Okay, so now she was sure she was being followed.

And she couldn’t help breaking into a run, chickenshit-style.

Riiiight into a blind alley.

Sara Kali help her!

She shrugged off her backpack and it thudded against the pavement. Drawing the switchblade knife concealed in her cleavage, Aniki turned.

“Okay, I know you’re out there,” she said, her voice surprisingly calm.

No answer.

Aniki hesitated, her breath blowing out in a cloud of steam.

She felt the brush of a magical aura. It felt very much male.

Cold sweat pooled at the small of her back. She hated being scared. Hated being forced against a wall. Withdrawing a step, she pressed the button on the knife’s grip. A stiletto blade sprang out in a silvery flash.

“Come here, pussy, pussy,” she hissed. “That’s what you want, right? A virgin pussy? Come on in here and get it!”

“An interesting choice of words.”

Aniki screamed. She just couldn’t help it.

A man emerged from the shadows. Apparently he’d stood much closer to her than she’d thought. Her pulse did a summersault. It’s just that the kidnapper was drop-dead gorgeous! Her gaze climbed up—over six feet up­—to a square-jawed face half-drowned in shadow.

He took a closer step, and she took a closer look.

Black sneakers. Black, form-fitting jeans that molded muscular thighs and lean hips. A black turtleneck intimately hugging his abs and pecs underneath an ankle-length overcoat. His raven hair was pulled back in a ponytail. He had sultry dark eyes that made her want his hands all over her body, and the juiciest pair of lips she’d ever seen on a man.

Wisps of his magic leaked out, though he cloaked most of it. The little she got was enough to make her weak at the knees. It felt familiar somehow. Right now, she just couldn’t place it.

It occurred to her that she was still holding the knife. By now it was lolling harmlessly by her right thigh. Gritting her teeth, she jerked the blade up and posed in her best defense stance.

“That’s much better.” His lips quirked. “You are aware that the Arkansas state law prohibits carrying a blade longer than three-and-a-half inches?”

“Yeah?” She gave his crotch a meaningful look. “Seems to me that what you’re packing is in serious violation of the state law.”

A dark brow lifted slightly. “Hell, babe.” He sounded amused. “That mouth is sure looking for trouble.”

“T-trouble?”

He moved toward her with a predatory grace.

Aniki gasped, backing away, bumping into the wall.

Towering above her, he reached down, easily plucking the knife from her hand.

“Shit,” she mumbled, staring up into his face. She was momentarily lost in the rugged planes and sharp angles blending into a harmony of masculine beauty.

A disturbing thought snapped her out of Fantasy Realm. Dammit, he let me see his face! Did that mean he was planning to kill her?

He propped his left hand against the wall, brushing her shoulder. His right held the knife up as he examined the blade. Aniki dared not breathe. She swallowed nervously, the cold steel gleaming way too close to her face.

With a flick of his thumb, he retracted the blade. Tucking the knife beneath his coat, his hot gaze centered back on her face.

Her eyes darted sideways in search of escape.

He placed his other hand on the wall so that both his arms were now caging her. Her cheeks flushed as she grew painfully aware of the man’s blend of body heat, musky aroma and potent magic. Nerve-wrackingly slow, his face came down over hers. Her teeth bit into her bottom lip. Her head pressed back against the wall and yet she couldn’t help staring into his eyes. The erotic, dark heat they gave off was spellbinding.

He stopped, oh-so close to her mouth. His breath flowed across her lips in a drawn-out, steady rhythm, charging her body with heat like a shot of strong brandy.

“Y-you’re gonna kill me, right?” she managed in a breathy whisper.

He examined her face closely as if he were actually considering the offer. One corner of his mouth turned up. “I should’ve introduced myself sooner, I guess,” he murmured. “Special Agent Rick Spade, FBI.”