After all these years, I could still remember my last training session with Marcus. It seemed like it was only yesterday when I was standing in front of him with the sweat beading across my brow while I waited for him to make his next move. For a man in his late forties, he was in exceptional shape. He had a toned, athletic build, and with his tall height and menacing, dark eyes, he could be quite intimidating when he wanted to be. Over the years, I’d learned a great deal about self-defense and him. Marcus wasn’t a man who liked to lose, but after training for over an hour, I could tell from his sluggish movements that I was finally wearing him down. Man, how he hated that. He never once let me get the best of him, so it was only a matter of time before he tried to kick it up a notch. I figured he’d either come at me with a side kick, hoping to throw me off balance, or he’d advance with a combination of jabs and uppercuts, forcing me to shield the blows. While he always tried his best to keep me guessing, after years of working with him, I’d learned all his bags of tricks. I skirted over to his left, then back to his right, all the while taunting him with my overconfident smirk.

“You must remember … that a well-planned attack is fought with your mind, not your body,” Marcus warned with a calm, yet stern voice.

“Um-hmm,” I mumbled with an annoyed eyeroll. “You’ve mentioned that a time or two.”

I’d barely gotten the words out of my mouth when he lunged forward and slipped his foot beneath mine, causing me to fall flat on my back. He stood over me with a disapproving scowl as he growled, “Then, maybe you should listen. It might keep you from ending up on your ass … or worse. Dead.”

I pulled myself up into the sitting position and said, “Dramatic much?”

“It would do you good to drop the attitude.” He extended his hand and helped me to my feet. “It’s your life we’re talking about.”

“Yeah, but who’s really gonna go to all this trouble just to get their hands on me?”

“Let’s hope you never have to find out. Now, let’s go again.”

While there were times when he was overly intense and a bit overbearing, I knew he wanted to make sure I was prepared to handle anything that might come my way. At the time, I had no idea why he was so concerned. At eleven, I was simply too young to ask the right questions. I just knew that Marcus treated me like I was one of his own, like I was his own daughter, and I loved him for it—until I found out the truth, but that didn’t happen until many years later. By then, he’d trained me to the best of his abilities, and he’d trained me well—very well. Even though that was a lifetime ago, I wasn’t frightened when those two jerks showed up in the alley. In fact, I found myself hoping that one of them would try something stupid just so I could see if I still had the means to take them down. But before I had a chance to tap into my old skillsets, Shadow came charging out the backdoor.

The last thing I needed to do was draw unnecessary attention to myself, so I couldn’t exactly let him see me take those guys down. I’d managed to keep my true identity a secret for seven years, and there was no reason to blow that now—especially after how hard I’d worked to keep anyone from finding out the truth. I knew it was a bad idea to even consider getting involved with someone, especially a man like Shadow. I knew nothing about him, nothing at all. I’d like to say that I was a good judge of character, but considering my past and how I always believed my father was someone he wasn’t, I had no way of knowing if I could trust my gut instincts. Hell, for all I knew, he could’ve been a serial killer, a closet crossdresser, or a sadomasochist asshole who preys on women in bookstores, and yet, I still invited him to dinner. The more I thought about it, the more I started to wonder if I’d made a huge mistake, and just as I was about to work myself into a tizzy, Jason walked into the store.

Without even saying hello, he gave me one of his looks and said, “What was up with you last night?”

“Nothing was up with me. Why?”

“I don’t know. Maybe because you said you had to leave early because of work, but then I find you outside talking to a bunch of fucking bikers,” he grumbled.

“I did have to work, and I wasn’t talking to a bunch of bikers, Jason. I was talking to only one.”

“Well, that’s one too many, Alex.”

Suddenly feeling defensive, I snapped, “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Those guys are bad news, Alex. They’re into some bad shit. You should stay as far away from them as possible,” he warned.

“Well, for somebody who’s bad news, he was there to make sure I made it to my car safe and sound last night, and then, he helped me out this morning when two goons tried to give me a hard time.”

His eyes widened as he hammered me with questions. “What the hell are you talking about? What two goons? Did anything happen? Are you okay?”

“I’m obviously fine, Jason, and it was no big deal. Just two young kids trying to act like they were tough, but Shadow ran them off.”

“Shadow?” He grimaced. “The guy’s name is Shadow? For fucks sake, Alex. Doesn’t that tell you something right there? You’re lucky you made it to your fucking car. God knows what this guy could’ve done.”

“If you were so concerned, then why didn’t you come out to help me last night?” I snapped.

“After the look you gave me? Are you kidding me?” he huffed. “It was pretty clear you didn’t want me out there, but just so you know, I was watching from the window the entire time. I even had the bouncer waiting to step in if that asshole tried to pull something.”

“Clearly, that wasn’t necessary,” I fussed. “Besides, I’m very capable of taking care of myself.”

He crossed his arms and gave me one of his disapproving looks. “I’ve always thought so, but now I’m having my doubts.”

“Well, stop with the doubts.” Trying my best not to let him get to me, I walked around the counter and grabbed a handful of books. “And for what it’s worth, even though I don’t know him all that well, I happen to think Shadow is a nice guy.”

His eyes narrowed as he asked, “So, what you’re saying is, you’ve got a thing for this guy?”

“No, Jason,” I said with exasperation. “I don’t have a thing for this guy. I just think you’re judging him too harshly, especially since you don’t even know him!”

“I don’t have to know him, Alex. I saw that he was wearing his patch last night. I know what it represents. Satan’s Fury practically runs this city, and the fact we’re talking about a place like Memphis and all the gangs we have in it, that’s saying something. Hell, everybody knows they’re into some pretty bad shit, and there’s not a soul around who isn’t afraid of these guys!”

“Okay. I’ve heard enough.” While I didn’t want to admit it, a part of me knew he was right. I heard all the rumors about Satan’s Fury, and like Jason said, they weren’t exactly good men. They were known for their violence and mayhem, and I could only imagine what Jason would say if he knew I’d invited one of them over for dinner. Hoping to keep that tidbit a secret, I started to make myself busy by organizing the books on the shelves as I declared, “I don’t want to talk about this anymore.”

“Why? Because you know I’m right?” he replied sarcastically.

“Because I think you’re being a jerk!”

“You sure are getting defensive about some guy you don’t really know.” He cocked his eyebrow. “You really must have a thing for him.”

“Will you just stop already? You’re going way overboard with all this.”

“And why would you think I was going overboard?”

I turned to look at him and said, “I don’t know, Jason. Why don’t you tell me?”

“Because you’re my best friend, and I’m worried about you!” He stepped towards me with a pained expression. “I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you.”

The sincerity in his voice tugged at me, making me feel guilty for being so dismissive. “Nothing is going to happen to me, Jason, but if it makes you feel any better, I’ll be careful. Okay?”

“And you’ll steer clear of this Shadow guy?”

I hated lying to him, but I knew he wouldn’t let it go unless I said—“I’ll do my best.”

“That’s all I’m asking.” He grabbed the rest of the books off the counter and brought them over to me. “Is this the last of it?”

“Yeah. That’s it for now.”

“Good. You wanna go get a burger or something?”

“I can’t. Debbie called in sick, so it’s just me today.”

“You really need to hire some more help around here.”

I couldn’t say that he was wrong. I was working overtime after losing one of my best employees, and my other cashier, Debbie, wasn’t exactly the most reliable person on the planet. I needed the help, but I simply didn’t want to go through the hassle or the expense of hiring another employee. Seeing as I didn’t want to get into another debate with him, I nodded. “I know and I will, but for now, I need to get back to work.”

“Yeah, I guess I better do the same,” he groaned as he headed for the door. “I’ll catch up with you later.”

Once he was gone, I made myself busy around the store, which wasn’t exactly difficult since I was there alone. After I dealt with the few customers who came strolling in, I checked the time and realized I only had a half hour until closing time. I was suddenly overcome with nerves and excitement, and I was eager to get upstairs so I could start preparing dinner. I rushed around the place, picking up trash and putting away stray books, and when I got to the back of the store, I was surprised to see that Shadow’s coffee cup and book were still sitting on the side table. With everything that had happened outside, he must’ve forgotten to put his things away, so I went over and placed the cup in the trash. I reached for the book he’d been reading and stopped dead in my tracks when I noticed the title—Getting Past Your Past, a New York Times bestselling book on how to deal with PTSD. I was beyond stunned, and as I stood there staring at that cover, I couldn’t help but wonder why he’d chosen that particular genre. Was it just a fluke, or did he really have a traumatic past that he was trying to deal with?

That thought lingered in my head as I finished closing the store and headed upstairs. I was lost in my own thoughts as I searched the refrigerator and cabinets, looking for all the ingredients I’d need for Hallie’s lasagna recipe. It was one of my all-time favorites and something that wouldn’t be hard to warm up if he was late getting there. After I had everything prepared, I straightened up the apartment and headed for the shower. That’s when it hit me. As I stood there trying to decide what to wear, my nerves started to set in and I couldn’t stop thinking about everything that Jason had said. Then, I thought about the book he’d been reading and the fact that I really didn’t know anything about him, and I started to wonder if maybe Jason had been right about everything. But then, I remembered the way he looked at me in Newman’s parking lot and again in the alley behind the bookstore. That look was filled with enough intensity to melt the clothes right off of my body, and I couldn’t deny it. I liked it. I liked it a lot. I’d only read about moments like that in romance novels, but I never expected it to happen to me, and just thinking about it brought butterflies to my stomach. Maybe I was wrong when I told Jason that I didn’t have a thing for Shadow. Maybe I was very, very wrong.