Carrick sat down on the bed next to Russ and scooped out a large fingerful of the ointment.
He hesitated at his lover's next words.
"And if this is temporary - which I pray to all the gods it is - and it wears off while we're outside you'll be in conversation with a large pile of ashes."
The whip marks were a bright scarlet, the whip having been laid on hard. He chose a welt that stood nearly alone with which to begin, gently dabbing the cream along the red line and massaging it in as gently as he could.