When he sat across from Banner, his expression was unenthusiastic.

“Did I mention she’s hot?”

Trevor laughed. “If she was hot she wouldn’t have trouble finding a date. You’d be banging her.”

Really? “Trev, you’ve known me for years. Would I choose a girl based solely on looks? Fucking a hot girl does nothing for me if our kinks don’t match up.” He pushed an artsy menu at Trev. “As for Kate, if she was into what I was into, I’d never let you meet her. She’s hot, funny, and looking for someone to introduce her to kink without being a jerk about it.”

The server came and took Trev’s coffee order. His friend watched the girl’s ass as she walked away and Banner felt like rolling his eyes. Maybe Trev had been a mistake. He liked hanging out with the guy, and his last sub had adored him until she’d moved to Prague for work, but maybe he wasn’t the right guy for Kate.

“So, if she’s so awesome, why aren’t you training her for yourself? Aren’t you still free of responsibilities?”

A twinge of annoyance set his teeth on edge. “I am, but she’s new and not sure what she wants. Trying to convince her she wants to be a slave this early on doesn’t seem fair to her. I also don’t have the patience to train a new girl for ages only to find out that she finds my tastes disturbing.”

“What about working her up to it slowly?”

Not him too. Had he been talking to Ambrose?

“Stealth training?” Banner smiled regretfully. “That’s not exactly consensual. I’m not going to subtly brainwash her. She seems to have a strong submissive side, but I get the feeling it’ll be a cold day in hell before she lets someone master her.”

Trev’s coffee came along with a refill for Banner. He wasn’t sure if he should stay or let them talk alone, but he was worried Kate wouldn’t be open about what she wanted without moral support. But what did she want? Maybe he should have stuck with meeting her alone at first, until they got her interests sorted out, but the urges he got when he was around her, or even just texting her, were anything but gentlemanly.

Having the wolf guard Little Red Riding Hood had not only been a bad idea, but it was especially hard on the poor, starving wolf.

Through the big storefront window he watched Red as she slipped out of a Kia four door and made her way toward the café entrance. She was wearing a floral sundress that revealed a lot of bare skin and sandals that crisscrossed to her knee, showing her long legs to their best advantage. No tattoos or marks of ownership on her pristine flesh. No collar on her neck.

And this goddess wanted someone to teach her about kink.

Trev wasn’t good enough.

When her gaze met his, she smiled shyly and looked at the ground in front of her—probably looking for the curb, but for today he’d let himself pretend it was a reaction to him.

“She’s here. Be nice.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Trev craned his neck to see who Banner was looking at and then whistled low. “Fuck! Are you sure you don’t want her for yourself? That hair alone would win me over, but with the body and the pretty face. Damn, she’d better have the personality to make that a package deal.”

Pretty? He thought she was pretty? Pretty was like a seven. On a scale of one to ten, Kate was a solid twenty-three. Maybe Trev needed glasses.

That morning Banner had finally admitted to himself that he wanted her. He’d caught himself checking his phone more often than usual, half hoping for another text from her, but she hadn’t sent anything. He’d read over the figging conversation a few times, and although it was funny as hell, something about it turned him on. Whether it was that she’d gone immediately to him with her question, or that he’d thought of defiling her in several different ways since then, she’d been lurking in the recesses of his mind and making it hard to focus on work. Or maybe it was that Ambrose wouldn’t stop teasing him about her.

Not for me.

He rose to his feet as she approached and held out the chair beside him, so that she and Trev were facing each other, but not directly. Hopefully it would make it easier for them to talk but with less pressure than sitting directly across from each other.

As she took her seat, his fingertips accidentally brushed the silky skin of her bare back. The buzz it sent through his fingers made him flinch as if he’d been burned. A small shiver ran through her, and for a moment her gaze found his before sliding demurely away. Without artifice, she tilted her head slightly and exposed the side of her neck.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

Would it be so wrong to drag her back to his place and find out what else made her shiver?

When they’d settled into their chairs, Trev turned to her and smiled widely.

“Pleased to meet you, Kate. Banner has told me a lot about you.”

She smiled back at Trev, and a spark of jealousy shot through Banner. Silently, he told his possessive urges to shut up. This was about her, and her future, not about his whims.

“He told you how clueless I am?” She scrunched her nose and laughed.

“You’re new. There’s nothing wrong with being clueless.” Trev sipped at his coffee. “I’m sure any number of people would be glad to show you the ropes, so to speak.”

Ba-dum ching. Banner groaned inwardly.

The server came and took Kate’s order. Tea. He watched how she fixed it, the smooth movements of her hands speaking to how often she drank it.

Kate and Trev chatted for a few minutes. Although they got along at first, Banner could see that as Trev continued to talk about himself and what he wanted, Kate started to lose interest. Some subs liked guys who were somewhat self-centered, but apparently that wasn’t one of Kate’s turn-ons.

“. . . so that’s why I prefer a sub that’s good at reading me. Are you good at reading people?”

“When I choose to be.” She raised her chin and the subtle challenge made Banner shift in his chair. How would Trev respond to her stubborn side?

“Well, generally submissives choose to be good at reading their Doms. It makes for a happier relationship.” He beamed at her and leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms.

“And Doms try their best to read their subs, too, of course?” She turned her head to look at Banner. He saw the mischief in her eyes and the smile for him alone and wondered if she was deliberately flirting with him, or if she just thought it was funny to goad Trev.

“I generally know what my subs need.”

“As a result of getting to know them or from assuming you know what they want better than they do?”

The girl had a point.

“It’s not hard to figure out what a woman wants most days, as long as you don’t let them put on airs. If a sub is a diva, it means the Dom isn’t doing his or her job.”

If Trev couldn’t figure out how to take Kate’s sense of humor as well as stop being a douche bag, this was never going to work.

“Wanting to have your needs met is different than being a diva.” She shook her head in disgust. “Thinking you know what a woman wants without talking to her isn’t always going to work. I can’t see how that would make for a good relationship.”

“Women are simple creatures. I haven’t had any complaints,” Trev said smugly.

Her brows went up in disbelief. “Did you take the ball gag out long enough to check?”

Trev’s mouth tightened.

Great.

“Hey, you two. I think you’re getting a little off track.” Banner laughed, hoping to cut the growing tension.

“No, she’s not mine.” Trev waved a hand. “There’s no reason to mince words here. It’s better to know we’re not compatible now instead of finding out later.”

“Yeah, I doubt this’ll work. It was nice to meet you, Trev.”

That was it? What a waste of time.

Trev snorted and stood when she did. “You’re a bit of a brat, Kate. Brats aren’t my thing, but you seem like a nice girl. Good luck finding someone ballsy enough to take you on.”