“Depends on how badly you want her.”

Gage shook his head. East did have a point: Chloe was no stranger to adjusting the rules of this game to benefit her. Why shouldn’t he do the same? He’d use what he had to his advantage.

“Why are you helping me out?” Gage asked.

“Because,” East said, “I think you and Chloe are great and terrible for each other. If your plan works, great. If not, you’re going to be knocked on your ass, and I’m not going to miss an opportunity to say I told you so when she hands you your nuts.”

“Noted,” Gage grumbled. But this was the best plan he had at the moment.

“By the way,” East said, finally checking his text message. “Our mock victim canceled. He has the flu.”

Shit. Gage checked his watch. He had one hour to get into position before the men showed up to start their mission. Where was he going to find a new mock victim on such short—

This was either the best or worst idea he’d had yet.

“I’ll take care of the victim,” he said. “But we have to get going.”

And he was now going to be staying in his camo for longer than he’d thought.

Chloe sighed and walked around the entrance to the state park where Gage had texted her to meet him. All he’d said was: This is not a dinner date. Wear jeans, tennis shoes, and long sleeves.

She had half a mind to tell him to take his “non-date” into the mountains and make sure it was never found, but then again, she needed a day off from the stress of preparing the restaurant. What better way to spend it than jean clad and tempting the S&R expert who’d been featured in her fantasies last night?

Hopefully he was finally starting to see reason. The other night, he’d left her wanting more of him. She might have been naked on a table, but he’d cleaned up nicely with his button-up shirt and clean-shaven face. He was hot, and he’d come over ready to take her out. Part of her felt slightly guilty at her deception, but that dwindled when she remembered how well he’d eaten her…dessert.

“Gage?” she called out. The trees to her left rustled, and she spun. Something emerged from the thick canopy of shadows, and she stepped back and gasped.

Gage was in camo pants and a tight green T-shirt, and his face had war paint streaked across it. A massive knife was strapped to his thigh. Complete with a butch black watch and backpack, he looked like GI Joe come to life.

Yes, please.

She liked the way he cleaned up, but honestly, she loved the dirty, dangerous side of him even more. He was all man, muscle, and…

He pulled a small daisy from behind his back and handed it to her with a wink.

Romantic.

Only Gage could pull off the romantic version of Rambo.

She stood frozen. Maybe she should’ve gotten herself lost in the woods ages ago. Hell, if this guy came to her rescue, she’d play the part of the damsel in distress all day long.

“You look like you’re in shock there, sweetheart.” He tucked the daisy behind her ear. His fingers lingered a moment by her face, and she leaned into his touch. “I’m equipped to handle people in shock, you know?”

She struggled to stop staring and pause the naughty fantasies involving Gage and his camo. She’d be damned if she fell for whatever he was up to.

“I ah…” She blinked a few times, finally breaking her staring competition with his impressive pecs. “Just admiring the scenery.”

“Uh-huh.” He flexed his abs enough to call her bullshit. He knew exactly what scenery she was admiring.

“What’s going on?” she asked, trying to keep her voice normal. But he stepped closer, and those fantasies started to take over again. He looked rough, tough, and a little dirty, but he smelled like pine and spice, and she’d bet her salary he tasted like sweet cinnamon.

“I need you, sweetheart…” He took another step closer. “To be my victim.”

She frowned. “What? Is this one of those kinky sex games?” Because if so, sign me up.

“You wish.” He grinned. “But sadly, no. The team is doing a mock search and rescue. I want you to be my victim.”

That’s it? He’d called her out here, looking all hot and manly, only to ditch her in the woods? She was hot, bothered, and he’d barely touched her. Now he wanted her to play victim? And not in the cool, sexy way? Eff that.

“No thanks.” She crossed her arms. “I’d likely actually get lost and—”

“I’d stay with you the whole time.”

That perked her up. “Really?”

They’d be in the woods. Together. She could pull out her best seductress skills and see what he was packing under the camo.

He nodded. “Time is kind of an issue here, so if you’re in, I’ll take you now.”

Please take me now.

Chloe shook off the thought and tried to focus. She didn’t have much going on other than burning another attempt at crab cakes and ruining a perfectly good pan, so playing victim wasn’t such a bad idea. Especially if there was a chance she could lure him to her side of sex-induced-thinking.

“All right,” she said.

And he didn’t waste any time. He grabbed her hand and led them through the forest, walking with her for what seemed like forever.

At first, her seduction skills didn’t have a chance to work since he was tugging her quickly through the damn old country. She could barely breathe normally, much less speak.

“I thought this was a drill?” she said with a few panting breaths.

But he looked back at her, and damn him, he hadn’t even broken a sweat. Fuck cucumbers, Gage was as cool as the air-conditioning she’d left back at her place. Nope, Mr. Army of One was hiking this terrain like it was just another day. Which, for him, it probably was. His boots were steady even when walking on the uneven ground. He obviously knew what he was doing, which made her like him even more.

“It is a drill. But we have to make it count.” He glanced back at her and stopped. “Why don’t we take a quick break?”

Oh, thank God. She stretched and scanned the area.

“Good girl,” Gage said. “You’re taking in your surroundings. That’s a good sign that you’re a survivor.”

“Are you reading me now or just offering up lessons on survival?”

“Maybe both. Although, I’d like to think I have a good read on you already.” He winked.

She rolled her eyes, but he wasn’t wrong. Gage had her number and they both knew it. But this was a chance to dig deeper into his world. And honestly, she wanted to stay in the moment with him, especially since he was in all his sexy gear.

“Well then, why don’t you give me a lesson? If we have time, anyway…”

He smiled, but a serious look crossed his face. “There’s always time. Let’s start by testing your instincts.” He pulled out a black bandana from his pocket and tied it around her eyes.

Her world went dark. Gage’s breath hit her mouth. She wanted to inhale deeply and bring his mouth to hers, but he kept himself just out of reach.

“I’m going to walk a few yards away, and I want you to use your senses to try to figure out which direction I’m in.”

“You said you wouldn’t leave me alone,” she said quickly.

“I’d never leave you. I’ll have eyes on you the whole time. But I want to know if you can figure out a threat.”

“You’re not a threat,” she whispered. But that wasn’t totally true—he threatened her sanity and her stance on “casual-only encounters.” But she also trusted him so much that she was standing in the middle of God knew where, blindfolded and nodding like an idiot as he walked away from her.

Man…she was either really hard up or delusional. Or I like him.

No, definitely not. She was just hard up.

“Imagine you’re lost out here. You have to use your senses to survive. Your gut tells you when you’re not alone—listen to it. Now count to five, and then when you think you know where I am, take a step toward me.”

She nodded, but this felt like more than a standard drill. If she could figure out where Gage was, trust her gut, then move toward him…maybe it’d be a sign that the connection they had was more than casual.