Page 60 of The Firebrand
“Do you have any workout clothes the Earther can borrow?”
Sabine eyed Braelyn’s disheveled tramp outfit, winking at Rein. “Sure thing. Why?”
“A crew attacked us on the way here.” Galena and Tyr ceased sparring to eavesdrop. “It’s likely they were after the human. I wanna check out her moves.”
“Come with me.” Sabine tugged Braelyn into the locker room.
“Rein, huh?” The nymph rifled through a locker, pulling out latex shorts and a skimpy top.
“What’s thehuhmean?”
“The vampire’s a little tight. Both lip- and control-wise. But he seems to chat you up okay.”
“He doesn’t have a choice. He kidnapped me, brought me here, and your boss assigned him to keep me safe.”
While Braelyn kicked off the slut boots, wiggling out of the leather skirt and indecent top, Sabine kept up the chatter. “What do they say? Oh, yeah. That’s like putting the fox in charge of the henhouse. Though, I don’t see any fang marks on your neck.”
Braelyn tugged up the shorts and slipped into a low-cut, cropped workout tee. “Maybe I’m inedible.”
“To a bloodsucker, everyone tastes good.”
Pausing to peek in a mirror, Braelyn shrugged. “Let’s do this.”
They walked out arm in arm, laughing as Sabine kept repeating, “Rein, huh.”
When he saw them, the vampire Firebrand’s fist halted mid-jab in front of a punching bag.
They stopped with the giggles, hands over mouths. Braelyn, smoothing her hands down the cut-off tee and over her hips, enjoyed Rein’s hungry stare.
Without shoes, she bare-toed the floor. “Bring it on, big guy. Gently, please. Unlike you, I’m slow to heal. If I get a hangnail, I’m out for the week.”
After Rein shucked off his boots, he padded onto the mats, motioning for her to follow. He scratched his chin.
Was he deciding how best to kill her, taking book on how long she’d stay on her feet, or figuring out where to grab on her scarcely clad body?
“Okay. Offensive maneuvers. Let’s test your strength. Hit me,” he said.
“I am not hitting you.”
“Damn, female, hit me.”
“Where?”
“Anywhere. Face. Gut. The jewels are off limits.” Rein grinned. “We might find a use for them later.”
Braelyn felt her cheeks flush. “I am not ruining your face.”
“Hit here, then. Hard.” He punched his abs to demonstrate.
She made a fist, hauled back, and let fly at the irritating vampire kidnapper. He didn’t budge. He didn’t flinch.
He did blink and mumble, “Hmm.”
Biting her lower lip, Braelyn hit several more times, never with any success.
“Some power, but very little. Try a kick.”
“I could hurt you.”
