“I will handle this, Razer.” He maintained eye contact with Lily, giving her the strength she didn’t have for herself.

Seeing Lily’s whimpers had stopped, Razer backed off.

Shade’s hand dropped from her face before giving Train a quick look. Train had also seen Gaige go into the back room.

“I’ll take care of it,” Train acknowledged his silent order.

Shade came inside the office and shut the door.

“Go stand in the corner, Lily.” When she didn’t move right away, he snapped, “Now.” The more authority he used, the more she responded.

Lily was a natural submissive. Her abuse as a child by a figure of authority had fucked her up, though. He had to teach her that, if she followed his instructions, he would give her the care and affection she craved without harming her.

Lily immediately went to the corner where she stood, facing the office while Shade took his seat back at the desk and resumed doing his paperwork as if she wasn’t there, giving her traumatized mind time to recover.

He heard her take a deep, shuddering breath then saw her lean her head on the wall. Shade wanted to hold her close and soothe her, but he made himself wait; she needed him to have the control she didn’t.

“Stand up straight.” Shade didn’t take his eyes off his paperwork, pushing a few buttons on his computer before making more notes.

Lily straightened, her hand going to her wrist.

“No.” That time, he looked up, daring her to snap the rubber band.

Her hand reluctantly fell to her side. Then her breathing gradually slowed, and her pale face returned to a rosy glow.

“Come here, Lily.” She came to his side as he pushed his chair back from his desk. Reaching out, he grasped her hand, jerking her down to sit on his thigh.

Lily started to go wild.

“Sit still,” Shade ordered, and she instantly followed his directions. He wanted her to see she would be rewarded.

Shade didn’t attempt to touch her further, his hand going back to the computer screen, moving the cursor to begin going through the emails.

“The Farthings ordered three more cases of MREs. I think they’re planning for World War III.” He went down the emails, checking them off one by one. Sometimes he would make a remark, and sometimes he wouldn’t.

“So, what happened to get you upset?” Shade finally asked as he scrolled down the list for the next email.

“When I was in the back room, Gaige came in. I was bent over the refrigerator, and he slid his hand underneath my dress.”

“I would be upset if he tried to touch my ass, too,” Shade remarked, still working and not looking at her.

Lily laughed.

“Did he try to stop you from leaving the room?” Shade probed gently, not wanting to upset her again.

“No. I probably overreacted. I know how silly I sound.”

“You didn’t overreact. He had no business touching you,” Shade said, his hand going to her hip, adjusting her so she sat more comfortably on his leg. Subliminally, he was giving her the message that he was the only one allowed to touch.

Several more minutes passed with him holding her, showing her he would release her when he was ready.

“Are you all right now?”

“Yes. Thanks, Shade.”

After Lily opened the door, going back to work, Shade looked at the clock on the wall, seeing it was almost quitting time before he went to the work board to double-check that all the orders had been filled.

“Are you okay?” Bliss asked. She and Jewell had stopped by Lily’s work station as they left.

“I’m fine. I just overreacted.”

“Do you need anything before we leave?” Bliss offered.

Lily looked embarrassed before asking, “Would you mind getting me a number four green bean pack from the refrigerator?”

“No problem,” Bliss said, turning to go to the back room to get the item.

“I’ll handle it, Bliss. You two go on up to the club.” Shade walked up to them, and the two women left after giving Lily a sympathetic glance.

“Go get the seeds. I’ll wait here,” Shade told her, understanding she had to face her fear while knowing he would be near.

She didn’t argue with him and went to the room, and she was back in less than a minute.

Shade watched as she completed her order while the rest of the workers left for the day. When Lily had finished and cleaned her workstation in preparation for Monday, he dashed her hopes of going immediately home.

“Go get your bag while I lock up,” Shade ordered.

“But I thought—”

Shade tilted his head to the side in question.

“I’ll go get my bag.”

Grabbing her shoulder bag, she followed Shade to the basement and went to get changed. Shade changed and was warming up on the mat when she returned.

She sank to the mat to begin stretching while Shade watched her for a few minutes before standing up and turning on the music. It was Friday, and the party upstairs would be getting started; the music would muffle any sounds.

Shade moved her into position to begin her defense training. Then he worked on her kick for several minutes, becoming irritated when she didn’t connect with him. She was trying not to touch him.

Lily became distracted as the noise upstairs increased. The music he had put on wasn’t able to entirely hide that the party had started. Her eyes went repeatedly to the stairway.

“Pay attention, Lily. If you used more strength, we would have been done ten minutes ago, and I would be upstairs drinking a cold beer,” Shade said, deciding to see how she felt about him going upstairs after she left.

She managed to kick him on the side of his thigh.

“About fucking time.” Shade smiled at her proudly, realizing she didn’t like the thought of him going upstairs.

“Did I hurt you?”

“No, Lily, you didn’t hurt me. Next time a dick like Gaige tries to touch your ass again, try that move.”

Lily grinned back. “Okay.”

“We’re done for the day.”

“Thanks, Sir.”

Going for her bag, she picked it up before she hesitated a moment, twisting the handle of the bag in her hand. “Thanks for getting me to go get the seeds. I would have just avoided the room.”

“I know. Lily, let’s work on getting rid of the old fears before adding new ones. You’re completely safe at the factory and here.”

“I know that.”

“Good. I’ll see you Sunday.” He waited to see if she would say whether she would be going to the diner after church.

“All right.”

Shade smiled as he walked her to her car. She was walking with an added confidence she hadn’t had before. The lessons were boosting her belief that she would be able to defend herself. She would, too; he would see to it. He would teach her how to defend herself against everyone except himself.

* * *

Shade carried two pizzas and a six-pack up the walkway to Lily’s front door, pausing when he heard music coming from inside. Gazing around the neighborhood, he saw that most of the houses were dark before he stepped to the window and looked through to see Lily dancing around the living room.

He smiled at seeing her enjoyment and the sexy way she rolled her hips. Her sensual movements had his cock rising behind his jeans. Thank fuck she went into the kitchen at that moment.