Page 113 of Fierce-Zander

Miles laughed. “As long as moving on means expanding the bedroom activities.”

She felt her face blush. “You know better than me talking about those things,” she said.

“It was worth a try. Just give me one little thing. Is his body trim and fit?”

She looked at Miles’s slim physique. She knew he took pride in his body. “Let’s say he’s got the perfect amount of muscle for me.”

“And we know what muscle that might be,” Miles said, wiggling his eyebrows.

“I’m going back to my office,” she said, her face heating up. “Bye.”

34

PROTECT HERSELF

“You aren’t going to make fun of me if I jump the first few times it’s fired, are you?” Regan asked him ten days later.

“No,” he said. He’d gotten her gun permit processed in less than two weeks thanks to his father and him putting in some calls. He didn’t think it was that big of a deal. It’s not like she had a criminal record and she followed the procedure.

“I’m not sure I like the idea of this,” she said.

“You don’t want a security system and cameras in your office,” he said.

“I can’t and you know it,” she said. “Clients wouldn’t want to come in knowing they were going to be on camera.”

“But you record their sessions and when they have video calls they are recorded too.”

“Not the same thing as having cameras when they walk in. Maybe someone is giving me a false name to hide their identity for a reason. If they are on camera I could be putting someone in jeopardy.”

“They are on camera when they walk into the building,” he said. He was getting things set up with the Fierces. Theyhad cameras installed already that were being monitored by someone else, but he’d be taking that over. Or rather his father would be.

“That’s different,” she argued. “There are a lot of businesses in the building and just walking into the lobby means nothing.”

He wasn’t going to argue with her. He was just glad she agreed to this without too much of a battle. And that she was opening up with him on so many levels that he had a clear understanding of her.

Her strength was there for the world, but her vulnerability was for him to see.

He had to handle that with care so she felt like she could continue to be as open as she was.

“You need to put these goggles on,” he said. “And earplugs in too.”

“This is a lot of work,” she said. “I don’t plan on ever firing it outside this range. And if I need to, heaven forbid, do I stop to put goggles and earplugs in? That kind of defeats the purpose of having it if I need to do that before I use it.”

He turned to look at the smirk on her face. “No,” he said. “You don’t need to do that, but here you do. I thought you’d be more cooperative than this.”

“I got the permit, bought the gun, and now I’m here. What more is there?”

She had a point. “You could put a smile on your face.”

“No,” she said. “I’m not doing that. I don’t believe there is any threat. I told you that.”

“You told me that you couldn’t figure it out and that those you thought might have done it you don’t feel that way now.”

He wanted to be the judge of that but knew it wasn’t going to happen.

They’d argued over it again. She’d thrown some pretty big words at him about trust and her judgment.

He couldn’t dispute that and had to let it go.

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