Page 29 of Nyx
Reyes
“Fuck!”Ishoutasmy hands fly to my face. Pain rockets through my nose, and the sting draws fat tears that blur my vision. The wet drip deep in my nostril tells me a nosebleed is in my immediate future. “You fucking purple…fuck! You always aim for my fucking nose!”
“You’re distracted.” Ronan twirls his sword in a lazy, taunting circle as I force my eyes to focus. “Preoccupied with the obvious. You were so busy watching my blade you forgot that anything can be a weapon when wielded properly.”
“Yeah, yeah, your fucking hands are weapons. We’ve all heard it before,” I say with a sneer. The back of my hand wipes across my nose, and I groan when a bright red streak of blood smears my skin. “Come up with new material, why don’t you?”
He’s unbothered, tossing his hair over his shoulder and flashing his fangs in a condescending smile. The asshole isn’t even sweating. He looks like he just spent the pasthour grooming himself instead of rolling with me in the ring. Not a single fucking flyaway to be found.
Me, on the other hand?
Hot mess central.
Sweat covers my body and glues my clothes to me, while my hair is sticking to my neck with an uncomfortable tickle. Dirt creates a fine, gritty layer on my skin that coats me from head to toe. I’m pretty sure there’s even dust between my teeth, and if my shadow is to be trusted, my hair looks like a bush.
Maybe I could use it as camouflage and hide from his sadistic ass, just for a second.
“Go for his weak spots!” Elas yells from the sidelines, and I shoot a glare in his direction.
“Whatweak spots?! If I cut his hair again, he’ll—”
“I’ll kill you,” Ronan hisses, and I nod and fling my hands at his prowling stance.
“Exactly!”
“He’s ticklish around his ribs!” Cameron offers with an enthusiastic thumbs up, and I groan.
“Yeah, okay, let me just toss my knife aside and come at him with gimme hands. That’ll do the trick.”
“It might weird me out enough to be effective,” Ronan admits, and an exhausted laugh huffs from my nose. “You should’ve picked a bigger weapon.”
“Why?” I ask, a smirk tugging at my cheeks. “Think it’s the size that matters, do you? Is that the only thing the big, scary monster knows how to work with?” His lip rips up, the humor vanishing as his fingers tighten on his sword’s leather hilt. “No skill needed if you’rebigenough, huh?”
“I’ll show you skill,” he snarls, rolling his shoulders and widening his footing. His tails stiffen behind him, a telltale sign he’s gearing up to advance.
“Maybe I should ask Cameron,” I taunt, forcing myself not to look at his right side. He expects me to go after his weaker left, and I let my attention dart there as I fall into a fighting stance. “Get him to tell me you’re nothing but an overgrown lug that thinks your size is the only thing that matters. Bet he could share some stories…”
He launches himself at me with the grace of a cat, but he’s missing some of his usual poise. My muscles tense, and I force myself to wait a split second longer before dodging to his right. His eyes flare as he rushes past me, and a solid kick to his shin drops him to the ground in a cloud of dust. Before he can get his footing, I jump on his back and relish his grunt as I push my weight down and fist his hair. Yanking his head up, I press my knife against his throat.
“Damn,” Elas says with a low whistle, sounding far too excited.
“Gotcha,” I pant into Ronan’s ear, pretending I’m not gasping for air as though my life depends on it. A furious growl rumbles through his entire body, and before I realize it, he’s on his feet, while I’m left clinging to his shoulders like a backpack.
“Oh, boy, he’s mad now,” Cameron squeals, and he’s fucking giddy as I release my grip and thud to the ground.
“Fuck,this is going to hurt,” I groan, but before I can either brace myself for impact or run, Elas jumps between us, still chuckling.
“I think that’s enough for today,” he says, but Ronan’s furious eyes haven’t cast aside murder as a viable nextstep. He glares at me over his best friend’s shoulder, and dear gods, it is terrifying.
“Yep, yes, I agree,” I wheeze, and I don’t miss the smug satisfaction in Ronan’s fanged smirk. “That is an outstanding observation. And while I have you here as a buffer, Elas, I need to discuss something with you two.”
“And if I’m not in the mood to talk?” Ronan asks with a touch of haughtiness. He flips his hair, and I tamp down my petty pleasure at the puff of dust that flies from the onyx locks. Right now, the urge to get under his skin needs to take a backseat.
“It’s… important.”
He stares at me for a long second before the hard lines of his face relax, and he nods and gestures for me to follow as he walks towards the pitcher that sits under the closest shade tree. Elas hesitates, then follows behind us as we both fill a cup.
I take a few swigs before I pour the rest over my head and groan as the water tracks along my neck and spine. It’s not cold—the temperature is far too high for that—but it’s cooler than the muggy air and refreshes my overheated skin.
