Ginger talks about the most painful shit in the least emotional way. I understand her need to distance herself from horrible memories. After all, I don’t sit around crying over my painful childhood experiences either.

Ginger, though, doesn’t have only walls around her like my mom after a rough life. No, this fox has her heart surrounded by the kind of security I’d expect at a high-security prison. How can I get close to Ginger when she protects herself so completely?

“You gonna keep these leftovers?” I ask when Ginger wipes her mouth as a sign she’s finished eating.

“You can take them home to your kids.”

“Do you want to meet them?”

“No.”

Her instant rejection pisses me off. “How come? They’re good kids.”

“I don’t like kids.”

“Yes, you do,” I say, having heard how the crew dotes on Cayenne’s daughter.

“Yeah, kids are fine. I just don’t see the point of meeting your kids. Do you have every woman you bang meet your kids?”

“No, but you’re an important person in Rawlins. My kids need to be tight with those in power. It also doesn’t hurt for them to know more strong women too.”

Ginger frowns at my response, which makes me grin triumphantly. Whenever I give her an answer she isn’t expecting, she responds with the same stunned frown.

“I guess that makes sense,” she says, twisting her loose, blonde hair into a makeshift ponytail and shoving it over her shoulder.

“Do you know what I think?”

“That I need to get fucked. No, it’s that you’re hungry for pussy. Basically, something a horny twelve-year-old would say if he wanted to seem cool.”

Smiling wider, I lean forward and murmur, “I’m the first man worthy of your interest, and that’s why I make you nutzo.”

Her indifferent frown tells me I haven’t yet chipped away at her protective walls. “I’ve been with plenty of other worthy men.”

“Bull-fucking-shit.”

“Fine, there was just the one, but I loved him. I even thought we’d get married and have kids.”

I narrow my eyes and lean in closer. “I’m trying to tell if you’re lying.”

“Well, I’m not.”

“If he was so amazing, then why in the fuckety-fuck aren’t you with him?”

“He and I wanted different things, so we broke up.”

“What different things?”

“Madden wanted me to let him be in charge, and I wanted him to stop wanting that shit since it was never going to happen.”

“But, Ginger, you should let the man be in charge. We’re naturally better leaders than women.”

“Bull-fucking-shit on both you saying that and you meaning it. Besides, I’m a better leader than you are, and you’re a huge mama’s boy. No way do you think less of women than men.”

“Madden, huh?” I say, nodding for way too long while thinking of the pretty bitch that enjoyed Ginger’s foxy curves. “Sounds like a little boy’s name.”

“He was a man.”

“Couldn’t satisfy you sexually, huh?”

“He was actually a bit too big, but I did my best to keep up.”

Seeing my anger at her compliment of Madden’s dick, she nearly bursts into laughter.

“Where is this love of your life now?”

“Back in Little Memphis with his new wife and their tiny infant baby boy that looks just like him.”

“You sound jealous.”

“Five fucking seconds after we broke up, he hooked up with a submissive Susie and bangs out a kid. Talk about getting over me quickly.”

“She’s a rebound whore. He’ll dump her once the kid is crawling.”

“That’s sweet,” she says, rewarding me with an amazing smile.

“You should rebound with me. I’ll fuck you so hard that you’ll forget every man before me.”

“Your dick causes brain damage, does it?”

“No, the headboard does that,” I say, leaning back in the chair before remembering its puny size. “My dick just makes the entire brain damage worth it.”

Ginger can’t restrain her laughter, thereby encouraging me to keep chasing. We both know once I finally catch her that we’ll have a helluva fun time.

I stand from the creaking folding chair and take her hand so she’ll stand too. Ginger’s laughter dies instantly, and she’s on guard again. Her skin is painfully soft under my rough fingertips, and her plump lips part when I caress them.

“You’re a part of Rawlins now, and this is my town,” I say, still exploring those lips. “I’m willing to wait to enjoy your tits and slit and all the other yummy Ginger spots. Soon, you’ll have a bed in this place, and I’ll wreck the damn thing fucking you.”

“We could do it on the floor right now.”

“Not with the protective plastic.”

Ginger smiles, but her eyes remain wary like an animal who’s been kicked around for too long. I see the same distrust in my mother’s eyes when someone tries to sell her something.

“I wasn’t totally a hundred percent honest about what happened between Madden and me,” she says as her hand caresses mine caressing her face.

“I’m not surprised. I could tell you were lying about his dick size.”

“What if he did have a bigger dick than you? Would your ego ever recover?”

“Shit, I’d just assume he got a dick surgery, and that’s a gross loser move, and I’m not a gross loser. Either way, I still win.”

“Nice delusionary thinking there, but his giant dick isn’t what I was lying about. Before you ask, I wasn’t lying about him being a great lover either. He was a stud in every way.”

“You keep telling yourself that, babe.”

“Madden did want me to quit running the Everything Nice Crew. And he expected me to submit to his man authority. Those weren’t lies, but I did lie about wanting to have a kid with him.”

“Did you worry your child would have his goofy hair?”

“How do you know he has goofy hair?”

“I asked around,” I admit, having made a few calls to Little Memphis after Ginger first set my crotch on fire.

“I’m not particularly attracted to insecure men. You should keep that in mind when you play your dick measuring game with Madden.”

“That would sound more convincing if you were drooling when you said it.”

“Madden was tall, dark, and sexy too. I guess I have a type.”

“I don’t have goofy hair, though.”

“The jury is still out on that. I imagine if you let it grow a little longer that we could sign you up for the circus.”

“Since we’re being honest here, I want you to tell me why you didn’t want a kid. You know, besides the hereditary goofy hair problem.”

“I can’t imagine having a kid of my own without instantly imagining every terrible thing that could happen to it. I’d want to lock the kid up twenty-four seven to keep it safe from the vile nature of the world I’ve brought it into.”

“You could leave the Everything Nice lifestyle.”

“Not that world. The actual world we all live in where people do horrible things to each other and often get away with it. I’ve seen too many disgusting crimes for me not to assume a monster is behind every smiling face.”

I catch a hint of real fear in her blue eyes. “The number of evil people compared to normal people is probably really small. They cause a lot of damage, sure, but you can’t let assholes ruin the great shit in life. Trust me, kids are amazing. My life isn’t a fairy-fucking-tale, but my kids make me feel like a king.”

Ginger nearly smiles before frowning darker. “Don’t you worry about something happening to them? How can that shit not keep you up at night?”

“Do you spend every minute of the day worrying about Duffy?”

“No, but... Well, I guess you’re right, but a child is defenseless. That’s why we never let Duffy out of our sight. Someone is always with her, and they’re always armed. We’re paranoid and rightfully so.”

“You’ve looked at the face of the devil, and now you see him everywhere. I get that, but I can’t imagine a life without my kids. They make the world better.”

Ginger exhales slowly as if my words affect her. “I wish I could see it that way. No doubt my heart’s been corrupted by what I’ve seen, not to mention what I’ve done.”

“You killed shitty people who hurt the innocent.”

“I didn’t kill most of them quickly or cleanly, though. I wanted them to suffer. My ease with violence made me a lot of money, and it rid the world of a lot of evil fucks, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t also corrupt me down deep.”

Ginger tries to step back, but I keep her pinned between my body and the sink. Instantly, her gaze turns irritated. Underneath the anger, I sense she’s ready to run or maybe punch me. Not because I have her pinned but because she doesn’t like picking at old scars. Whatever she says or does, I’m ready.

“I hated holding Duffy when she was a baby,” she says, still frowning at me, “because I felt like I’d get her dirty. For a short time after her birth, I became obsessive about washing my hands. Though I eventually shut that crazy shit down, I realized motherhood wasn’t for me.”

“That’s a shame.”

“Yeah, but is it a deal breaker?” she asks as if hoping I’ll say “yes” and she can escape her feelings for me.

“I still want to fuck you, so I guess not.”

“A really winning response there, babe,” she says, patting my face.

Before she can snatch back her hand, I take it in mine. Ginger holds my gaze while I caress her knuckles. I consider copping a feel, just to see how she responds.

When her eyes refuse to blink, I take her staring as a dare. My free hand cups her mouth-wateringly plump tit barely hidden by a thin green Mountain Dew shirt.

Ginger cocks an eyebrow. “I hope you plan to do more tit play than passively palming my boob.”

“I fear if I tweak your nipple that’s currently digging into my hand that my dick will tear through my jeans. Then I’ll be forced to fuck you just so it’ll fit back into my pants.”

“While your dilemma is one of the saddest I’ve heard, I’m more interested in my pleasure. What happens to your dick is not even on my top ten list of concerns.”

“That’s cold,” I say and remove my hand. “I want an emotional fuck, Ginger. You shared personal crap with me, and that makes us more than fuck buddies.”

“Until we fuck, we’re just buddies. Besides, you haven’t shared shit with me, so I don’t think we can even call ourselves friends.”

“What do you want to know?” I ask, crossing my arms and waiting for her to hit me with more deflecting crap.

“Did you cry when your kids were born?”

“No. Next.”

“Did you feel emotional at all?”

“Of course. The first time I held each of my kids; I lifted them into the air and sang that Lion King song. I also mocked other babies in the nursery for not being as cool as mine. But crying, no, that didn’t happen. I only cry when I’m sad, and I was psyched to have my kids outside of the nasty wombs I squirted them into.”

“I don’t think that’s how babies work.”

“As the father of two, I think I would know.”

Ginger shakes her head. “Is your dad alive?”

“He died after squirting me into my mom’s womb but before I dug my way free.”

“How did he die and why were you clawing your way free? Is there something wrong with your mom’s womb?”

“All baby’s claw themselves out, Ginger.”

“But they come out head first,” she says, and I immediately imagine my third kid coming out of her.

“Don’t worry about the logistics.”

“How did he die?”

“Quickly.”

“So your mom raised you alone, and that’s why you’re a mama’s boy. I respect that.”

“I like how you dig women’s power but wish you wouldn’t think all men are toxic and dangerous.”

“I think women are just as toxic and dangerous. Trust no one is my motto.”

“That’s some heartwarming shit right there,” I say and think about copping a feel again.

“What did you expect?”

“I assumed you had a sweet, chewy center underneath your cold, rough exterior.”

“And I assumed you were a sweet romantic underneath your perverted inappropriate exterior.”

“Clearly, we’re not perceptive people.”

“Speak for yourself.”

“I’m going to kiss you now, and you’re going to love it.”

Ginger fights a grin and backs away into the counter. “I think I should kiss you first. It’s important for the alpha in a relationship to assert their dominance.”

“You already licked my lips at the store, and I’m the alpha in this relationship.”

“True and nope.”

Rather than respond, I say everything with my eyes. Ginger holds my gaze, accepting my challenge. We peer unflinchingly into each other’s eyes for a solid minute, and then something miraculous happens.

I fucking win!

Ginger’s tough exterior cracks under the pressure of my alpha stare. For only a moment, I discover a fragile woman wary of the world. This is the Ginger who agreed to a date. She’s the one who fell hard for a man unsuited for someone with her power. She’s also the one hoping I’m more than swagger and sexual attraction.

With both hands, I cup her face before stepping closer and allowing her nowhere to run. Ginger looks in my eyes and waits. No first kiss has ever scared me as much as this one. Despite her gentle gaze, she’s looking for any flaw to shut me down.

Fortunately, my lips are a treasure to womankind. I prove this by pressing them possessively against hers with just the right kind of pressure before deepening the kiss and making her moan. Yeah, she won’t find fault with my skills.

I’m completely in control until her hands grip my shirt. The desire behind her gesture sends me into overload. Ginger tastes like my future, and she belongs to me. All I need to do is wear her down until she submits to what I already know.

If only it were that easy.