Her gaze came back to his. Caught there. He held his breath. She was beautiful. Exotic. He couldn’t imagine that other men hadn’t seen her the way he did. She might be pint-sized, but she had lush curves perfectly proportioned so that along with the hourglass in her hair and embedded in the tight curls covering her mound, her figure was a perfect little hourglass.

He still had the taste of her on his tongue and he knew that would never go away. Exotic like she was. Ruby lips, full and inviting, it was difficult to keep from taking advantage right there, knowing she was hurting, especially with the taste of her filling his mouth. He wanted this over, wanted her safe. Facing her going into battle with them sickened him, but at least he could control this, be there to look out for her, instead of her trying to do it all herself.

I need to know, Cayenne. We can abort if you aren’t ready for this.

She shook her head. He felt her take a breath. Felt it in her throat, the pulse beating there. Her eyes were steady, all that green going multifaceted. He found his mouth curving into a smile in spite of everything. She was ready. His little warrior woman. Still, the knots in his stomach didn’t ease and the terror that gripped him below all of his icy resolve was far too close.

“Ezekiel’s in position,” Gino reported. He slapped the top of the SUV. “Let’s get it done.”

Mordichai glanced back at Trap. Trap nodded. “Take us close. Gino will give the word.”

Draden leapt from the fender and disappeared into the swamp to their right. She lost sight of him almost immediately. Mordichai set the vehicle in motion.

“We’re just leaving him?” Cayenne asked, astonished.

Trap shrugged. “He’ll catch up. He knows where we’ll be, and Draden can flat out run faster than we can travel in this thing through the swamp.” He smiled down at her. “He isn’t small and compact like you, but he has the heart and muscle and lung capacity to travel at extraordinary speeds for distances too. You wouldn’t think anyone with his muscle mass could run like he does, but although he’s built like a sprinter and has explosive speed in a sprint, he can cover distances just as fast.”

Trap sighed. “Whitney knew what he was doing by the time he created his fourth team. He made far less mistakes as he continued his experiments, learning from each of the teams and members with problems. He corrected most of the problems, but by enhancing them even more physically, he created a few new problems.”

Cayenne nodded. “Most of his ‘mistakes’ were terminated, but not all.”

“The men are more violent, which I’m certain Whitney was going for, but taking into account our already aggressive personalities, that was a major mistake. My team tends to keep to themselves and police the more dangerous members ourselves.”

“Draden runs because he has to run,” Cayenne guessed quietly, accurately. “It takes the edge off. I’ve seen him out in the swamp. I spin silk. I go into the swamp and create masterpieces. I can lose myself in the art and the work and it helps.”

He’d given her pieces of his team, and Cayenne gave him something back. None of them had to be embarrassed, because she understood. She might not be a member of their actual team, but she was a GhostWalker. She understood the differences that set them apart. He hoped she would come to identify with them.

Gino slapped his hand on the roof, and Mordichai instantly pulled the vehicle into the swamp beneath trees. Gino was gone instantly, melting into the thick foliage as if it had devoured him. Trap, the other men and Cayenne slipped out in silence.

I’m better out there. Cayenne indicated the denser woods.

Trap didn’t like it. There was saw grass, poisonous snakes, alligators, and on top of that, it could be marshy in places. He reached out before he could stop himself and wrapped his fingers around her upper arm. His fingers met his palm and his heart plunged. She never quite appeared as small as she was. On some level her size added to his need to protect her. Or maybe it had nothing to do with that and everything to do with the emotion tightening his chest.

Cayenne halted and looked up at him. For a moment, Trap swore the entire world faded away. He only saw her face – that beautiful face framed with that waterfall of shiny black hair. He loved the way the red hourglass nestled deep almost unseen and then when she turned her head, the small movement set the red on fire. He drank her in, once more tasting her on his tongue.

Kiss me. If he was going to let her go into battle, he was going to do it knowing she knew she had a reason to come back to him. He’d been a bastard, the one he’d perfected over the years, and she was confused and hurt by his behavior. He couldn’t explain, not even to himself, because he didn’t dare look too close at what he feared most. But he needed her to kiss him. To give him that.

Her green eyes went darker, even more brilliant and vibrant than they already were. Her gaze shifted to the men disappearing into the brush and trees.

Doesn’t matter if they see, Cayenne. You’re my woman. You go into battle, you go anywhere away from me, I want you to kiss me.

He needed that from her. He needed to carry her taste with him, her scent, the essence of her so that he could keep her safe in his own way.

She didn’t protest. She looked confused and a little vulnerable. He liked the look a lot. He would take that look with him, hold it close, because his woman was adorable. Fucking beautiful. Lethal as hell, and that only made it all the more sweet. He held on to that thought. She was lethal. Dangerous. Capable.

Cayenne stepped close to him, one hand sliding up his chest, her head tipped up. He cupped her face. Pure beauty. All his. His thumb slid over her soft skin. He swore the pad of his thumb melted into her, she was that soft.

Trap didn’t waste any more time. He took her mouth. He did it long. Hard. Pouring himself into her. Taking her into him. He used his mouth to tell her the things he couldn’t say to her. When he lifted his head and rested his forehead against hers, both of them were breathing ragged.

Stay safe, baby, he whispered.

You too.

Cayenne waited for his fingers to loosen around her arm. She was trying desperately to get her wits about her again. Trap had just kissed her senseless. He was back to calling her “baby” in that soft, caressing voice that felt like a touch on her skin or a brand deep inside of her. He didn’t speak to her almost the entire time in town on their shopping expedition, and he’d clamped her to his side like she was some appendage he had to guard. Now, he kissed her good-bye and allowed her to go up against a team of Whitney’s supersoldiers. He was the most confusing person she’d ever met.