Page 40 of Run Little Fawn

Behind me, Lucian stirs, his arm tightening around my waist. "Good morning, little fawn," he murmurs, his voice rough with sleep. "Sleep well?"

I shiver.

I'm fucking insane, aren't I?

I swallow hard, trying to ignore the way my body reacts to the sound of his voice, to the feel of his breath against my neck. "As well as can be expected, given the circumstances."

He chuckles, the sound sending a shiver down my spine. "And what circumstances would those be? Waking up in the arms of a man who gave you more pleasure than you've ever known?"

I elbow him in the ribs, a futile gesture of defiance. "Waking up in the arms of a psychopath who's hunting me for sport," I mutter.

"Ah, but what a way to go." I can hear the smirk in his voice, the dark amusement that never seems to leave him. "Speaking of which, it's time to start your training."

I twist in his arms, facing him with my brow furrowed. "For what?"

He brushes a strand of hair from my face, his touch gentle despite the calluses on his fingers. He has the face of a model and the hands of a fucking hitman. "To become better prey, of course. I did promise to help you, didn't I?"

I stare at him, searching for any hint of deception in his gray eyes. But as always, he's an unreadable mask, his true intentions hidden behind a veil of charm and danger.

I guess he wasn't just saying that to get me into bed, after all.

"And why would you do that? Why help me when you're just going to hunt me down again?"

His lips curve into a smile that doesn't quite reach his eyes. "Because I want you at your best when I catch you, as I said before. I want a challenge, not a lamb to the slaughter."

I shudder again. "Alright," I say, my voice steady despite the pounding of my heart. "What did you have in mind?"

He sits up, the sheets falling away to reveal his muscled torso.

"Get dressed. We're going for a little trip."

The woods are quiet, the only sound the crunch of leaves beneath our feet. Lucian leads the way, his strides long and sure, while I struggle to keep up. My body aches from the previous night's activities, and there are bruises blooming on my skin like dark flowers.

Eventually, we emerge into a small clearing, the trees giving way to a grassy expanse. In the center, there's a makeshift shooting range, with targets set up at varying distances.

When the hell did he set this up?

I turn to Lucian, my eyebrows raised in question. "What is all this?"

He shrugs, a casual gesture that belies the intensity in his eyes. "I told you, I'm going to train you. And the first lesson is learning to shoot."

I blink at him, surprise and apprehension warring within me. "You want me to learn to shoot? Why?"

He steps closer, his hand coming up to cup my cheek. "Because I might not always be the only one hunting you, little fawn. There are others out there, predators who would love nothing more than to sink their teeth into your sweet flesh."

I shudder at the thought, at the idea of being pursued by someone other than Lucian. As twisted as our game is, there's a strange sense of safety in knowing that he has a code, however warped it may be.

"And you think a gun will protect me?" I mutter.

He smiles, a sharp, dangerous thing. "It's a start. But more than that, it will give you confidence, the ability to fight back. And that, my dear fawn, is the most valuable weapon of all."

With that, he steps back, reaching into his waistband to pull out a sleek, black handgun. He holds it out to me, handle first, his eyes never leaving mine. "Take it."

I hesitate, my hand hovering over the gun. It feels wrong somehow, to take this weapon from him, to accept his help in a game where he's the ultimate enemy. But what choice do I have? If I'm going to survive this, I need every advantage I can get.

Could I just… shoot him?

My finger twitches impulsively at the thought and he holds the gun back a few inches, like it's a candy bar and I'm a baby that just grabbed for it too early.

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