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or I could retreat down the porch steps, which was probably what he wanted.
    I tilted my chin back, meeting his challenging gaze. It was kind of like staring a bear down inside his own cave . . . no pun intended. It was good that he was glaring at my face, because he might have seen how my hands trembled otherwise.
    His face was so close that I could feel his warm breath against my cheek, the dark eyes that had seemed so beautiful from a distance narrowed in on my face. “What did I tell you about that name?”
    “That you didn’t like it.” When he spoke in that sultry tone, it didn’t sound nearly as intimidating as expected. “It’s not for your benefit. It’s for his.”
    “Apologize.”
    What? “Hell, no. This isn’t kindergarten. I didn’t say anything worth apologizing over.”
    He simply continued to stare down at me, waiting.
    “You’re not going to bully me into doing what you want.” I shoved a hand against his chest, warning him to back off. But Ramsey didn’t move, and my hand ended up lying against the very warm, rock-hard chest that was barely contained by his button-down flannel shirt.
    He seemed to almost lean into my small hand; his face was pressing so close to mine that if I moved forward, our noses would touch.
    “Here’s the thing, Ramsey,” I said, swallowing hard. “You said people have to believe that we’re in love. So you going around telling me to apologize really isn’t going to fly this week. The dopey pet name is good for our disguise, even if you don’t like it. We have to work together. You scratch my back, I scratch yours.”
    “Scratching,” he repeated, murmuring the word as if tasting it. “You know that shifters are very . . . hands-on.” His nostrils flared, almost as if he was sniffing me.
    “I know,” I said softly. I wished I could forget.
    “You’re up for this? Pretending to be mated? It’s not going to be easy.” His tone was harsh.
    “I’ll be fine. It’s too late to back out,” I repeated in a firm voice. All I had to do was pretend to be in love with an irascible man for a few weeks. No problem. Some hand-holding, some fake affection, a few shifting lessons, and then Connor would go home to the wolves and I could go back to my regular life.
    A sound rumbled low in Ramsey’s throat, and as the puffs of breath tickled my face I realized he was laughing. “If the wolf’s living with us, we’re going to have to be affectionate around him.”
    “I know.” Though I hadn’t thought about it when I’d come up with my brilliant plan. Way to go, Sara.
    “You’ve seen the way your sister acts aroundBeau. Are you ready for me to touch you? Kiss you? Sleep in the same bed? Because once we go inside the house, there’s no backing out.”
    My throat went dry at those images. Bath and Beau always had their hands all over each other. “Are you trying to back out—”
    “No,” he growled.
    “Then I want to lay some ground rules.” I lifted my hand from his chest and raised one finger. “Number one—no sex. If I wanted to pretend in bed, I’d call my last boyfriend.”
    His dark gaze flared, and he gave me an odd look. “Pretend?”
    Was he insulted . . . or challenged? I didn’t want to ask. “Number two,” I said, wagging a second finger next to the first. “I call the shots. If I’m tired of kissing you, or holding your hand, or whatever it is bears do in public, then we stop.”
    Ramsey continued to study me, his gaze ultra-focused. “Anything else?”
    “Number three,” I said, uncurling another finger. “You keep my secrets, I’ll keep yours. If I say I don’t want to talk about something, I don’t want to talk about it. And if I show up with a wolf snout because I can’t figure out how to change back, I don’t want you mocking me or making me feel like a freak.”
    Ramsey’s hot gaze raked over me. “You’re not a freak. You’re perfect,” he said in a low voice, and before I could blush, he added, “but