Page 74 of The Red Queen

Though weaker than Desi at takedowns, Giovanni held his own. He was surprisingly fast and light on his feet for a man of his height. She decided he must spend equal time in the gym, working out with expert opponents, as he did behind a desk. He could easily take on some of the world’s best mixed martial artists.

At one point, he discarded his shirt, and she was faced with a distracting wall of sweaty male muscles. Giovanni gave as good as he got, never once pulling his punches, which earned him Desi’s respect. She hated when a male opponent went easy on her, and she made a point to quickly show them the error of their ways.

Giovanni rolled toward her, gazing down at her with admiration. “You are fucking magnificent.” The warmth in his gaze told her he truly enjoyed their match.

She glowed at his words. “You’re not so bad yourself, but you can use some work on your takedowns.”

He sat up, shoving a hand through his damp hair, spiking it up and momentarily distracting her. “What do you mean?” His tone was serious, not defensive, telling Desi he really wanted to know.

She sat up too, maneuvering herself so she was sitting opposite him. “You’re great with the basics, but you need to work on your follow through and holds. You won’t always have a weapon to finish, so you need to incapacitate on the mat.”

He pushed himself to his feet and reached a hand down to her. Desi winced as he pulled her to her feet and took another boxing stance. “Show me. Nice and slow and explain along the way.”

“I’m going to grip your shoulder with my right hand, but if you were in an actual combat situation, you would take hold of your opponent’s collar for a better grip. I’m going to step back with my left foot, pulling you with me. You see how you automatically shifted your weight to your right foot in preparation to break my hold?” he nodded, and she continued, “Now I take advantage of that slight shift in balance by sweeping my right foot under yours from heel to toes.” When she completed the action, he stumbled and she reached down, gripped his ankle and yanked while simultaneously shoving him back with her hand on his shoulder. He hit the mat hard, and she went down with him. “Now you finish.”

She mimed smashing the heel of her hand into his nose.

“Let me try.”

He lifted her off him and they stood, reversing positions, Giovanni taking Desi down as she’d instructed him. She corrected him once and he took her advice, perfecting the move.

They continued with a few more takedowns, Giovanni showing marked improvement with each instruction.

“Enough,” he gasped from the mat, where he lay on his back with his arms flung out. Desi collapsed next to him, using his bicep as a pillow. She wrinkled her nose against the strong male scent wafting from him, but she didn’t move away. She didn’t exactly smell like a bed of roses, either.

“That was fun,” she murmured, grinning up at the ceiling.

“Kicking my ass?” he asked, humour in his voice.

“Yes, definitely.” She rolled onto her side and propped herself up on his chest, her chin in her hands.

He touched a lock of hair that had escaped from her ponytail and smoothed it behind her ear. “You are a woman to admire, Desi. I could learn a great deal from you.”

An ache blossomed in her chest and threatened to choke her. “No one has ever wanted to learn from me before.”

“They were idiots. They didn’t deserve you.”

She laughed through the ache and shook her head. “No, they were men who felt threatened by a woman in my position.”

He flashed her a wolfish grin and reached down to grip her by the waist, using his impressive strength to lift her bodily off the floor. He set her on top of him so she straddled him, her legs falling to the sides of his thighs and her hands pinning his chest down.

Her heart picked up in speed at the feel of his hot, sweaty flesh under her fingertips, the scent of his masculinity in the air.

“I love every position with you,bella.”

Before she could respond, he gripped her by the back of the head and forced her face down to his, taking her lips in a heated kiss.

Desi moaned into his mouth and met his tongue in a clash of sizzling passion. Adrenalin shot through her veins, and her panties flooded with her desire. She wanted him more than ever and wasn’t about to be denied.

She reached between them and slid her hand into the waistband of his shorts, wrapping her fist around his cock. He groaned and his grip on the back of her head tightened.

She broke their kiss and growled, “I want a taste.”

He shook his head. “Not until I’ve showered.”

“No, now,” she demanded.

He stared at her, the heat of lust turning his eyes into glittering chips of mahogany. Then he dragged her back far enough that he could shove his shorts down, freeing himself.

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