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Not intentionally—I would never do that—but I’m hung and she was…tiny. It fit but I hated the way she winced, no matter how much lube we used. The way she tried to pretend to like it because she liked me. In the end, I couldn’t take the pain I caused her, and she was kind enough to pretend breaking up was about the fact that I was leaving since I owed the Marines four years after putting me through college.

So, that was it for me and tiny women.

Not that I have the time or inclination to date. Or have a relationship. Generally speaking, I would be open to one but how do I bring a woman into the world I live in? The one where I’m always in danger, always putting myself in sketchy situations in order to keep others safe. It’s not conducive to a healthy relationship.

Except Grim and Allora seem to be doing it.

It hasn’t been long, though. I’m rooting for them, and I genuinely like her, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have doubts. Men like Grim and me—we’re not built for stability. We’re adventurers. Protectors. Heroes.

I hate using that word but it’s become part of my identity. Every time I save someone’s life or keep someone from being hurt, they use that word when they thank me. It’s a weird combination of flattering and embarrassing.

I can’t imagine how it would feel for the woman in my life to watch me walk out the door to go to work every day, knowing I might not come home. Because of that, I stick to casual hookups and women who aren’t interested in the long-term.

That works for me.

Unfortunately, I don’t think it would work for Luna and me.

Except for the fact that Luna haunts my dreams, and now that I’ve touched her, there’s no way I can keep pretending I don’t want her.

Chapter Five

Luna

I’ve long since come to terms with the fact that I’m…a big girl. I’ve been plus sized since high school. In those days, I cried a lot. But college changed everything. I worked hard to lose twenty-five pounds and even though I was still bigger, I felt stronger and more confident. Plus, going to MIT put me in a totally different league. Everyone there was smart, much more focused on brains than beauty.

I got my first boyfriend, started playing with my personal style and hair colors, got my first tattoo, and genuinely started becoming comfortable in my skin. I learned to love my bigger body and in those days I spent a lot of time at the gym. Not because it was going to make me skinny but because it made me confident. Strong. Fit. So going up and down three flights of stairs didn’t leave me winded and sweaty.

Everything changed when I got arrested.

Things got bad when I had to file bankruptcy.

They got worse when I had to go into witness protection.

My life has been a disaster the last seven years. I’ll never be able to repay Daniil and Courtney for saving me. Believing in me. Not just giving me back my life but affording me the opportunity to work in the field I love with a job I love. I thought those days were over and I’d be relegated to data entry work for the rest of my life.

And the cherry on top of the incredibly generous sundae is them allowing me to be a part owner in the company, working with equally smart, competent people.

I even have girlfriends now, something I wasn’t sure I could risk after being forced into witness protection. If I’m honest, everything about this job has been a blessing. It’s allowed me to slowly begin rebuilding my life, which is why I decided that the time was right to have a baby.

I waffle between wanting to wait until I find someone I can fall head over heels in love with and settling for a good man who’ll make a reliable partner and co-parent. Roger isn’t my typical type, but I thought he was different—and maybe, under the right circumstances, I could learn to love him.

Apparently, I miscalculated.

I wasn’t deluding myself into believing he would be the love of my life but if he was willing to have a baby and make a life together, that would be enough. Instead, the conversation went sideways and I wound up embarrassing myself in my haste to get out of there.

Ugh.

Then Rage stepped in and got all protective and angry when he saw me.

The weird thing is, as much as it annoyed me, I kind of like the fact that he cares enough to get upset. That he got angry when he thought someone had purposely hurt me. It’s been a very long time since anyone cared about me like that. Protected me. Or at least, wanted to protect me. That he could pick me up like I weigh nothing also made my heart beat a little faster.

I mean, how could it not? Rage is sex appeal on two very strong, muscular legs. He’s got dark wavy hair that sticks up sometimes when he’s in a hurry, and these expressive blue eyes that always make me feel like he can see inside me. His smile is great too.

And then there’s his body.

I love a tall, muscular man and Rage is all that and more. Tall, around six-five, with shoulders that fill any doorway he walks through. I’ve seen him without a shirt and it’s truly breathtaking, how flat and hard and ripped his abdomen is. I’ve never known a man in real life with the abdominal V, but Rage has it and I won’t deny having fantasies about licking it.

All the guys at Shadow look damn good without shirts but there’s something different about Rage. The way he handles himself. The timbre of his voice. His huge but gentle hands.