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Their bodies were slick with sweat, their hearts racing from their shared excitement. Ash buried her face in Mason's shoulder, her nails digging into him lightly as she caught her breath. He held onto her hair gently, letting out a soft groan of contentment as their hearts slowed to a normal pace once more.
They lay entangled for a moment before finally pulling apart, both of them looking into each other's eyes with lust and love shining brightly within them. They fell asleep together that night, their bodies pressed close as though they would never allow themselves to be torn apart.
THIRTEEN
ASH
The heavy bag lurched to the side, then swung back with the thick chains it hung from creaking. Ash timed her next punch to send it spinning but stabilized the pendular force until her next barrage of punches swung it away from her.
Exercise always cleared her mind and helped her focus on the issues at hand. The hike and time spent with Mason had been refreshing, but it hadn’t gotten them any closer to the Puppeteer. With no new leads on the attacks, punching something proved more productive than staring at the same evidence she and Mason had shared over and over.
Mason. A part of her would have loved to clear her mind of him as well. As much as she tried to focus on the investigation, once that mate bond started, there was no going back, doubly so when she confessed her true reasons for joining his pack. Outside that small and shrinking voice of dissent in her head, the rest of her was more than happy with her mate.
She sent a flurry of punches at the reinforced heavy bag. She came here to focus, not moon over the man like a lovesick teenager. That was why she left his place this morning in the firstplace. She panted, having ended her latest assault on the heavy bag.
His scent suddenly tickled her nose, sneaking through the overwhelming scent of sweat in the gym and the more than a dozen other occupants. Ash scanned the room, looking past two men sparring in the ring and a few people using machines on the first floor.
Mason strode toward the stairs, walking with Derek, his second-in-command. They were speaking, but Ash couldn’t hear the words over the noise of the sparring men and their audience. Mason’s eyes flicked up to meet hers. Of course, he must have noticed her presence the moment she noticed his.
His attention returned to Derek and their conversation soon after. She wasn’t sure if his second-in-command knew they were mates, but she knew that he hadn’t shared that with the rest of the pack yet.
The men in the ring only discovered that their alpha made an appearance when he joined the small group of spectators. The fighters were two of the pack’s enforcers. Both were towering men, strong and brutal fighters. The bigger of the two had a physique straight out of a superhero movie, but a shifter didn’t need an HGH regimen to achieve what came naturally to them.
He used every ounce of those impressive-looking muscles once he noticed Mason in the audience. His opponent dodged a quick jab to the face before a meaty fist slammed into his stomach. It doubled him over, and a punch to the jaw sent him spinning to the floor.
The winner held his arms high as light applause broke out in the audience. He stomped around the ring, stopping when he noticed Ash watching. She understood his teeth-baring grin even before he pointed to her.
“Hey, new girl. Wanna spar?” he bellowed.
“I’d love to,” Ash said.
Mason scowled as she approached the ring. She almost expected him to try to stop her. Thankfully, the rest of the small crowd paid more attention to her than him at that moment, including a couple of men who were downright glaring at her. Ash had little chance to wonder why.
“Would you like me to put on some gloves?” asked the enforcer who challenged her. “I’m sure we have some somewhere. Maybe you could find some headgear too.”
Had the enforcer looked toward his alpha at that moment, he would have fallen to his knees, begging for forgiveness. Mason’s scowl turned utterly murderous at his disrespect. Ash only giggled before ducking through the ropes. With the speed of shifter healing, there was no need for any protective equipment.
“Are we fighting to a knockdown? First blood?” she asked, then cracked her knuckles.
The man’s eyes widened at the latter but then darted toward Mason, and his enthusiasm dwindled. The pack alpha might not have shared their mate bond with his people yet, but the enforcer in the ring easily recognized the man’s interest in Ash.
“I’d like to see you knock me down.” The enforcer motioned her forward before dropping into a fighting stance.
Oh, she’d knock him down. She’d bloody him, too, given a chance. Ignoring the worried frown on Mason’s face, she bent into a stance and held her hands at the ready. The audience fell silent, waiting for the first blow.
The combatants circled each other a few times. With her shifter-enhanced strength, Ash could have polished the floor with a human opponent as big as the enforcer, but he had the same supernatural benefits as her in addition to being at least twice her weight. She’d wait for him to throw the first punch.
It didn’t take long. The enforcer stomped closer, arm rearing back for a huge swing. To Ash, it seemed he moved in slow motion. She ducked under his fist and lashed out with a calf kick.The enforcer shuffled back with a grimace that told Ash she’d more annoyed than injured him.
Her opponent growled but kept his cool. He inched forward and tested her with a jab. She dodged to the side, but he followed with a fist to her stomach. It doubled her over the same as his earlier opponent. She cursed herself for missing it as she tried to regain her breath.
Pain never stopped Ash before. Her opponent raised his arm for a match-ending elbow. She beat him to it, slamming her own elbow into his calf, exactly where she’d just kicked him.
He yelped and pushed her away, stumbling back himself. The crowd had cheered his gut punch … everyone, save Mason … but fell silent when the fight continued. The enforcer’s nostrils flared as he took a deep breath, ready to strike again.
Ash didn’t even let him throw the punch. He stepped forward, arm cocked, before she lashed out with another calf kick to his plant leg. He hissed and pulled it back, finally feeling the pain but hardly limping.
That was enough for Ash. Two quick steps bridged the gap between them. The enforcer jerked his head back. The fist aimed for his jaw found nothing but air. Ash expected as much. The force of the punch kept her spinning. She hopped, twisting in the air, and dropped the back of her heel against his abused calf.
