Page 63 of Nikolai (Kansas City Reapers)

My mouth hung open in utter shock.

“Looks like you’ve got your hands full here, Niko. We’ll leave you two to it,” Angela teased, patting my back as she and Seth walked over to another stall to get in some practice of their own. As each of the other men found their own stalls, only Maddy and I remained.

She checked her nails, appearing completely unfazed as I stood there in utter shock and awe.

“You want a go, or do you need another example of how it’s done, buddy?” she asked, egging me on even further.

I grabbed her by the elbow, pulling her back into the stall so as not to be overheard. Not that I really had to worry about that. We all had headphones, and most of us were likely wearing them as we took our shots. Maddy and I both had ours hanging around our necks.

“What the hell was that?” I asked her in a hissed whisper.

“What was what?” She was feigning ignorance, and I wasnothere for it.

“Where the hell did you learn to shoot like that?” I asked her, confusion muddling my mind.

“What, like it’s hard?” Her brows furrowed in mock confusion. My grip tightened on her elbow.

“I’m not joking, here, Maddy,” I growled.

“Okay, fine. I dated a guy in high school who was in ROTC and went on to join the army. He took me shooting a few times,” she shrugged. “Oh, and my grandfather was in the Navy and taught me how to shoot when I was a kid. I guess it’s like riding a bike. Now, are you going to take your turn, or am I good to go again?”

“Have at it, princess,” I finally said after a moment, unable to keep the smile from my face. Maddy Ayers was an enigma if I had ever met one.

I watched her line up her sights once more, popping off shot after shot like an expert. She was fierce, calm, and totally fucking cool. And it was hot as fuck.

“Okay, your turn, Sir.” She laid her gun down, emptying the magazine first, causing the slide to lock back, then ejecting it, and setting it off to the side before she did so. I shook my head before taking my own stance to shoot. I lifted the gun, ready to take aim, when I felt her hand on the small of my back.

“Don’t forget to align your sights, Sir.”

I growled in warning. The woman’s bratting knew no bounds. And as much as it stoked the frustration and dominance inside of me, I was fucking here for it.

Now to get her home, so I could show her just how hot she was, firing a gun like that.

Chapter 16

Nikolai

I could not concentrate.I had been staring at the ledgers for our business. There was plenty of work to do, but all I could focus on was the tiny woman curled up in the corner of my office, wrapped in a blanket and reading a book she had borrowed from me.

After devouring the book Jax had lent her, she had asked for more books about BDSM. And I was more than happy to oblige. She was beautiful, with a few stray locks of her hair having fallen from the bun on her head, curling in tendrils that framed her face. Her brow furrowed as she read something she either didn’t understand or didn’t like.

I found myself completely distracted by her very presence, but I was not about to ask her to leave. I wanted her here. Just having her close felt… right. It eased the protectiveness that had stayed clutched around my gut since our trip to Seth’s place days ago.

Fuck, that day had been something else. Nothingcould have shocked me more than seeing her take aim and land each shot with a marksman’s accuracy. It was hot as fuck.

As soon as we’d arrived back home, I had hauled her up over my shoulder and taken her down to the playroom to show her just how hot she was. It was a long and brutally sensual night that had left her hoarse for two straight days afterward. Based on the jibes I got from the guys, even the bit of soundproofing we put in the room hadn’t shielded them from hearing our sexual endeavors.

Not that I minded.

I smirked, remembering that night in great detail as my eyes roved over her form, sitting there cuddled in the corner.

“I’m bored,” she sighed, flopping the book down on her lap in vexation.

“Well, go find something to do, then,” I muttered, pretending to focus on my computer. It was a complete bluff, as my eyes literally glazed over the moment the figures came into focus. I had no space left in my brain to handle the books when she was right there, basically within reach.

“I don’t want to go find something to do. There’s nothing to do here. Come do something with me,” she begged in a petulantly whiny tone, her lower lip stuck pathetically.

“Go ask Deacon if he wants help in the stable. Maybe you can go on a ride,” I offered, not knowing what else to offer to her.

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