Page 67 of Blake

He looked at Devon.

“Go.” She shooed him away. “I’ll still be here.”

Blake left with a muttered warning to Gwen not to corrupt his guest. Gwen waited until he was gone before dropping in the chair he’d been using.

Devon liked her. Blake’s teammate had an easy way about her that made people relax. But Gwen wasn’t careless. Far from it. The woman watched everything, even now.

“Mind if I ask you something?”

Devon met the woman’s pretty gaze. “Depends. Is this another interrogation about Blake, because I already did that earlier, with Janie.”

Gwen chuckled. “Nope. This one’s all about you.”

Devon set the drink she’d just sipped from down onto the table. “I’m not sure if that’s better or worse.”

“It’s nothing bad, I promise. I was just wondering if you’ve ever had any self-defense training.”

The question caught her off guard. “Uh, no. Not really.”

“Would you be interested in some? Free of charge, of course.”

Devon stared at her. Before Billy, she’d been the kind of woman who walked into a grocery store without considering the exits. Now she could barely stand in a checkout line without making mental notes about the people standing behind her.

The idea of deliberately practicing what to do if someone grabbed her again made her skin chill with both anticipation and fear.

“I don’t know,” she admitted softly.

“Fair answer.” Gwen rested her forearms on her knees. “I’m not talking about turning you into an MMA fighter overnight. Just a few things that might buy you enough time to get away. Some basic moves that can give you back some of that power you think you’ve lost. It’s still there, by the way.” Her gaze searched Devon’s. “We just need to find it again.”

Devon looked down at her hands. “I used to think I’d know what to do if somebody attacked me.”

“Most people think that.”

“I didn’t.”

Gwen sighed. “Most people are wrong.”

It wasn’t some cheerful assurance that she’d do better next time. Just the simple acknowledgement that most people are caught unaware, which made her feel better.

“What happened to you was terrible.” The other woman didn’t sugarcoat it. “And no one would blame you for being cautious after what you’ve been through. But if you want to learn a few skills while you’re here, I’m happy to teach you. If not, that’s cool, too. It’s your call.”

Devon glanced up. “You’d really do that for me?”

“Of course.” Gwen nodded with a smile. “Besides, it would be nice to train without being surrounded by so much testosterone. Don’t get me wrong, the guys are great and all, but sometimes⁠—”

“It’s a bit too much?”

“A bit.” Gwen smirked. “Sure. We’ll go with that.”

Devon laughed, but her smile faded as she considered the woman’s offer.

She couldn’t change what had happened to her, nor whether someone might try to hurt her again. But she could control how prepared she was if they did.

“Okay.” Devon sat up straight. “I’d like to try.”

Gwen looked pleased.

“Great. Tomorrow morning work? We’ve got a training room down the hall. And I promise we’ll keep it simple.”