Page 15 of Veiled Vengeance (The Devils of New York #3)

SPENCER

B reathe. Aim. Bend. Release.

The knife embeds itself at the bottom of the target, nowhere near the bullseye. “Damnit.”

Rio smirks next to me. “You’re at least hitting the target. And it might help if you aim with both eyes open.”

Giving him a deadpan glare, I cross my arms. “Very funny. Mr. Flores is full of jokes today.”

Zane snickers on my other side. I attempt to give him the same look I gave to Rio, but when I lay my eyes on his profile, I fail.

I melt into a puddle of goo as I trace the line of his jaw with my gaze.

My pussy clenches, empty and begging to be filled, as I remember the other night on their living room floor.

Focus. Training, not banging.

Blinking away my horny haze, I clear my throat and turn back to the target. “Both eyes open. Got it.”

Walking to retrieve my knife, I take in the warehouse one more time. When Rio, Asher, and Zane brought me, Dahlia, and Hayes here on Monday, I thought they had lost their minds. I don’t know what it is with men who kill and warehouses—it must be a requirement. Is there a book on this shit?

Rule #1: If you want to kill people, you must own a warehouse.

The warehouse is a little smaller than .

. . the only other warehouse I’ve ever been in.

And thank God, this one is nothing like the first. The floors are concrete but clean, and there’s more lighting that illuminates the space.

Rows of metal shelves cover one-half of the warehouse, and the guys arranged the other half as a training space for me, Dahlia, and Hayes.

Rio grabbed a couple of targets from somewhere amongst the sea of shelves.

Asher and Zane had no idea where Rio got those, or when he even brought them here.

When asked those questions, he answered with a shrug. “I’m like a Boy Scout—always prepared.”

That first day was a mess. I thought I had a good aim, but that was proven wrong.

My hand-to-hand combat skills passed my guys’ inspection, but they said they didn’t want me to have to rely on them because then that would mean that someone is too close.

So, Rio insisted I learn how to use knives. That, too, was a disaster.

At least I’m hitting the target today.

Dahlia made a point to let us know she doesn’t like violence. But when her self-defense and shooting were tested, she was a natural.

Hayes’s skills with a gun were a shock. Rio and Zane put a Glock on the table in front of him and said, “Show us.” He kept eye contact with Rio and Zane while he disassembled the gun completely, then reassembled it in under one minute.

The guys said that Dahlia and Hayes were good to go, but apparently, I still need help. Hence the useless target practice.

The guys have been taking me out, teaching me what they call “survival skills.” We usually go to the warehouse or “The Bat Cave,” as I have come to call it, and go over hand-to-hand combat, shooting, knife-throwing, or anything that could help me strike and get away.

Ripping the knife out of the wooden target, I return to my place ten feet away, between Rio and Zane.

Breathe. Aim. Bend. Release.

The knife lands in the second ring from the bullseye.

“Yes!” I exclaim, jumping up and down.

Rio lifts me up and spins me around. “ Bien hecho , Mama!” Well done.

He sets me down and gives me a quick, passionate kiss, then passes me to Zane, who gives me a congratulatory hug and a kiss as well. I step back with a huge smile on my face.

The door squeaks open as Asher ambles in. He’s wearing the sling, despite his constant complaining. None of us will let him take it off.

“Hey! You finally hit the target,” Asher teases.

I shoot him a menacing glare. “Fuck off.”

My swearing amuses him, which only makes me more flustered.

“We need to load up,” Asher informs Rio and Zane. “I want us prepared in case anything happens. Anthony and Pierce have been too quiet lately.”

“Good idea,” Rio comments.

They all spread out amongst the various wood crates and metal shelves and begin to dig through them.

“Umm. What should I do?” I shuffle from foot to foot.

Zane tosses me a plain black duffle bag. “You heard Asher. Load up.”

Asher puts his hand on the small of my back and leads me over to Rio and Zane. I feel that spark zip through me at his touch. Lord, these men have turned me into a very horny woman.

Not now, vagina. You need to learn timing.

Asher hands me a duffle bag and says, “Grab what you want—however much you want.” I still have no idea where these bags are coming from.

“Words every woman wants to hear. Although I won’t lie, I always imagined it would happen in a store on fifth.” I laugh as I peer into the wooden crates.

Guns, ammo, zip ties, and grenades. All that and more.

“Noted,” he says with a wink and starts to fill his own bag.

I wander from crate to shelf and back, checking out all their “supplies.” I grab some handguns and the proper ammo, but this bag is getting heavier by the second. So much for working out, I can barely hold this dumb duffle bag.

“I got you.” Rio appears next to me and takes the bag from my hands.

“Where’s your bag?”

“I already grabbed everything I need,” he says while looking me up and down appreciatively.

My face immediately heats, and I stumble over my words. “Oh. Well. That’s good. That’s important. To have what you need, I mean. When you need it.”

He sets my bag down, tugs me by my waist, and brings my body flush with his. “I’ll always have what I need because I’m never letting you go, Mama.” I begin panting at his words and feel my heart beat rapidly. Staring into his eyes, I can see the fire—his need for me. I feel it wash over me.

“Rio? Spencer? Ready to go?” Zane calls out for us.

I break away from his gaze and sigh, looking around.

“Too bad we’re leaving already. This place would be so fun to play hide-and-seek,” I say with a fake pout and attempt to pull away, but Rio doesn’t let go.

I look back and see that fire burning hotter. “You have no idea what you just started, Mama,” he says with a wide, crazed smile.

“What are you talking about?”

“We enjoy the hunt, Spencer. Especially when we’re together.”

At his truth, my eyes widen. They would never hurt me—I know that. I’m safe with them. Always will be. I just never imagined that they felt that way.

“Hey, guys!” Rio calls for Asher and Zane.

Now I’m thoroughly confused. What is going on? Are we really going to play a child’s game?

“What’s up?” Asher questions as he and Zane round a metal shelf and come into view.

“Spencer, here, wants to play a little game,” Rio says to them without looking away from me.

“I just said that it would be fun to play hide-and-seek. I always had fun playing it at friends’ houses growing up and was really good at it,” I defend myself. I don’t want to seem young and childish.

I may be inexperienced. Or I was inexperienced.

Zane and Asher grin at each other and prowl forward, that same crazed fire burning in their eyes, matching Rio. Why do I feel like I walked into a viper’s nest?

Rio slides his hands down to my ass and squeezes as Zane crowds me on the right, leaning down to trail his nose along the length of my neck. Asher stands to my left and grabs my chin firmly, angling my face to look at him.

“You gonna hide for us, Baby?”

“You mean hide from you,” I corrected him.

“No. Hide for us,” he says right before he smashes his lips to mine. I instantly open my mouth, and he takes full advantage of my submission, swiping his tongue into my mouth seductively.

My body is overwhelmed with sensation. Zane lightly bites my neck while his hands pull the V of my shirt lower. Once my bra is exposed, Rio comments, playfully, “Black lace? Mama, were you planning on seducing us?”

Maybe . . .

I pull away from Asher to refute Rio’s claim, but he grabs my hair with one hand and pulls, forcing me to look back at him.

“You have sixty seconds to run and hide before we find you, and when we do, Rio is going to fuck that sweet pussy of yours and Zane is going to fuck your throat.”

My pussy throbs and I swallow hard. I don’t deny I want it—their touch. I’m desperate for it.

Instead, I ask, “What are you going to do if you find me?”

“ When I find you, I get to fuck your tight little ass.”

I gasp and my heart picks up speed. Do I want that? I’ve never done that before. I’ve heard women whisper about it. Some say it’s fun. Some say it’s miserable.

But my body still yearns for their touch and my panties are even more wet than they were before. I’d say it’s safe to assume I want that too.

Rio leans down so he’s right in my face. “Run.”

They all let go at once, but I don’t move. Shock, fear, excitement, and arousal all surge through me, leaving me paralyzed and speechless.

“One, two, three—” Rio begins to count. That snaps me out of my stupor, and I bolt. A quick glance behind me reveals Asher removing his sling and wearing a huge smile.

I didn’t get a good look around when I was on my weapon shopping spree.

So, I’m relying on instinct and adrenaline.

But after what Asher said, do I even want to hide?

Yes and no. I want to prove I can hide well, even if this game seems childish.

However, this version of the game seems anything but youthful.

I want them to own my body. To take what I’m willing to give.

And I want them to give me what they’re offering: pleasure I’ve never experienced before.

“Twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four—” Rio continues.

Shit. I need a hiding spot.

Sweat begins to form on my brow as I keep running.

Feeling like I’ve gone far enough, I stop and look around. There’s a wooden crate filled with . . . binoculars.

What the hell? Who needs a whole crate of binoculars?

“I hope you at least make this a little difficult for us!” Zane shouts.

Fuck. Okay. Time for instinct.