He opens his mouth to speak, but I cut him off.

“Or better yet, keep your sword sheathed and be a decent human being.”

His eyes flash and I grin at him. I don’t know this man. He could be anyone and I’m out here, alone mind you, baiting him. Still, he doesn’t seem like the silent killer type, just a very attractive man who knows, and gets, exactly what he wants.

“I imagine it would be very different, if it was you receivin’ my … sword.”

I gape at him. Then I throw my hands on my hips and toss back, “You’re wrong about that, buddy. I’m not that girl.”

He takes a step closer. I take a step back. This doesn’t stop him; he drops his cigarette and continues this dance until my back is pressed against the cold brick wall. My bare skin tingles against it, and my legs go wobbly when he leans down while both of his hands go up and press against the wall beside my head, effectively trapping me. This close, I can smell him, and he’s a mixture of cigarette and cologne. It works for him. In a big way.

“Girls like you with sassy mouths are usually the first to crumble. I bet you’re thinkin’ about it right now? I bet you’re imaginin’ how good I'd feel deep, fuckin’ deep inside you.”

God, his voice is so thick and husky.

“What I’m thinking about,” I breathe, “is which part of your body I’m going to kick first.”

He chuckles, low in his throat and it’s a heavenly sound.

“I like the ones who play hard to get.”

“You need help,” I point out. “And I’m not playing anything. I’m not interested. I don’t beg, I don’t chase and I don’t like men who behave like you.”

His eyes scan my face, and damned if they aren’t lusty. “I could make you beg.”

I just bet he could.

We hold each other’s gazes, both of us clearly as stubborn as the other. Our intense glares are only broken when I hear Kady squeak, “Jesus, you’re not slow, are you, Gracie? I was only inside five minutes and you’ve already scored yourself a man.”

I turn my face towards her and say in a casual tone, “Oh him? No, I was about to make him, well, unable to reproduce.”

Kady looks confused and we shuffle against the wall – well, I shuffle as I try to shove him backwards with my hands to his chest. He doesn’t move – instead he pulls out another cigarette, lights it, and then pushes off me himself and turns, walking off toward the darkness. Just as I’m about to lose sight of him, he turns and murmurs, “Pleasure to meet you, Gracie,” God the way he just said my name, it practically dripped off his tongue.

Then he’s gone.

Poof, just like that.

Cool exit, but he’s still a bastard.

Chapter Two

Ring. Ring. Ring.

I groan, covering my face with my hands. God, go away.

Ring. Ring. Ring.

Ack!

I roll, shoving my aching body out of bed and staring blurrily down at the screen of my flashing phone. Vance. What the hell does he want on a Saturday morning? Deciding I really don’t care, I flop back down onto my bed and groan in pain as the movement makes my brain rattle about in my head.

I’m never drinking again. God, what time did I even get home? After my encounter with the mysterious hot guy, Kady and I continued to drink and dance. The rest is a blur. At least I’m home in my own bed. That’s a plus.

Ring. Ring. Ring.

God dammit. With a curse, I reach over, slapping my palm over my phone and lifting it. I bring it up and press answer, before pressing it to my ear. My head is pounding and the simple movement of lifting my phone has me groaning in agony. This better be good. Or Vance is going to feel serious pain when I manage to drag my ass out of this bed.

“You better have been kidnapped or something equally as awful, Vance.”

A low chuckle.

“Good morning, Gracie Lou. We have a job for you.”

“No,” I grumble. “It took me an hour to pick old man hair from my brush. Go away.”

“It’s a good one…”

I huff. “No.”

“A big one.”

My lips purse. He’s probably baiting me, but he’s got my attention. Damn him, he knows me far too well.

“A big one?” I ask, unable to help myself.

“Mega. You got twenty to get in here, or Don will give it to Julio and he will roll all over this shit while throwing sarcastic useless female remarks at you.”

I huff. I severely dislike Julio. I say dislike, because Don often tells me saying the word hate is bad for my soul. He’s probably right, so I’ll just pretend I don’t hate Julio. Then my soul can remain unmarked and clean. Winner.

“I’m coming, dammit,” I mumble to Vance.

“Atta girl,” he says, sounding far too chipper. “See you soon.”

With that, I roll myself out of bed and trudge into the bathroom. I have one of those quick showers that barely allows me to wash myself, then I dress in a pair of jeans and a sweater before throwing my hair up and hurrying out. I live only five blocks from work, so I don’t use my car a great deal. Besides, there’s a great coffee place on the way that I’m slightly addicted to. I duck into the coffee place, getting my usual caramel latte before walking the rest of the way to the office.

When I arrive, I shove through the front doors and nod to the receptionist, who, putting it simply, hates me. I can’t blame her, really. She’s in love with Vance, and he doesn’t notice her. He does, however, notice me. I like Vance, we have a really great friendship, but Sally up there doesn’t like that. Not one bit.

The building I work in isn’t huge, but it’s nice. There are five offices, one big reception area, a conference room and a lunchroom. Don has the biggest of the five offices, and Vance, Julio and I have one each. We use the last one for storage, filing, and things like that. The building itself is fairly modern, after being recently re-furbished. Now it has dark grey walls and beautiful black tiling throughout. All the offices have been updated and I got a fancy new computer along with it. Score.

I push into the conference room right on time, and see Don, Vance and Julio sitting around the small, square table. I glare at Julio as I go past and he sneers at me, flashing perfect – damn him – white teeth. His dark hair is pulled back in a tight ponytail at the base of his neck and he’s wearing an impeccable suit. Julio is good at his job, simply because you don’t expect him. He’s always so neat, so tidy and so unlike a “typical” Bounty Hunter.

Not that there’s a particular type, but if you’ve ever watched television, they’re often portrayed as scary and mean. Julio is anything but. He’s the last person you’d expect to crash into your world and tackle you onto the ground. In other words, he doesn’t look like a badass mother. Vance and I are totally badass mothers. Well, Vance is. I pretend to be, because, like Julio, I’m not what anyone expects. It can be an advantage, but also a disadvantage.

It’s a disadvantage when the person I’m bringing in decides to break down into fits of laughter over the fact that I’m a girl. Yes, that happens. A lot. I quickly correct them, usually with a foot to the ribs. I might not look it, but I’m totally endeavoring to become the ultimate badass mother.