Good. That would give him an advantage of sorts. “No, we’re going to do this now. Last night was no mistake, Riley. It was always going to happen. You know it. I know it.” He breezed his thumb over the bite mark he’d left on the curve of her shoulder. His wolf released a soft, contented growl, liking the sight of his brand on her skin. “The hell of it is you’re not even my type.”

Bristling, Riley lifted a brow. “Because I’m not inflatable?”

“Because you’re trouble. You might look harmless enough, but I know crazy when I see it.” He tapped her nose. “You, little raven, are far from sane.”

She smiled. “I think that’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”

Tao ground his teeth. It seemed impossible to offend her. It was probably a good thing, really, because it wasn’t wise to upset a raven. They were fierce, vengeful creatures with a wicked temper who always went for the face in a fight. Riley’s temper seemed to be hard to trigger, but he knew it would be a sight to behold if she ever lost it. A perverse part of him wanted to see it.

“For the record,” she began, “you’ve already told me that I’m trouble. Multiple times, in fact. It’s why you’ve been a shit to me since day one.”

“I’ll admit that I don’t handle change well, and my natural reflex to strangers is to reject them. I also have a problem trusting lone shifters, which is pretty common.” Most loners had been banished from their pack by their Alphas for a serious crime, and they often became guns for hire to earn money and protection, hence their particularly negative reputation. “You wouldn’t tell me why you’d become a loner, which didn’t help. So, yeah, I was a shit to you. But once I was satisfied that you mean no harm to this pack, I eased off.”

“But you still don’t trust me, do you?”

“I can’t say I fully trust you—I don’t know you well enough for that.” Tao wasn’t sure if anyone knew Riley that well. She was as elusive as quicksilver and kept most people at an emotional distance. “But be honest, baby, whose fault is that? You’re locked up tighter than Fort Knox.” It galled his wolf that he knew so little about this female he craved.

“I’m not that bad. I told you that I’d been lying when I said I needed sanctuary,” she pointed out.

“Actually, you didn’t ‘tell’ me,” he clipped. “You admitted it when I said you’re not the kind of person who’d hide from anything. I guessed that you claimed to need sanctuary just so you could accompany the kids here to be sure they were safe.” It had seemed obvious, given how protective she was of Savannah and Dexter, that she’d have wanted them far away from her if there was a chance she could bring danger to their lives.

“Stop scowling at me, it’s mean.” She sniffed haughtily. “I’m thinking I shouldn’t have bothered getting you a gift for your birthday.”

“Maybe you shouldn’t have. What the hell am I gonna do with a hot sauce home brewing kit anyway?”

“Duh, brew hot sauce.”

Tao sucked in a calming breath. “Too early for this shit, Porter. Too early.” He scrubbed a hand down his face. “You were put on this earth to test me, I’ll swear to it.”

“Aw, poor you. Maybe you should go find Grandma Gretchen,” she said, using her nickname for the Alpha male’s bitchy grandmother, Greta. “I’m sure she has your bottle all heated up for you.”

“Careful, Riley.” It was a lethal whisper. “You don’t want to keep pushing me. And don’t think I haven’t noticed that you’re trying to change the subject. We’re not going to ‘forget’ what happened last night, and we’re not going to leave this at a one-night stand.” To punctuate that, he pivoted on his heel and strode into the bedroom.

Riley stalked after him, snatching her robe from the back of the bathroom door as she went. Slipping it on, she glared at him. “Do I get a say in any of this?”

“Not if you’re going to spout more bullshit, no.” He buttoned his fly and then sat on the bed, where he began to tug on his socks and shoes. “I won’t let you lie to me or yourself about this. I won’t let you lie and say you regret it either—that insults us both.”

“I didn’t say I regretted it.”

“If you don’t regret it, why backtrack? Why?”

Exasperated, she asked, “Why do you care? You don’t even like me.”

“No, I let you think I didn’t like you. When people get close, you retreat into a shell.” Tao had needed to make her believe he presented no danger to her defenses. “I wasn’t going to let you shut me out.”

Riley’s mouth dropped open. Her raven too was stunned. “You’ve been playing me. That’s brilliantly devious.” Riley actually admired and respected the cunningness of it. Her raven did a metaphorical bow.

“I wouldn’t have to play you if you’d just let me past that wall you have up between you and most of the population.”

On one level Riley was an uncomplicated creature, he thought. She didn’t wear a social mask, seemed at ease with her flaws, and could be quite laid back—even in the face of conflict. But she was uncomfortable talking about herself and stuck to surface-level topics of conversation. At first he’d assumed she was hiding something, possibly something that would lead danger to his pack. But he’d soon come to realize it was much simpler than that. “Only ‘the chosen’ get close to you—right now that’s Makenna, Savannah, and Dexter.”

“Then why bother bugging me?”

“Because I don’t like that wall you have up, Riley. It’s in the way of what I want.”

Her heart slammed against her ribs. “I don’t understand why you’re pushing this. As you persistently point out, I drive you insane.”

“You deliberately rile me to hold me at a distance,” he corrected. She challenged him. Argued with him. Snorted at him. Poked at him. And yet Tao wanted her more than breath. She got his blood running in a way that no one else ever had. “No more, Riley.”

Tao knew he was going about this all wrong. A guy needed to approach Riley the same way he would a full-blooded raven. Carefully. Slowly. Not making any sudden movements. Trying to appear as nonthreatening as possible, as if he had no real intention of trying to catch it. Otherwise the bird would take flight and he’d miss his chance. But he just didn’t possess the patience or subtlety for such a careful approach.