“I know, but I still have a few things I’d like to do this evening and it’s late. We have to work out tomorrow. I know I’m pushing you, Kitten, but if we’re going to be ready for Cordeau, then it’s necessary to condition and keep learning how to defend yourself. You still think of him as an invincible monster. I don’t want you to freeze when the time comes. If self-defense is ingrained in you, if it’s an automatic reflex, you’ll have a chance to get away from him if he ever gets his hands on you.”

A little shudder went through her body at the thought of Rafe finding her. Finding them. Rafe would want to kill Eli. She was beginning to believe killing Eli would prove to be much more difficult than she first thought. Living with him made it impossible not to see the danger that surrounded him. He was every bit as lethal as Rafe, only in a different way.

She had equated his gentleness with her as a weakness. She was learning Eli didn’t have a weakness—unless it was her. He’d made himself vulnerable by telling her he loved her. She hadn’t expected that and her eyes burned. There was a lump in her throat threatening to choke her at the sound of his soft voice whispering to her. Telling her things she knew he’d never told anyone else.

“I guess I do think of Rafe that way. He’s so big in my mind. So scary. His word is law.” She pulled away just enough to tip her head up and look at him. “Kind of the way you expect your word to be law.”

He grinned at her, getting that she was teasing him. “I like that you’re not afraid to spar a little with me, baby,” he said. “Everyone else is terrified to give me a hard time or argue with me. You’re getting there.”

“I wouldn’t want you to think you’re going to get your way in all things,” she said. That wasn’t entirely true. She wanted to make him happy. She didn’t know why it was important to her, but she wanted to be the one that kept the soft look on his face.

His grin widened. “I’ll get my way, Kitten. You can count on that. But I’ll make certain you’re enjoying yourself when I do.”

She blushed. The heat inside her body seemed to grow until she thought her skin might be glowing. Or maybe she was glowing because he’d told her he loved her.