Page 22 of Warrior

It wasn’t until I dusted myself off that I noticed the silence and looked at King’s men.

The entire training ground had gone absolutely still.

Every man, aside from King’s personal guard, had stopped what they were doing.Bug eyes came to mind.Most of them were slack-jawed too, while Beck, Nokita, and Labyrinth grinned like idiots.

I gave a slight bow, straightening with a satisfied smile.“Boot was my teacher,” I said.“He did a really good job.”

Beck burst into laughter, and his two cohorts joined him.

“Back to work,” King barked, clearly annoyed.

I turned to him with a smirk.“Ready for more?”

His eyes darkened, and a sly grin spread across his face.

“Damn, you’re sexy,” he muttered before quickly closing the distance between us.

The words caught me so off guard that I froze, giving him just enough time to pin me to the ground again.This time, he threw a leg over mine, effectively trapping them and preventing any strategic kicks.But I wasn’t out of options.

I reached up, grabbed his ear, and twisted hard enough to make him yelp.

“Ow, dammit,” he shouted, his voice laced with both pain and exasperation.

He leaned closer, his breath hot against my ear.“How about a little less girl and a little more Warrior?”he whispered.

I turned my head toward him, locking eyes for a split second before pressing my lips to his.

The kiss caught him off guard, and the arms pinning me loosened just enough.

In one fluid motion, I brought my legs up between us and kicked out with all the force I had.

King landed on his side with a grunt, and I rolled to face him.

“How about a little less boy and a lot more man?”I shot back wickedly.

Chapter Seven

King

What the hell did Boot teach her?Half a second later, I found out.She rolled on top of me, her legs locking around my waist.This should be good, I thought, waiting to see what she’d try.

She raised her hands and leaned in; her expression full of mischief.She couldn’t really hurt me in this position, but I was curious about what she would do.I didn’t expect what I got.She slammed her palms against my ears with enough force to make my head ring.Pain exploded, stunning me long enough for her to scramble to her feet while I recovered.

She turned to face me, smirking.“Want more, baby?”

Around us, there was complete silence.I knew my men watched in shock, but I didn’t care.Beast’s whispers in my head were not good.Claim her.Most of these men didn’t know she was a Shadow Warrior, but word had spread that she was my mate.If I did what Beast wanted they wouldn’t like it.Hell, my guard would attack me, but the urge was there, and it was damned hard to fight.

I rose to my feet, shaking off the last of the ringing in my ears.“Bring it,” I challenged.

She moved fast, striking with her left hand while swinging her right foot in a sidekick.Instead of backing off, I stepped in close, nullifying the power of her strike.She didn’t miss a beat, following through with a left punch.I turned my head at the last second, and she didn’t connect.Grabbing her arm, I used her momentum and twisted her past me.In one smooth motion, I circled her waist and flipped her over my shoulder.

“What are you doing?”she yelled as she dangled upside down.

I looked at my men and saw them grinning like fools.“Practicing the latest move from theConan Dictionary,” I replied.

Their grins turned into full-on laughter.

“I’ll flatten your noses when he releases me, so shut your damn mouths!”Marinah growled from her awkward position.

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