Shattered Dreams (Boys of Bellerose, #3)(22)

It was on the tip of my tongue to tell him, but I still really wanted to know where he was taking me that required a gun. So I just grinned up at him flirtatiously. “I’ll tell you when I see where you’re taking me. Maybe.”

Gray just gave a small laugh. “Well, it’s not far. I think it might really help you with all that tension you’re carrying around.”

My brows shot up, and my lips formed an O. Was he taking me to a secluded fuck shack to rock my world without fear of interruption? Because if so, I was one hundred percent in. How the gun played into that scenario, I wasn’t totally sure. But Gray was kinda kinky, wasn’t he? Maybe it was a fake gun that he was going to use to fu—

“Just up here,” he said, interrupting my rapidly smuttifying thoughts.

He pulled me to a stop at the edge of a vast clearing surrounded by towering trees and… not a whole lot else. Where was the sexy fuck shack?

“Ummmm…” I squinted around, then looked up at Gray. “I’m confused.”

Always one to show rather than tell, Gray released my hand, then reached into the back of his pants for the gun. Most of me was confident that my joke about him shooting me was just that, a joke, but a quick flash of fear zapped through my chest nonetheless… right up until he aimed and fired down the clearing—and away from me—and a puff of colored powder exploded from whatever he’d hit.

Understanding dawned, and I started laughing a tiny bit hysterically. “You have a shooting range out here? That’s… you brought me to shoot targets. To burn off steam. Shooting shit. Of course.”

Gray quirked an eyebrow, guiding me further into the clearing. “Yes. What did you think I meant?”

My cheeks burned as he placed the heavy gun in my hand, wrapping my fingers around the grip securely as his body bracketed me. “Um… not that.” Keeping it vague seemed like a good idea.

Gray gave a rumble at my back, his breath warming my cheek as he gently moved my position like I was a life-size doll. I thought for sure he was going to leave it at that and not push me to say it out loud, but then his huge hand gripped my hip and pulled me flush against his body. Against his hard dick pressing into my back.

“Did you think I was bringing you out here to fuck, where no one could hear you screaming and Rhett couldn’t suck away your focus?” His voice was a low growl in my ear, and I couldn’t prevent the needy whimper that slipped from my throat. Fuck, I was turned on, even while my hands gripped Gray’s gun like it was the crown jewels.

Swallowing hard, I tried to find my voice. “Maybe.” It was a squeak of a word, and Grayson’s answering chuckle nearly made me come.

“Maybe?” he replied, teasing the skin above my pants where his fingers had slipped beneath my shirt. “Hmm, well it definitely wasn’t my intention, but I’d hate to leave you wanting, Prickles.”

Oh, I liked where this was going.

“Tell you what. Hit three targets, and I’ll eat your pussy before we go back to the house.” He punctuated his offer with a nip of teeth on my neck, and my finger slipped.

The shot rang out across the clearing, and I yelped in fright. Needless to say, it did not hit a target.

“Careful, baby girl,” Grayson warned with an edge of amusement. “Neither one of us needs a trip back to the emergency room today.”

I groaned, my hands now shaking. “Can you give me an easier offer? One target?”

He kissed my neck again, softer this time, then brought his hands up to cup mine on the gun. “Don’t underestimate my skills as a teacher, little hedgehog. Or my motivation to help you win this.” Another butt with his hard dick made me groan. “Now, focus on the targets. I’ll guide you through, and we can do it together.”

Together. I liked that. I never felt alone when I was with Grayson; he permanently had my back no matter what—something he demonstrated as he calmly spent the next hour teaching me how to shoot accurately. Or more accurately than I could when we’d started. Sharpshooter I was not. But he seemed determined to ensure I was comfortable handling his weapon. His gun, that is. His other weapon didn’t wilt at all across that hour, and I was utterly astounded at his control and willpower for not acting on what we both wanted to do.

“Well, look at that. Three in a row,” Grayson commented as the puffs of paint powder exploded at the far end of the clearing. My ears were ringing despite the squishy earplugs Gray had given me, but I was elated at my success.

Quick as I could, while remaining safe, I handed the gun over and spun to face him with a wide grin on my face. “So… pay up.”

His answering look was pure filth as he unloaded the gun and tucked it away in what I now realized was a holster at the small of his back. Phew. He’d already educated me about how hot guns could get, so I didn’t need him burning his ass just to look badass.

“You’re so cold your adorable nose is about to fall off,” he informed me with a chuckle. “But you did good. Come on.”

He started leading the way out of the clearing—back towards the car—and I gave a petulant noise of complaint. Hell, I even stomped my cold foot a little. “Gray, you made me a deal!”

His bark of laughter echoed through the trees. “And I intend to follow through. Keep up, Prickles. I’ve nearly made a mess of my pants at least six times in the last hour; if I don’t get your legs wrapped around my head in the next five minutes, I’ll explode.”