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Luna.

Our mysterious and gorgeous cyber security genius.

The woman I’ve been secretly fantasizing about for months.

And she’s wearing something low-cut and flowy, showing off her sexy figure.

I catch a glimpse of long legs just as Grim’s fist connects with my jaw. My chin snaps up, pain ricochets through my face, and my mouthguard goes flying, bouncing on the mat a few times.

Fuck.

Grim is watching me and looks as surprised as I feel. Especially since I know he knows exactly what distracted me. “Seriously?” He chuckles. “Are you⁠—”

I feel a flicker of embarrassment—he caught me off-guard and distracted—so before he even finishes his thought, I kick out my leg and sweep his feet out from under him. But he’s a big guy and takes me down with him. Without my mouthguard, I know he’s not going to hit me in the face, so he pummels me in the ribs as we roll around, each trying to outmaneuver the other.

By the time I look up again, Luna’s gone and I feel a flash of annoyance I can’t quite describe.

“Get off me!” I grunt, shoving him away.

Our friends are laughing and hooting, and I grab my mouthguard before I get back to my feet. Obviously, I’m not putting it back in my mouth, and I jump to the ground, grabbing my water bottle.

“Does this mean I won?” Grim calls after me.

“It means I have work to do!”

“What, that’s it?” Daniil, our boss and the owner of Shadow Security, arches a brow at me.

“It’s Friday night,” I mutter. “And I have front desk duty.”

He chuckles. “Uh huh.”

I lift my middle finger in his direction as I make my way to the showers.

We have a full gym with all the equipment you’d find at a public facility, the boxing ring, a sauna, and men’s and women’s locker rooms with showers. Daniil and his wife, Courtney, went all out when they drew up the plans for the company’s headquarters, and while the rest of the building isn’t completely finished yet, finalizing the gym was a priority.

I take a quick shower, get dressed, and head out to the main lobby.

Shadow Security has only been in business five months. Set on a hundred acres that butt up against the San Bernardino National Forest, Daniil built a home for himself and his family and then a massive headquarters on the land. In addition to the main building, which has three floors and over twenty-five thousand square feet, there will be a driving range, a shooting range, a garage for the fleet of company vehicles, an underground bunker and several safe rooms and studio apartments. It’s a lot.

That’s why it’s taking so long to be done.

I sit down in the control booth, which is just off the main reception area, and get my bearings. There aren’t enough of us to handle all the different jobs, so everyone has to pitch in.

Luna is our cyber security expert and she normally manages the front desk when we’re expecting visitors even though she has a technology room where all her stuff is set up. Tonight’s her night off, and I volunteered to help out since I have no other plans.

Courtney, who is nine months pregnant, usually handles the phones since she can do that from the house. The rest of us—the elite bodyguards who all own a share of the company—handle everything else. Clients, emergencies, training, manning the security cameras, and anything else that comes up.

In my peripheral vision, I see that same flash of pink and this time I turn my head, watching Luna pause to put a dab of lipstick on her full pouty lips. There’s something about her I can’t get out of my mind. Aside from her being beautiful, I love how unapologetically quirky she is. From her ever-changing hair color to her funky outfits to her loud, infectious laugh.

She’s also perhaps the most intelligent woman I’ve ever met, and so good at her job. No matter what we ask of her, she’s up to the task, and almost always with a smile on her face. There’s no doubt she loves her job and the people she works with, and I probably spend more time than I should thinking about her.

Unfortunately, I don’t think she knows I’m alive beyond being a co-worker, and even if she did, what would she see in a former jarhead like me? I’m not the kind of guy to push myself on a woman, so I’ve made my peace with it and kept a polite distance.

I’m not above eavesdropping, though, and I drop my gaze as I listen to Luna, Allora, and Courtney laugh about something.

“Have the best time!” Allora says to her.

“And we want details tomorrow!” Courtney adds, rubbing her large belly. “I have to live vicariously through you guys right now.”