I recall my first impression of him when I saw him at the bar last night, how I told Sloane he looked like he walked off the set of Sons of Anarchy, and understand on a cellular level that the man sitting across from me is someone for whom the normal rules of society don’t apply. 

I also understand that he’s dangerous.

 And that he wants me but doesn’t want to. 

And that I want him, too, but shouldn’t. 

Because people who stick a hand too close to a lion’s mouth will come away with a bloody stump where that hand used to be. 

The waiter arrives. Kage sends him away with a royally dismissive flick of his fingers, never taking his gaze off me. 

When he’s gone, Kage says, “So your fiancé disappeared. And for the next five years, on every anniversary of what would’ve been your wedding day, you get drunk.”

“It sounds worse when you say it out loud. Do I need to be afraid of you?”

We stare at each other across the table. The silence is electric. If he’s surprised by my question, it doesn’t show. 

He says softly, “What if I said yes?”

“Then I’d take you at your word and drive straight to the nearest police station. Are you saying yes?”

He hesitates. “Most people who know me are.”

My heart pounds so hard, I’m surprised he can’t hear it. “I want a yes or a no.”

“Would you believe me if I said no?”

I reply instantly, without thinking. “Yes. You’re not the kind of man who hides behind lies.”

He considers me in blistering, unblinking silence, slowly turning the cigar round and round between his thumb and forefinger. Finally, he says gruffly, “You’re so fucking beautiful.”

The breath I’ve been holding comes out in a rush. “That’s not an answer.”

“I’m getting there.”

“Get there faster.”

On his lips appears that faint approximation of a smile. “I’ve already told you I’m not a knight in shining armor—”

“There’s miles between that and what I asked.”

He growls, “Interrupt me again and I’ll take you over my knee right here and spank that perfect ass of yours until you’re screaming.”

Coming from anyone else, a statement like that—spoken in such a hard, dominating tone—would make me furious. 

Coming from him, it almost makes me moan out loud with desire. 

I bite my tongue and glare at him, unsure which one of us I dislike more at the moment. 

He crushes his cigar in the ashtray, drags a hand through his dark hair, and moistens his lips. Then he shakes his head, laughing ruefully. 

“All right. You want an answer? Here it is.”

He stares into my eyes, laughter fading, until he’s all hard jaw and thinned lips and smoldering hotness. “No. You don’t have to be afraid of me. Even if I wanted to hurt you, I wouldn’t.”

I lift my brows. “Somehow, that’s not exactly reassuring.”

“Take it or leave it. It’s the truth.”

The waiter returns, grinning. Without looking away from me, Kage growls at him, “Come over again when you haven’t been called and I’ll put a bullet in your head.”

I’ve never seen a man spin around and run away so quickly. 

Feeling dangerously reckless, I say, “Since you’re in a truth telling mood, why did you pay for your house in cash?”

“To launder the money. Don’t repeat that to anyone. Next question.”

My mouth opens. For several moments, nothing comes out. When I manage to compose myself, I say, “Why would you trust me with something like that?”

“Because I want you to trust me.”

“Why?”

“Because I want you. And I suspect getting to have you requires a certain level of trust. I can tell you’re not the type who sleeps around. Next question.”

God, my heart is beating so, so fast. So fast I can barely breathe. Also, I think I might have whiplash. 

I say, “Are you always this…”

“Direct? Yes.”

“I was going to say contradictory. Yesterday it seemed like you hated me. I’m still not sure you don’t.”

His voice drops. “Yesterday you weren’t under my protection. Now you are.”

His eyes are hypnotic. His voice is hypnotic. This man is putting me under a spell. “I’m pretty sure I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“It doesn’t matter. What matters is that you believe you’re safe with me.”

My laugh is faint. “Safe with you? God, no. I think I’m in more danger around you than I have been with any other man before in my life.”