Page 22 of Crossing Paths
Although she couldn’t argue with that, she still wasn’t excited about more wilderness time. Felicity dragged her and her other sisters through the woods on a regular basis. Couldn’t that be considered sufficient outside training? “What if I promise to stay in heavily populated areas?”
He turned his head enough to give her some serious side-eye. “When your sister was kidnapped, where’d they take her?”
“Into the mountains,” Norah answered, confused by the non sequitur.
“So you stayed home and let your other sisters go after her?”
“Of course not.” Norah frowned at the idea that she wouldn’tat least attempt to rescue Cara, then sighed as she got his point. “Fine. Let’s do this then.”
She could see the corner of his mouth quirk up the tiniest bit. Despite her discomfort with all things outdoorsy, she still felt a dart of pleasure that she’d almost gotten him to smile.
They hiked on in silence, broken only by the occasional clink of a disturbed piece of shale or the whistle of a bird. As always when she was with Dash, that quiet felt comfortable. Norah peered up at the endlessly tall evergreens, the patches of sky between the branches an almost dizzying deep blue. When the trees thinned, she could catch glimpses of the mountain peaks towering over them. Despite her continued unease, she had to admit to herself that it was breathtakingly gorgeous.
Her toe caught an uneven rock, making her trip. Dash glanced back as if checking on her. Once he saw she’d regained her balance, he turned to face front again. She kept her eyes on the trail in front of her after that.
“This way,” Dash said, turning off the path into a small clearing.
Happy to not be hiking uphill anymore, Norah followed, looking around. The grass was sparse on the rocky ground, and she hoped they wouldn’t be working on grappling during this outside training session. Rolling around on shale would be painful.
“You’re almost always going to be smaller than your attacker,” he said, facing her.
Since this was a statement of fact and not a question, she stayed quiet and waited for him to continue.
“What move gives you the best chance of survival if you’re attacked?”
The answer seemed too obvious, so she paused for a second to review what he’d asked in case she’d missed a trick. The question seemed honestly straightforward, so she said, “Running away.”
Although his expression didn’t shift, she could still tell he was pleased by her answer. “Exactly. I’ve been neglecting your running training.”
“I don’t feel neglected,” she hurried to say, holding back a grimace. Norah didn’t understand the appeal of running. During all the miles Felicity made them do, she always waited for the promised endorphins to kick in, but they never had.
He barked a laugh at that but quickly regained his usual stern expression. “Here’s what we’re going to do. I’ll put you in a hold. You’ll break it and run. Then I’ll chase you.”
A shiver ran through her, not from her usual anxiety but from something like…anticipation? “You’ll chase me?” she echoed. Saying the words gave her another not-fear shiver.
His chin tipped up in one of his short nods. “See how long you can evade me before I catch you.”
Catch me?She couldn’t say the words out loud, worried that they’d hold some of the eager excitement that seemed to be taking over her body at the moment. She could only stare at him silently as he stepped toward her and grabbed her wrist.Easy one, she thought, her muscle memory moving her body before she even consciously planned it. Stepping closer, she lifted her knee for a groin strike, careful not to actually make contact. Atthe same time, she twisted her wrist so her thumb was toward her face, pulling free of his grip.
Once she was out of his hold, she hesitated for a fraction of a second, not used to the new next step of the exercise, until Dash growled, “Run.”
His command unfroze her legs, and she darted out of the clearing, weaving between the trees, her heart pounding more from adrenaline than exertion. As she turned right sharply, her shoe slid on the grit covering the hard ground, and she almost went down to one knee. She caught herself, launching off the other foot back into a run, but it was too late. Strong hands gripped her waist, lifting her off the ground.
She shrieked with surprise, but no part of her was afraid. After all those sessions in the gym, she knew Dash’s grip, and she felt completely safe in his hold—despite the fact that she was dangling off the ground. He lowered her to her feet, and she gave an exhilarated laugh as she turned to face him. “Again. I can do better.”
“I hope so.” Although he was frowning, she was pretty sure he was amused. “I caught you in just a few seconds. And run toward the main trail next time. More likely to find other people there.”
This time, he put her in a choke hold, his right arm snug around her neck but not so tightly that she couldn’t breathe. She paused for a moment, surprised by how strangely comforting it was having him wrapped around her like he was her weighted blanket. The thought seemed so out of place and deeply weird that her hesitation lengthened until he asked, “What’s wrong?”
Except for unexpected emotions, there wasn’t anythingwrongreally, so she answered, “Nothing.”
“Why aren’t you freeing yourself then?” he asked without loosening his hold. “I know you’ve got this one down.”
She did have it down. They’d drilled escaping choke holds over and over until she was pretty sure she could do this in her sleep. “Just…stuck in my head.”
“Well, get unstu—” He broke off with a grunt as she tucked her chin and pressed her hands against his elbow, turning to the right and taking his arm with her. She snuck in a hammer punch, pulling it so her fist just tapped his back over his kidney. Free from his hold, she bolted immediately, determined to evade him for at least a few more seconds this time.
As she ran, that same excitement built inside her. She knew this was training and completely safe, but it felt more like a game with the slightest edge of danger. The knowledge that someone was likely right behind her, ready to grab her, should’ve terrified her. Itwould’veterrified her in any other situation or, more accurately, with any other person.
