He swings at my cheek so incredibly slow that I know he's holding back.
Snapping my head to the side, I dodge his blow with a roll of my eyes. “I'm not one of your untrained females, Darius. You don't need to hold back.”
“I can't hit you with full force,” he replies, his brows knitting together. “You're a woman.”
“That won't stop me from hitting you,” I reply with a shrug, right before I punch him in the nose.
A collective “Ooooohhhh” echoes within the trees.
Wiping beneath his nose, he studies the blood smeared on his fingertips with a shocked expression.
“Don't worry.” I grin. “I won't use my full strength on you, either.”
Blood no longer flowing with his immortal healing, he swipes away the last remnants of crimson and bares his teeth on a feral smile “Alright, let's see what you got.”
His fist whips out and I barely have time to block it with my forearm.
Shit, that was fast.
He swipes at my stomach and I suck in before leaping back, his fingertips grazing my vest.
He smirks. “Having second thoughts?”
“Are you?” I ask, and throw my elbow into his chin.
“Daaaaaamn!”
He stumbles back, expelling a loud guffaw, before rushing forward, rapid firing a series of jabs.
Blocking strike after strike, I retreat backwards, unnerved that I’m barely able to keep up with him. He swings a surprisingly powerful jab at my face and I crouch down, his arm passing over my head with a whistle of air as I punch him in the stomach. He grunts and reaches for me, but I spin around to his back and jab him in the kidney. He flinches, barely slowing as he spins to face me, but it's all the time I need. Becoming the aggressor, I throw strike after strike as he blocks and retreats.
“Godsdamn, look at her keeping up with the Captain,” Griffin says. “No one can keep up with him.”
“Isn't she human?” Kace asks.
“I didn't think humans could move like that,” Ajax marvels.
“You’d be surprised what we’re capable of,” Tristan says dryly, a hint of disapproval hidden within.
Their comments are a warning in themselves, but I ignore them. I’m too high on the adrenaline of having a worthy opponent to care about their words.
I manage to get a few more jabs in on Darius. Clipping his shoulder. Swiping at his ear. A kick to his hip. But the longer we spar, the more my energy wanes. My jabs slow, my movements are less coordinated, and my breathing becomes harsher, while Darius seems to be getting faster and more invigorated. Empowered. But he doesn't strike out at me. He watches with calculating blue eyes, tracking my every motion and learning my style.
I swing a fist at his shoulder, but he blocks it. When I jab at his throat, he blocks that, too. Growling in frustration, I aim for his nose once again, but he snaps his head to the side, laughing.
“Come on, Lena. Hit me.”
Temper spiking at his taunt, I feign a swipe with my right hand and drop to a crouch, punching his inner thigh with my left fist. Only a few inches from his groin.
He hisses and cups his balls. “Too close.”
I smile. “Not close enough.”
Eyes narrowing, Darius strikes out but I dodge it. Grabbing him by the forearm, I step into him and jab him in the armpit. He expels a loud grunt and I move to jump back outside his reach, but before I can he wraps his arms around me, pinning my arms to my sides and flattening me to his chest.
His eyes glitter in amusement as he looks down into my furious ones. “How are you going to get out of this one? Can't throw any cheap shots like this, can you?”
“None of those were cheap shots!” I shout, outraged at his comments as much as my predicament, squirming within his grip.
He chuckles and I still, narrowing my eyes on him, wanting nothing more than to smack that stupid dimpled smile off his face. I’m so focused on wanting to hit him, I miss my opportunity when he quickly unwinds one arm and slaps me on the ass. I shriek, too surprised to act before he re-bands his arm around me once again.
“I guess I'm not above cheap shots myself,” he says with an arrogant smirk.
Infuriated at my predicament, I wiggle and squirm, fighting to be released from my bonds, but his arms are like shackles.
“Keep wiggling like that and this’ll end much differently than you expected.”
I freeze, now noticing the tick of his jaw and his hardened length pressed up against me, lust clouding his gaze. A warmth pools into my belly and I allow a sliver of air to breathe through the bond, feeling his desire trickle down the link. A devious thought enters my mind and I throttle the bond in an instant. Arching into him, I lick my lips and his gaze drops to my mouth, his arms slackening. When he lowers his head toward mine and I can taste his breath on my tongue, I debate giving into him and allowing him this victory if it means I can finally have his lips upon mine.
But I'm much too competitive for that.
Groaning in regret, I swipe his arms away and push myself up by his shoulders, coiling my legs around his neck. Stumbling back, he grabs ahold of my ass on instinct before righting himself, his blue eyes peering up at me in surprise. A slow smile tugs at my lips and I wink before squeezing my thighs tighter. Throwing myself back, I flip my legs over my head along with Darius, who lands flat on his back with me sitting on his chest.
“Holy shit!” Trip shouts.
“Ooooh, that hurt,” Kace adds. “That hurt a lot.”
Squeezing his eyes shut, Darius groans in pain.
