Elven brain torture. The slicing pain that ran from Silas’s right eye through the back of his head must have had a supernatural cause because the pain was sheer torment. His mouth tasted like he’d eaten his own dirty socks, and his stomach… he didn’t want to think about his stomach.

He raised his hand to rub his aching temple and blinked his eyes. He was in bed, in his bedroom. A warm body shifted next to him. He looked over to find Maggie curled into his side.

“Hey, girl.” He scratched her behind the ears. The canine licked his hand and nuzzled his palm. He noticed she was lying directly on the sheets. That was odd. The comforter was pulled back as if someone had gotten out on the opposite side of the bed. Silas frowned. What had happened last night?

He glanced down at himself, lifted the covers. Naked. Naked as the day he was born. He closed his eyes. He remembered Meredith buckling him into the seat of the unmarked. He’d thrown up. What happened after he threw up? Nothing. He couldn’t remember a thing.

What time was it? He turned his head to check his alarm clock, only to have a glass of water and two pills block his view. Painkillers. He sat up the rest of the way, shoveled the pills into his mouth, and swallowed them with the entire glass of water. It was a nice thing to do, leaving him the pills.

Meredith had driven him home. Had she undressed him? Why? He climbed out of bed and headed for his dresser. His gaze caught on the chair in the corner of his room. Folded neatly on the seat were Meredith’s slacks and royal blue blouse, topped off with her gun like the cherry on the she-got-naked ice cream Sunday.

“Fuck me,” he whispered. Meredith had spent the night!

He glanced down at his dick, but little Silas wasn’t talking. His eyes darted between the bed and her clothes, his fingers digging into his hair. Why couldn’t he remember?

Wild squawking outside his bedroom window made him spread the blinds with his fingers. A red fox jogged through his large backyard, sending a flock of birds into a tizzy. The fox seemed less than interested in their flight. It moved toward the house, transforming as it neared, one moment animal, the next human. Meredith. Her long red hair gathered in waves around her shoulders, over pert breasts, a long waist, well-muscled legs. Meredith was solid muscle, almost like there was something more than flesh under her skin. Bricks maybe. Concrete. Yet she was ultimately feminine with curves that would inspire him to paint if he was the artistic type. Goddess she was beautiful. He couldn’t have had sex with her last night. He would’ve remembered that body. Holy hell he would have remembered.

As she neared the house, Silas frantically opened his drawers and threw on a CCPD T-shirt and a pair of black sweats. What was that smell? He breathed into his hand. Fuck! He sprinted to the bathroom to freshen up. He was still brushing his teeth when he heard her enter through the back door.

“Hey, Maggie girl,” she whispered. There was a thud as the dog leapt down from the bed, then danced across the wood floor. “That’s a good girl. Where’s Silas?”

The brush of cloth on skin was followed by the clink and rattle of her gun holster. She was dressing. He finished brushing his teeth but waited until the movement quieted before coming out of the bathroom.

“How are you feeling this morning, slugger?” she asked him, grinning like the cat who ate the canary. She was fully dressed, scratching Maggie behind the ears.

Silas sniffed, picking up the scent of the outdoors on Meredith’s skin. “Like the south end of a north-facing pig.”

“After the night we spent together?” Meredith winked. “You were an animal. It was like an entire circus going on in here. I’ve never had anyone like you my entire life. You’ve ruined me for all other men.”

He stopped breathing, his jaw going slack. After a moment of staring dumbly in her direction, Silas muttered, “Uh…”

She snorted, then burst into full-out laughter. “Relax. I brought you home and put you to bed. Then I spent the night in the woods in my fox form. I needed to burn off a little energy after what we saw last night.”

He let out a relieved breath. “Thank the goddess.”

Her face twisted. Fuck, he’d offended her.

“Not that it wouldn’t have been great. I mean, I’m sure sleeping with you would be a really fun time.” Her face continued to fall. “Not fun like carnival fun, like sexy fun. You are obviously a fun, sexy woman who is probably very good in bed. It wouldn’t be a total disaster to sleep with you.” He held up a hand. “Although it would be because we work together, but not because of you or your body or anything like that. Not that I’d ever have sex with you sober. I mean, anyone would want to have sex with you. Just not me. Given the circumstances of us working together.”

He stopped talking.

“Okay then. No sex. Got it.” She nodded her head slowly. “Sooo, I’ll bring the van back on my way in, and I’ll see you at the station. Oh and you spewed all over your clothes last night. You probably want to throw those in the wash before they get up and run away to avoid their own smell.”

She slung her purse over her shoulder. Silas followed her into the hall where she headed for the door, Maggie trailing behind her. Abruptly, she paused at the entrance to the kitchen and scooped a cup of kibble into Maggie’s bowl, rubbing the dog’s brown head. “There you go, princess.”

Then she fished out her keys before opening the front door.

“Hey, thanks for driving me home,” Silas said.

“You’re welcome.” She flashed him a wry grin. “Oh, and don’t worry, I didn’t see anything. Except for your genitals.”

The door closed behind her.