He nods.

“Tell me about yourself as a boy.”

He flinches. “That’s not a question.”

He’s right, dammit. “Okay, what was your favorite memory as a boy?”

His eyes search mine, then he answers, “When I got my first puppy.”

I smile. “You had a puppy.”

He nods.

“What was his name?”

“That’s two questions, and I haven’t got my kiss yet.”

Right.

He leans in again, running his fingers up my arms. My entire body is aware of him, and I’m getting more and more desperate for this kiss. He’s teasing me, and while I like it, I just want to taste him. He leans in and his lips capture my earlobe. I whimper as he moves his mouth from my earlobe over to my jaw. Then he pulls back.

“That was two,” I whisper.

“His name was Tiger.”

I smile coyly at him. “You’re sneaky.”

His eyes are lusty now—and God, do I like it. “Next one, lady.”

“Okay, what’s your favorite food?”

He frowns. “Now you’re just trying to get a free kiss.”

I laugh softly. “Answer it or miss out.”

“Steak.”

I can’t help another grin. He leans forward and kisses my nose. Damn him, he’s being charming.

“Goin’ to have to do better than that.”

We continue this game, and I find out his favorite car, color, and state. By the end, there’s nowhere left to kiss me but my lips. Desperation has gripped us both, and he’s leaning in close—so close, I can feel his hot breath against my lips.

“Last chance,” he murmurs. “Make it a good one, lady.”

I stare into his eyes. “Have you ever been in love?”

He pulls back, looking confused. He didn’t expect that question, and I must admit, I didn’t expect to ask it.

“Yeah.”

“That’s it?” I say.

“Yeah.”

“You’re not going to give me more?”

He shakes his head. “Nope.”

I lean in close—so close, he sucks in a breath, preparing himself for my kiss. “That’s a shame,” I whisper. “I don’t think that answer deserves a kiss.”

Then, with all my strength, I pull back and stand. Raide stares at me now, his eyes so lusty it’s hard to turn away. I flick my fingers in a little wave. “It was good seeing you again, handsome.” And then I disappear.

Let’s see how much he thinks about me now.

Chapter Eight

“He just walked into a gun shop!” Kady cries, catching my arm as we hurry down the street to where Raide has just disappeared inside a scary-looking gun shop. It’s been a few days since our moment at the club, and it’s time for me to run into him again.

“Yes,” I say, peeling Kady’s fingers from my arm. “And I own a gun—it’s perfect.”

“He’s going to get suspicious, Grace. No girl goes into a gun shop.”

I reach into my purse and pull out my gun, waving it at her. “I do.”

Her eyes bug. “Is that thing loaded?”

I scoff. “Of course it is, I don’t carry it around for fun.”

“Then stop waving it around,” she cries.

“I wasn’t waving it around.” I kind of was. “Besides, the safety is on.”

“That makes me feel so much better¸” she mumbles.

“Listen, you don’t need to come in here. Go to the coffee shop three blocks down, and I’ll come meet you when I’m done.”

She sighs with relief. “Thank God—I really didn’t want to go into that place.”

I flash her a smile and she jogs off down the road toward the traffic. I turn and hurry toward the store. Just as I reach the entrance, a hand curls around my wrist and tugs me backwards. I spin quickly, jerking my hand free.

There’s a man, probably in his early thirties, standing on the sidewalk beside me. “Hi, there, I was just wondering if this was the gun shop?”

Um, it says so right on the door. Creeper alert.

“Can’t you read?” I mutter, going to turn.

He grabs me again, and something hard pushes up against my back. “Give me your purse,” he growls into my ear.

I stare up at the sky. A gun in the back? Seriously? It’s not the first time something like this has happened, and I doubt it’ll be the last. I push thoughts of him actually pulling the trigger from my mind. I went into a high-risk job, knowing there was a chance of danger, sometimes worse. I move quickly, like I’ve been trained to do. I spin and use my elbow at the same time to hit him in the jaw.

He bellows in pain and stumbles backwards. I don’t wait. I leap forward and use my palm to hit him in the same place, only harder this time. Blood spurts from his mouth and he drops to his knees. When he’s down, I use my foot to kick him in the very same spot once more until he lands flat on his back with a crackled screech.

“Jesus fuckin’ Christ!”

I spin to see Raide standing on the sidewalk. I reach down quickly, straightening my dress before saying, “What are you doing here?”

He stares at me, horrified. “Did you just beat the shit out of this dude?”

“What?” I cry. “No … Well, yes, but he was attacking me.”

“What’d he do, steal you lipstick?”

I cross my arms, still panting heavily. “He tried to steal my purse.”

Raide blinks. “Seriously, lady?”

“Yes.”

“You mangled him for trying to steal your purse?”

I shuffle the purse on my shoulder. “I like this purse.”

He blinks. “Are you for real?”

I smile. “Absolutely.”

The guy on the ground is still howling like a small, wounded animal. I ignore him and focus on Raide. He’s got something behind his back, which he quickly tucks into his jeans. Gun. I slowly take the rest of him in—God, he looks good today. He’s wearing a pair of faded denim jeans with a dark tee that fits him far too well. His hair is wild and his eyes—oh boy, those eyes. To die for.

Focus, Grace.

“What’re you doin’ around these parts?”

I pull my gun out of my purse. “Upgrading.”

“Jesus, do you know how to use that thing?” he says, edging to the side.

“Of course I do,” I scoff.

He nods, as if saying, sure you do.

“If you’ll excuse me, handsome,” I say, stepping around him. “I have a gun to buy.”

I hurry to the door, but when I reach it, I turn and stare at him. He’s watching me with a lusty expression on his face. Ah yes, Raide Knox doesn’t like women who flaunt themselves in front of him. No, Raide Knox likes them wild and badass, but more than that, he likes a challenge. I think I finally caught his attention. Now things can really fall into place.

Chapter Nine

“Latte, please,” I say to the lady behind the counter.

I’m at the coffee shop I saw Raide at the other day. After our little intense moment together outside the gun shop, I think I’ve gotten to him just enough to up my game. I need to get him in daylight and strike up a conversation, get the ball rolling on this seduction business. I can’t just keep running into him. I need to use the familiarity I’ve been establishing to get him out on an actual date. And that’s going to happen today. I have no idea if he’ll show, but he did yesterday and the day before, so it’s a good bet he’ll do it again.