Waking the Dead Read Online Free Page A

aren’t completely freaky, like sea anemone sushi.” At the look of horror on John’s face, he laughed. “I know! There are some things that just aren’t meant to be food. You have to wonder who looked at them and thought, ‘Gee, this slimy stuff on the bottom of this rock…it just might be edible!’ Wouldn’t it be better to eat grass?”
    “The sheep would think so,” John said dryly. “You’re safe enough; the most exotic we get doesn’t compare to muck like that. And I’ll bet they charge you the price of a decent steak for it, too.”
    “More,” Josh agreed. He finished his coffee. “Do we have to go soon? I don’t want us to miss the last ferry home or something.”
    Nick checked his watch and exchanged a glance with John, who nodded. “We should get going. You’ve had a long journey, but it’s not over yet.”

Chapter Two
     
    The house had been quiet for a good half hour; John was in bed, lying back against the pillows with just a sheet as covers. It was nice, this time of year, not needing layers of blankets to keep warm. Across the hall, he could hear water running in the bathroom as Nick brushed his teeth. A minute later, the toilet flushed, then the bedroom door opened and Nick slipped inside.
    “It’s weird having to shut the door,” Nick said. He was wearing the cotton sleep trousers he preferred as well as a T-shirt, something he rarely bothered with in the summertime.
    “I don’t think Josh is going to be scarred for life if he catches sight of your bare arse,” John said. He yawned; it had been one long traffic jam after another on the way home, and he hated crawling along breathing in fumes. Josh had fallen asleep in the back seat, only to stumble into the house, and after a valiant attempt to stay awake long enough to eat something, he’d ended up going to bed after no more than a few bites of the casserole Janet had left for them. “But you’ll be hot if you go to bed dressed like that.”
    “You just prefer me naked,” Nick said. It wasn’t as if John could argue with that, after all; it was true enough. Even after all their years together, there was rarely a moment in which he didn’t view Nick’s naked form with interest and admiration.
    He watched as Nick undressed, draping the trousers at the foot of the bed, no doubt so that they could easily be grabbed in the morning. Time had been good to Nick; the man looked much the same as when they’d met. Oh, he weighed a few pounds more -- weight he’d sorely needed to gain as far as John was concerned -- and there were streaks of silver in his dark hair, but he didn’t look a bit the worse for the changes.
    “I’m not going to chance walking around with my ass bare whether it’d scar him or not.” Nick slipped into bed, turning onto his side to face John. “I still haven’t recovered from the shock of finding Caitrin on the couch that morning, and I don’t know if she’ll ever recover.”
    John didn’t even try to hold back his grin. “Well, he’s not likely to walk in on us now; I can hear him snoring.” He moved closer to Nick, both of them settling down into a loose, familiar embrace, and kissed him lightly, tasting mint and beneath it a hint of the nightcap they’d had. Whisky and mint didn’t mix that well, but John didn’t care, not when underneath he could taste Nick. John kissed Nick again, teasing his mouth open with a well-aimed caress across his backside that made Nick’s lips part in a soundless gasp.
    That was one of the advantages of a long-term relationship; John knew all of Nick’s vulnerable spots, and a fingertip run lightly down the crease of his arse was most definitely one of them. Nick was equally knowledgeable about his weaknesses, but John never felt inclined to complain about that.
    “Mm. It’s nice to be in bed early.” Nick’s lips found John’s ear and brushed against it.
    Of course, it wasn’t uncommon for them to have an early night, although they were more likely