him so, truth told.

She felt the tip of his finger push in alongside his cock, gasping for the sensation was profoundly sensual in nature. The man probed the slickness of her opening, his cock stationary but his finger fucking her clit methodically.

"The more times I have you, the more I want." He sounded almost angry over the statement. "I don't like..." Red gritted his concerns, "losing control to that extent."

"Red...you're always in control." Liz placed her hand over his, her gaze a seductive one. "What are you talking about?"

"The pleasure." He lifted an affecting stare. "It's something I'm starting to..." he trailed off, returning to the brooding intensity of a fixated focus, "crave."

Removing his finger, he eased it about the satin of her flesh, the tip shoving against the pucker of Liz's anus. The man pushed into the tight opening, enjoying Lizzy's outcry of shock and acceptance. The long, drawn-out whimper of ecstasy enthralling his senses.

"You like that." His voice shook with a noticeable tremor. "I like it too, baby." He whispered huskily.

"I do." Liz confessed. "You give me so much pleasure. You make me ache for you, Red."

"Baby." He smiled lovingly, his mouth seeking hers hungrily.

"Sometimes I get to thinking about you going between my legs and I..." she gasped shakily, "I can't concentrate. That hasn't ever happened to me."

"It's happened to me." He grated. "But only with you, Lizzy." He kissed her roughly, beginning the movements of lovemaking again, this time, slow and easy. Each time he sank into her being, his finger eased higher into her from behind.

Liz squirmed about, torn between the two demands. She knew Red was watching her, as was his way. Her reactions, measuring the success or failure of his techniques. It was what he did.

He studied and catalogued every nuance she gifted him, storing it in some sort of memory bank to reference later. To use against her. For each time Liz thought she couldn't possibly reach a higher, more nerve-shattering climax... Red would push her beyond the established boundaries, reducing her to a quivering, sobbing mess of sexual release.

Honestly, she didn't know where the man found the stamina; she was only damned grateful he did.

Not once had he faltered in his continuous assault. Just when she thought he was tiring, he would pull a sleight of hand so remarkable, the unexpected free-fall from the pinnacle of sublime expectation into the serene bliss of sexual gratification, never failed to amaze her.

Liz often found herself staring at his hands. The same hands which could instill passion and desire into her with a simple stroke of those relentless fingers. The fingers that stroked, fondled and kneaded her breasts to the extent her nipples were so sensitive, she could not stand another second without his mouth consoling them.

The fingers that petted her inner sanctum, sending chills of delight down her spine. The fingers that curved to her bottom, squeezing her flesh so brazenly, pushing her into his arousal...forcing her to confront her most basic needs.

Red Reddington was a possessive man and showed his ownership of her through touch.

He had hooked his hands beneath her thighs, her legs resting on his chest as he gazed down to the point of connection, where their bodies intertwined. He relentlessly thrust into her body with his cock, his eyes smoldering orbs of unrequited lust.

Liz reveled in the primitive groans, the soft growls of anxiousness as he, too, attempted to find the heady moment of release. She could tell by the tense set of his body that moment was close.

She writhed desperately about, trembling visibly. Just as any woman relinquishing to the throes of passion should. Red had brought her to this point. He meant for her to enjoy it, she knew.

The width of his penis inside her felt amazing, the friction of the constant thrusting into her liquid heat, taking her along on a tumultuous journey.

This was what it was like, making love to this man. Each and every time. He could have her withering like a bitch in heat one second, and the very next, feeling like the most accomplished of femme fatale with a mere sweep of a look.

It was so fucking intense, the roller coaster ride Red could take her on.

Liz felt she would truly burst apart the moment her body gave into Red's unrelenting demands. Her arousal skyrocketed when Red's large palms clasped her ass and pulled her hard against his pelvis, pushing his erection deep.

His breathing was labored and shallow, perspiration beaded the intelligent brow for he was concentrating his entire focus on one thing and one thing only...

"Fuck!" Liz keened through gritted teeth as the familiar heat began its descent between her legs. "Fuck..." She whimpered for her lost control.

"Let it come, baby." Red hissed menacingly, his eyes always fixed on the prize he most wished to have.

"Oh, shit." The woman whispered brokenly as the sensations began to inundate her flesh.

"Give it to me." Red demanded his rights.

Liz knew she would give the man anything in the entire world, were it in her grasp to give at such a moment. "Oh, God." The blue eyes closed as she relaxed into the rush, and in seconds she was surrendering to the white-hot aura pulling her down...downward into a shimmering vortex before it sky-rocketed into the center of her being, brilliant colors flashed a spiked burst of pleasure behind her eyes.

A feeling of euphoria enveloped her on all sides. An intense electric hum shot like bolts of lightning through her veins, spreading a current of warmth throughout her body.

Liz cried out tremulously, the intensity of the moment shaking her to her core. She felt Red's corresponding spurt of warmth flood her opening, soothing the ache the broad cock had caused.

Red's body stopped its frantic movements, a low melodious groan escaping his lips. His shoulders relaxed, his tense thigh muscles loosened...his arms buckled. A soft breath escaped his body. His lips lay gently against her shoulder line, offering over tender kisses from time to time.

Everything within Liz's sphere became muffled and disjointed... and wondrous. The pricks of light dancing behind her eyelids were as vibrant as the sweet tang of sex tickling her nose. Red's hungry grunts greeted the slow return of her hearing. Slitting her eyes, she felt her core tighten, then relax when she found Red's smoldering gaze still fixed and riveted on his lover.

"You're pretty good at that." Her tone was soft and gentle, as was her gaze.

"No." the man titled his head slightly. "You're pretty good at that."

Liz's mouth tilted in a smile. "I told you that you would like it."

"Oh, I liked it." Those eyes deepened. "And I'm going to like it again...in about thirty minutes."

"Good to hear." That smile widened. "Gives me time to go pee."

The man chuckled sensually. "Gives me time to..." he swept her body with a masculine stare, "pick out some toys."

"Are we going that route?" Liz licked thoughtful lips.

"Just one or two." It was promised.

Liz gave the matter some consideration. "Well, one of them better be the pink one with the special attachment I like so much."

"First on my list, lady."

"You are so good to me."

"I'll prove that sentiment...in thirty minutes." Red promised again.

"Twenty-eight minutes...couple of seconds now." Liz scowled over.

"Duly noted." Red graciously moved aside for her to make a discreet exit. "Why don't you set the water temperature for our shower."

"I can do that." Liz nodded her consent. "Will you do my back?"

"And your front and your sides and your toes...if you like."

Liz halted in her trek to the bathroom. "You haven't done that before." Her interest was piqued. "Not sure I'll like it."

"The way I do it?" Red cut her a look. "You will."

Liz sent him an innocent smile. "I won't be long."

"Save me a spot." The man lay comfortably perched, leaning on his elbow, hands linked before him. His eyes never having left the beauty of her naked form, Liz noted.

"You, sir...have a reserved spot." She lifted a stylish brow. "Thought you were aware."

"I am now." A slight smile graced his full lips, and those eyes had deepened.

Liz turned, flouncing away, her mood high. She hummed a tune. 'I've Got You Under My Skin'.

Red's grin widened, his own high mood inching up a notch or two.