Page 41 of Painless
I lifted the gun, aimed through the sights, and fired two shots.
"Nice, baby girl," Gunner praised. "You're a little jumpy on the pull, but that's all right. It'll go away as you get used to it." He moved behind me, fingertips caressing my arms. "Relax," he whispered. "Put a little bend in your elbows.” His touch ran from my shoulders, down the sides of my body, to rest at my hips. "Widen your legs a little more," he added, his voice growing husky.
I shot through several more magazines until my hands started cramping. Gunner adjusted and praised my technique with each reload. After the last one, he massaged my sore palm between his thumbs and told me that was a good stopping point.
"You feeling alert and full of adrenaline yet?" The gleam in his blue eyes hinted at more surprises.
"What are you scheming next?" With all of the flirty touches and innuendo, I was fired up in more ways than one. If his plan was to take me against one of the stable doors, I certainly wouldn't be disappointed.
He placed a kiss on my fingertips, then released my hand. "Wait here."
Instead of heading back out toward the bike, he headed down to the opposite end of the stables. I watched him spin a combination lock on what looked like a supply closet, and pulled out a set of gymnastics mats.
"Little dusty," he muttered, then went back to the closet and retrieved a broom.
"We gonna be wrasslin'?" I asked, unfolding the mats from their stacked position as he swept them.
"Kinda." The naughty gleam never left his eyes. "If you don't have a gun, you might have to fight close up. We'll have to repeat this a lot so it becomes instinct, but I'll just give you a basic overview today." He put the broom aside and handed me a slender piece of wood carved in the rough shape of a knife. "You're going to use that like an actual weapon."
"Okay." I held it a few inches in front of my body, unsure what to do.
"Stay there. Now," he walked a slow circle around me, "most attacks happen from the back." With incredible speed, he braced one forearm against my throat and the other around my waist. "What do you do in this situation?"
Beg you to fuck me?
"Um, I dunno." His heart kissed my back in steady, calming beats through the solid wall of his chest. His clean, fresh scent, the heat of his skin, everythinghimmade it incredibly difficult to concentrate.
"You have a few options," he rasped into my ear. "I have your shoulders, so your arms can't move much. But your legs are free and much stronger."
“I can’t kick you in the balls from here.”
“No,” he laughed. “But look, you can kick my knee joint. Kick it from the side, the direction it doesn’t bend.”
I lifted my foot and found the side of his knee with my boot. “Right there?”
“Yeah, good. One good kick there will force me to put all my weight on the other leg.” The weight of his chest rested heavier on my back as he raised one foot to demonstrate. “Now what?”
“Now…you’re off-balance.”
“Exactly. That puts you at an advantage, baby girl.” The pride in his words made my skin tingle from head to toe. “Bend your knees, lower your center of gravity, then take a big step forward. Shift all your momentum forward hard, like you’re about to take off running.”
I did as he instructed, which, to my surprise, sent him flying over me to land on his back on the mats. He shot a stunning grin up at me. “Now slit my throat with your knife.”
I brandished the carved hunk of wood and drew a line across his exposed neck.
“Good.” He rolled up to sit, eyes sparkling. “So what did you learn from that?”
“That I need to use the differences between our weight and size to my advantage.” I panted slightly. It wasn’t easy throwing such a tall man over my shoulder.
“Exactly!” He beamed with pride. “That’s the main principle I want you to learn. You can get away from any guy who grabs you, as long as you can take away his balance and use gravity to your advantage. Finishing him off,” he nodded to my wooden knife, “just ensures he won’t come after you a second time.” He patted my leg and climbed to his feet. “Let’s go again.”
We went for several more rounds. Each time he grabbed me in several different ways, and gently guided me through finding his weak points, until I had them memorized. After nearly an hour of touching, grabbing, and mock-fighting, my body was fatigued and sore, while craving him like mad at the same time.
“Come on, last one.” Gunner hovered over me as my back pressed into the mat. My legs were around his waist and he held my wrists pinned above my head. His hair hung down, tickling the edges of my face. “How you gonna break my hold, Mari?”
“Gun, I dunno,” I panted, rolling my head from side to side. Sweat coated every inch of my body. “I’m completely wiped out.”
“Last one, I promise,” he repeated. “Remember your legs—”
