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I rolled my eyes. “Let’s just move on to the next one. We’ll go over what to do if someone comes up from behind you.”
Moving behind her, I hooked an arm around her neck loosely. Her hands automatically went to my arm, and I nodded approvingly. “Good instincts.”
“I do have some self-preservation skills,” she quipped.
“Really?” I teased right back. “I don’t recall these ‘self-preservation skills’ last night when I found you in a closet.”
She scoffed. “I panicked. Besides, me attacking my fans probably wouldn’t have been much better.”
“Which is why we’re sticking with self-defense for now. All right, what you’re going to do in this situation is make yourself as heavy as possible, which means dropping into a squat.”
Serena turned her head to give me a deadpan look. It took me a moment to catch the meaning, and I scoffed when I did. “I’m not going to try anything untoward. Believe me, if I want to take you from behind, I’d make you beg for it first.”
The last few words came out as a low purr, and Serena bit her lip and shivered. It took all of my self control to not try and persuade her here and now to beg. But we were doing this for a reason.
“Focus,” I said as much to her as to myself. “Grab onto my arm and drop down. Be sure to turn your head to the side so it doesn’t get hooked on my arm.”
She nodded and then did just that. Within seconds, she was free from my grasp. Serena grinned at me. “Not bad?”
I snorted. “Not bad. You could have also kicked my legs out from behind me when you dropped. Or you could have elbowed me in the side hard. In fact, in any scenario, if you can hit the nose, groin, throat, or toes, those are good weak points to exploit.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Stepping on toes? Isn’t that a little cliché?”
I didn’t mention that without sufficient momentum, it wouldn’t have done much good against a heavier species like a Mondian. I had to keep up her morale.
“It is for a reason. If your assailant can’t run after you, you’re generally in good shape.”
Serena conceded with a shrug. “Fair enough.”
I sighed. “Come on, I’ll show you how to throw a proper punch.”
For the next hour, I worked with her on her stance, then different punches and how not to break her thumb. She was a natural, and with training, she could be quite good.
It also helped that with each punch and each lesson, her confidence seemed to grow. She no longer shrank in on herself or hesitated like she typically did. And I’d be lying if I said the newfound confidence wasn’t incredibly attractive.
“That’s enough for today. We need to get to the casino before the match starts.”
Serena breathed hard, but there was a self-satisfied smile on her face. “Okay. Thank you, by the way, for showing me all this.”
My lips twitched into a smile. “You’re welcome. Then again, I did get some benefit out of it myself.”
I made sure to exaggerate the way I thoroughly took her in, giving a comically lecherous look. She laughed, cocking her hip, and raised her chin. “I’m glad you like what you see.”
Oh, I was definitely going to like this new confidence in her.
We got to the casino. I quickly got changed and was about to walk to the green room when Serena stopped me. She planted a quick but firm kiss on my lips.
“For luck,” she whispered as she drew away.
I wanted to take her right then and there, but I had a match to focus on right now.
“I’ll see you after this is over,” I told her, my tone full of promise. She bit her lip again, and I had to remind myself that I had someone’s ass to kick. Then, with great effort, I walked to the green room.
Tonight I was fighting a fellow Vinduthi, not someone I knew personally but had heard of. A bit of a loner who liked a good fight almost as much as I did. Fellow Vinduthi or not, I fully intended to let everyone know exactly who was the best fighter on Thodos III.
It helped that tonight there was a certain someone sitting in the VIP box watching me fight. Knowing exactly where Serena was tonight and that no one would hurt her there, I didn’t have to worry about her.
The match began, and the other Vinduthi and I began to fight with fervor. He was tougher than my last opponent, and the thrill of the challenge made my blood surge.
