Sunday Snippet: Red-Eyed Monster

Hello!

Okay, finally got semi-caught up on Haven. Also still current on Sons of Anarchy. I can only say, wow, it hurts to watch both. LOL

I'm behind on some of my other faves. Agents of SHEILD and Sleepy Hollow being two, and I haven't been able to catch Gotham yet either. Sometimes working seven days a week is a huge pain. J

Tonight's post is from Red-Eyed Monster, a novella loosely retelling the story of Hansel and Gretyl.

Here's the tagline:

Psyche Hood and Errol Winkham are best friends, growing up together in the enchanted realm. A sinister darkness and red-eyed metal monster is moving in and Psyche drags Errol out to pick up the trail, little knowing she's playing right into the evil wizard's plan. He wants the red-eyed monster to rain fire down on Errol so Psyche will be alone and his for the taking.

And a preview snippet…

Psyche pounded on the heavy wood slab. "Come on, Errol, get your ass out here. The beast is on the prowl again." Her fist started toward the door when it jerked open and she connected with Errol's chest instead.

His bare, muscular chest.

Her mouth went dry and her gaze flew up to meet his. "You didn't tell me you were going to bed, E." Her tongue flicked out, wetting her lower lip. "How the hell can you sleep when that red-eyed monster is churning through the realm?"

Errol closed his eyes and swayed a little. "Because we've been chasing the damn thing for five straight days, Psyche." His mouth opened on a yawn, but he caught the gesture and shook his head. "Give me five, okay?" He turned and strode toward the wardrobe, dragging a drawer open.

Five days? How did she not realize? Because Errol always handled the details, like reminding her to eat and keeping a log of their activity. She tracked and formulated the plan. And right now, she made one up on the fly.

Entering Errol's cottage, she moved to stand behind him, her hands coming up to rest on his biceps. He tensed under her touch.

Leaning in, she pressed her lips to his shoulder. "Forget taking five, Errol, let's take the night off."

He relaxed for a moment, then straightened. "We probably shouldn't. What about the damage the damned metal contraption can do?"

She rested her forehead against his back. "What about the harm we'll cause if we don't stop to regroup?" She nudged him around so he faced her. "To date, we've been chasing ourselves into exhaustion and haven't caught the stupid thing yet." She grasped the waistband of his fatigues. "Think about it, it's leading us on a merry chase. Let's stop and see what it does when we're not there to engage."

Errol's eyes slid closed again. "Not a bad plan, but I'm so tired I couldn't form an objection if I wanted to." His eyelids popped open. "And I really don't want to."

Catching her off guard, he scooped her up and carried to his bed, topping them onto the soft surface. He popped the button of her pants and she quickly shimmied out, shoving them down to the floor. His fingers worked the buttons of her vest loose and she shrugged it off. She returned the favor and worked his fatigues loose so he could slide them off. He threw an arm over her waist and she turned toward the wall, spooning back against him.

He nuzzled her shoulder. "Sleep first, yeah?"

She wriggled her butt against his thighs. "Yeah, regroup and recharge." She twined their fingers together and dragged his hand up close to her heart. "Rejuvenating sex in the morning."

A soft sigh escaped him. "Sounds perfect." He snuggled in closer and drifted off to sleep.

Psyche remained awake a while longer, pondering a way to trap the red-eyed monster. When they finally caught the raging beast, she didn't want anyone else but Errol at her side to tear it apart.

Seriously love trying my hand at fairy tale retellings. This one is so much fun to dive into and play with.

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye