Page 51 of Sinful Desires
“Stop blinking. Stop shaking. Pretend it’s someone you want dead.”
I stared at the hole in the paper, then looked him dead in the eyes.
“Okay, let me picture your face there.”
With a chuckle, he stepped closer, the sound curling low in his throat. His fingers caught my jaw, tilting it just enough to remind me who was in control. He leaned in, skimming his mouth near my cheek, thumb pressing against my lip as if to test how far I’d let him push.
“Don’t miss this time.”
He pulled back, grabbed the bigger gun, and placed it in my hands. Only then did he move behind me again, slower this time.
As my body tingled with awareness, he pressed forward, chest against my back, his hands locking over mine. His scent flooded my head, dizzying enough to make me want to drop the gun, spin around, and sink my teeth into whatever part of him he’d let me have.
He raised my arms slowly with his, guiding the weapon up in front of us until the barrel pointed forward, his mouth still near my ear.
“I won’t miss,” I whispered. “I’m gonna give you a third eye.”
His fingers tightened over mine. “Go ahead,beauté.”
I breathed hard, my body locked against his. His chin dropped to my shoulder, heavy and warm, our cheeks brushing as I lined up the shot. I felt the scrape of his stubble, the tension in his grip, the sick thrill of being held in his arms.
I fired one shot. Then another. The final shot felt like it reverberated in my soul.
My body jolted. I pressed deeper into him, not out of fear, but instinct. Confidence, thick and filthy, burned through my veins.
I left the gun in LeRoy’s hands and reached up to tear the safety glasses off my face. He reset the safety with one clean movement and tapped the button on the control panel. The machine whirred, the paper target sliding closer, the holes coming into view.
I let out a sharp little laugh and jumped, eyes wide.
One shot had landed right between the eyes, another in the neck, the last in the chest.
“Holy shit. Did I just do that?”
The corner of his mouth lifted. “That’s better.” He glanced at the target again. “Now you just need more training.”
My pulse thudded again, for a different reason this time. I tilted my head and raised a brow. “You offering private lessons, soldier?”
His gaze dropped to my mouth. “Only if you can handle the homework.”
I bit my lip, the rush buzzing through my veins drowning out the demons that haunted me. “How great of a shot are you?”
“The best.”
He grabbed a gun from the case.
I turned and ran, my steps echoing through the room. I sprinted to the end of the aisle, past the lanes, until I reached the target wall.
My heart was still racing, but it wasn’t just from the run. Something else was driving me—reckless, wild. I didn’t want to name it. I didn’t even want to stop it.
I planted myself near one of the targets, my body partially covering it, heels locked to the floor. My chest was rising fast, my breath tangled, heat crawling under my skin.
I wasn’t sure if I was testing him or testing myself.
I knew I was acting like a brat, but I needed some questions to be answered.
Would he do it? Would he really pull the trigger just to prove he could?
The thought twisted something deep in my gut, tight and burning. I didn’t know what terrified me more, the idea that he would or that he wouldn’t.
