“Did you just air quote morally?”

Not sure how to answer that, she said, “Just for clarity?” Probably would have sounded more believable without making it a question, but God, the bear had so many damn rules! How was she supposed to keep track of so many damn rules?

“I don’t think I want to hear any more,” he said.

“Well, I’m gonna go anyway.” Cella tapped the table with her fingertips. “A girl never wants to wear out her welcome. Besides, I just wanted to check on you. It’s the least I can do for my—”

“Pretend boyfriend?” He shook his head. “Explain to me why you can’t handle your aunts when you’re a KZS agent?”

“Contractor.”

“What?”

“I’m a contractor. They call, I go in. Otherwise, I play hockey, I argue with my kid, I sleep.”

“They call, you go in, and do ... what? Exactly?”

“Anything up to a thousand yards away.”

He stared at her, briefly confused. But then his eyes grew wide and he asked, “You can take out a target at—”

“Thousand yards away. Yeah. Can’t you?”

“No.”

“Yeah. I’m good. I get the feeling they want to promote me, though. That’s why they’ve been having me work with Smith and MacDermot. But I don’t want anything getting between me and the Carnivores, ya know? Hockey is always my priority, right under my kid and the family. Eliminating high-level targets is, like, number four or five on my list of things to do.”

“I don’t know what to say to that.”

“Fair enough. And as far as my aunts go, you’re the one who said it was wrong to beat up the elderly so—”

Crush’s eyes crossed. “You were leaving, right?”

She laughed, stood. “So you’ll look into Whitlan?”

“It’s not like I have any other options, now does it?”

“Not if you want it handled all legal and shit. But, hey, no matter what, you’re really helping me out with my family and I appreciate it. Thanks.”

“Yeah. You’re welcome.”

She winked at him and headed out, but she stopped in the kitchen doorway.

“Something wrong?” the bear asked her and she heard real concern in his voice.

Crush watched the She-tiger stand in his kitchen doorway. When she faced him, he didn’t know what she was thinking. She sized him up, her gaze moving from his feet to his face. Walking back into the kitchen, she grabbed one of the chairs and pulled it over until it was in front of him. Then she stood on it, bringing them eye to eye. Actually, she was already six feet tall, so she kind of stood over him now.

“Yes?” he asked.

“You sound suspicious.”

“You make mesuspicious.”

“I make everyone suspicious.” She wrapped her arms around his neck.

“Are you really going to kiss me now?” he felt the need to ask. “After everything that’s happened these last few hours?”

“Yep.”

“Why?”

“I could give you lots of reasons—”

“Give me two.”

“—but it’s mostly because I want to.”

“Oh ... that’s a good reason.”

Cella laughed and leaned in. Crush watched her, curious what she’d do.

He’d never been with a feline before. He usually stuck to full-humans or other bears. And considering the issues he had with this one female, he wasn’t sure why he was letting her kiss him now. Must be the curiosity thing. The true bane of his existence. It helped him as a cop, but had been known to completely fuck up his personal life. Then again, it could be that he needed to stop hooking up with women who had so much to hide. They never seemed that way on the surface, but once he dug a little ... well, that was always a mistake. And unlike some of the guys he knew on the force, he didn’t go in looking for something, didn’t start digging trying to find proof that the woman he was currently with was nothing but a liar or married or had a boyfriend or was a certified psychotic. Yet even without trying, these were the things he often found out and that often led to tears and anger and lots of screaming—none of which was from him. Crush was never quite sure how someone else’s criminal history hidden behind several layers of false names and Social Security numbers was his fault, but there you go.

Yet, as the feline pressed her face into his neck and sniffed, he had a feeling he wouldn’t have to dig anything up. Cella Malone was so direct it had a tendency to be off-putting. She seemed to have no qualms about discussing her work with KZS, easily admitting that, “Yeah, sure, I kill people for a living.” She was blunt and annoying and rude and insisted on involving him in the most ridiculous bullshit.

But when her nose rubbed against his neck and brushed against his ear, he kind of didn’t care about all that. Who would? What she was doing felt so good that at the moment, nothing mattered.

Malone’s forehead brushed against his chin, then his cheek, and yet she still hadn’t kissed him. Not yet.

“You always keep your eyes open?” she asked softly.

“I like to see what’s coming at me.”

“Oh, very nice.” She studied him. “You going to put your arms around me?” Crush still had his arms crossed over his chest.

“I’m comfortable.”

“Such a sexy, uptight hard-ass.” She rubbed her nose against his and despite his best intentions, Crush couldn’t help but smile.