“Hardly anyone, I guess. Just a place left to us a long time ago so we’d always have some place to retire.”
He wasn’t satisfied with the answer. “Who maintains it?”
“Little old lady about half a mile from here. I pay her to come through and clear out the cobwebs, mostly.”
Victor kept his attention on the surrounding trees and any shadows that moved or seemed out of place. He hadn’t forgotten that the lycans should be hot on his tail by now, wanting answers or his hide. If they showed up now, he’d be short on answers to supply them.
Lucy’s damp hair clung to her neck, her cheeks growing ruddy as the minutes passed. She didn’t complain, working through the moves they’d been practicing. His goal was to make sure she did the punches, lunges and jabs by rote. No thinking involved. Pure, graceful action.
He ducked as Lucy overextended her reach. To teach her a lesson, he slapped her hand down.
“ Ouch! ”
“You’re getting lazy.”
“I’m tired.”
“Or lazy. Same thing.” Victor narrowed his eyes as he studied her. Although she hadn’t mentioned it, now that he looked closer, he could see that her arms trembled. Determination kept her working. Soon fatigue would win out, and she’d be useless to do much more. If he wanted to collect on his earnings—and God knew he did—she needed to rest beforehand.
On some level he knew it made him a selfish bastard, but that didn’t stop him from calling out, “Stop.” She shook out her hands and arms, no doubt trying to ease the burning in her muscles. “I think you’ve done enough for now. Let’s put an end to our wager.”
“You can’t keep changing the rules.”
“Of course I can. Let me show you.” He stalked closer to her, and before she could react, Victor threaded his fingers into the damp strands of her hair. He forced her head back and, although he’d just taught her a variety of close contact self-defense maneuvers, Lucy allowed it.
Her plump lips opened a fraction, inviting him to sweep his tongue over them and taste her. His gaze did a slow crawl over her mouth. It moved up, until he could stare into her eyes. The green melted into a darker color with flecks of gold. Tonight, the moon blessed her with eyes that seemed shiny bright.
She looked at him with... desire ?
But that made no sense. Lucy made a bargain with him out of necessity. Her venom toward vampires overrode almost everything. Yet, when he stared into those eyes, he saw a flicker of passionate emotion in them. And although she might be panting from exertion, the rapid race of her heart suggested something else stirred her.
“You should be fighting me,” he murmured. His cock hardened beyond possibility, a distraction he could ill afford. It wasn’t enough to force his fingers to let her go though.
Despite the warning, Lucy kept looking at him through half-lidded eyes. In that moment, he knew he had her trust. He doubted any other man would have been allowed to hold her in such a vulnerable position, throat exposed, breasts thrust high in the air, yet she gave him the luxury. This she might have done as a blood slave, bought and paid for by a vampire, but now, as a free woman, she did it for some other unnamed reason.
Slowly—oh, so slowly—she reached up to him, grasping his upper arms. His skin sizzled beneath her touch.
Lucy then twisted in a move he hadn’t taught her, breaking out of his hold and landing in a perfect plank. Victor grinned but dropped back, getting ready for the assault she’d just announced. “So it’s on, huh?”
“I’ll try to take it easy on you. What counts as a tag?”
“Grab a stake. You manage to touch me with either end, and you’ve won the night.”
“Just touch?”
“That’s it.” He made it sound simple, but they both knew the odds were against her. Victor toyed with the idea of offering a handicap, but his mind flashed to a vicious image of Sage. Eyes red and wild, incisors bared. He’d be quick to
He wasn’t satisfied with the answer. “Who maintains it?”
“Little old lady about half a mile from here. I pay her to come through and clear out the cobwebs, mostly.”
Victor kept his attention on the surrounding trees and any shadows that moved or seemed out of place. He hadn’t forgotten that the lycans should be hot on his tail by now, wanting answers or his hide. If they showed up now, he’d be short on answers to supply them.
Lucy’s damp hair clung to her neck, her cheeks growing ruddy as the minutes passed. She didn’t complain, working through the moves they’d been practicing. His goal was to make sure she did the punches, lunges and jabs by rote. No thinking involved. Pure, graceful action.
He ducked as Lucy overextended her reach. To teach her a lesson, he slapped her hand down.
“ Ouch! ”
“You’re getting lazy.”
“I’m tired.”
“Or lazy. Same thing.” Victor narrowed his eyes as he studied her. Although she hadn’t mentioned it, now that he looked closer, he could see that her arms trembled. Determination kept her working. Soon fatigue would win out, and she’d be useless to do much more. If he wanted to collect on his earnings—and God knew he did—she needed to rest beforehand.
On some level he knew it made him a selfish bastard, but that didn’t stop him from calling out, “Stop.” She shook out her hands and arms, no doubt trying to ease the burning in her muscles. “I think you’ve done enough for now. Let’s put an end to our wager.”
“You can’t keep changing the rules.”
“Of course I can. Let me show you.” He stalked closer to her, and before she could react, Victor threaded his fingers into the damp strands of her hair. He forced her head back and, although he’d just taught her a variety of close contact self-defense maneuvers, Lucy allowed it.
Her plump lips opened a fraction, inviting him to sweep his tongue over them and taste her. His gaze did a slow crawl over her mouth. It moved up, until he could stare into her eyes. The green melted into a darker color with flecks of gold. Tonight, the moon blessed her with eyes that seemed shiny bright.
She looked at him with... desire ?
But that made no sense. Lucy made a bargain with him out of necessity. Her venom toward vampires overrode almost everything. Yet, when he stared into those eyes, he saw a flicker of passionate emotion in them. And although she might be panting from exertion, the rapid race of her heart suggested something else stirred her.
“You should be fighting me,” he murmured. His cock hardened beyond possibility, a distraction he could ill afford. It wasn’t enough to force his fingers to let her go though.
Despite the warning, Lucy kept looking at him through half-lidded eyes. In that moment, he knew he had her trust. He doubted any other man would have been allowed to hold her in such a vulnerable position, throat exposed, breasts thrust high in the air, yet she gave him the luxury. This she might have done as a blood slave, bought and paid for by a vampire, but now, as a free woman, she did it for some other unnamed reason.
Slowly—oh, so slowly—she reached up to him, grasping his upper arms. His skin sizzled beneath her touch.
Lucy then twisted in a move he hadn’t taught her, breaking out of his hold and landing in a perfect plank. Victor grinned but dropped back, getting ready for the assault she’d just announced. “So it’s on, huh?”
“I’ll try to take it easy on you. What counts as a tag?”
“Grab a stake. You manage to touch me with either end, and you’ve won the night.”
“Just touch?”
“That’s it.” He made it sound simple, but they both knew the odds were against her. Victor toyed with the idea of offering a handicap, but his mind flashed to a vicious image of Sage. Eyes red and wild, incisors bared. He’d be quick to
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