Page 145 of Simon Says

It wasn’t until hours later, after he’d made love to her again and they were lying face-to-face in his bed, that Dakota apologized.

“I’m sorry that I lost it earlier.”

When she was near, he couldn’t keep himself from touching her. He smoothed her thick blond hair, traced her eyebrows with a fingertip. “I pushed you too fast.”

Her lashes lowered, hiding her gaze. “I don’t know why it happens sometimes, but I know that it’ll probably happen again. I’m not afraid of you. I never have been. And I know you’re not the type to ever hurt a woman.”

“Memories can be a son of a bitch. They come at you out of nowhere, sometimes when you least expect them. It’s not a problem for me, Dakota. I just want you to tell me if I ever do anything that makes you uncomfortable. If you try to tell me, and I’m not listening, give me a good smack.”

She smiled. “No. I like you too much to hit you.”

Wanting more of an admission than that, Simon said, “Like, huh?”

Her gaze locked with his. “If you want me to be truthful—”

“I do.”

“Then I more than like you.”

That answer didn’t really appease him either, but he didn’t plan on making declarations, so it wouldn’t be fair to expect them either. “I more than like you, too, Dakota Dream. You fascinate me.”

“When I’m pinned to a wall and you’re inside me, or do you mean now, when I’m having a hard time expressing myself?”

Simon grinned. “All the time.” He caught her to him so that when he moved to his back, she ended up atop him. “When you walked into the gym that first day, acting like you owned the place and uncaring that a lot of men were eyeballing you, I admired your courage. When you were hurt from going down those stairs, your strength amazed me. When you make love with me, your naturalness is so refreshing.”

“Even when I freak out?”

He put both hands on her bottom. “Even then.” She was so honest that even in fear, she didn’t hide herself.

“Simon?”

“You’ve worn me out, woman. I need some sleep. It’s almost midnight and the alarm is set for six.”

Groaning, she dropped her face back to his chest. “I’m interfering again.”

He patted her backside. “The way you interfere would make every other fighter envious, trust me.” Leaving the light on, as he knew she preferred, Simon said, “Good night, honey.”

He felt the gentle press of a kiss to his sternum. “Good night, Simon.”

“YOUshould follow your own advice, little lady.”

Dakota kicked out, and Gregor blocked it easily. Tsking in a way that Simon could see annoyed Dakota, Gregor said, “Remember when you chewed my ear about telegraphin’ kicks? Well, doll-face, you keep using that right and I’ll keep blocking it. If you can’t switch up—”

Just that quick, Dakota switched and kicked with her left, catching Gregor in his shoulder. Given that Gregor was a freak of nature with shoulders like boulders, it didn’t hurt him, but it did make him stagger.

He grinned, saying, “There ya go. Let’s mix it up a little.”

Simon grinned, too. They’d been sparring for a while, and Gregor was being very careful with her. He kept teasing her, and Dakota kept taking the bait. She needed to learn to fight with less emotion.

Not being an idiot, Simon knew exactly why she wanted to put so much into training: she hoped to meet up with Marvin. If she ever did, she’d need to put the emotion on hold. More than strength or speed, fighters needed to use their minds. They had to anticipate each move, plan each attack. That was best done cold, without the disruption of emotion to throw off the balance.

Simon would talk to her about that later, though. For now, he had a meeting.

He walked up to Dean, who was busy watching Harley and Mallet grapple. “I’m taking off for a few hours. If I don’t make it back before she heads out, will you see that Dakota gets to her truck okay?”

Still watching the fighters, Dean asked, “Without her knowing?”

“Preferably.”

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