Connor rises from his chair, the feet a loud scrape against the hardwood floors. I watch as he retrieves a clean mug, pours a cup of coffee, then adds cream and sugar, which is odd since he takes it black. Then he walks back to the table, careful not to spill, and places the mug in front of me.
A droll smirk takes over my face. “You’re right. Today is definitely a third cup of coffee kind of day.”
Chapter 2
Callie
“I’m the magical equivalent of an atom bomb,” I mutter, while I plop down onto the hardwood floors.
“A very small atom bomb,” Felix adds unhelpfully, sitting down next to me. “She said half the town, not all of it-- so there’s that. If it gets bad, maybe we can take a very long camping trip deep into the woods. Then it’s just a crap ton of trees.”
“And woodland creatures,” I grumble.
Felix cringes. “Bambi has it coming?”
I give him a pointed, not amused look, and he lifts his hands up in surrender.
After breakfast, my aunt went off to her meeting, while the rest of us headed over to Nolan’s. Now, Felix and I are waiting in the extremely nice dojo/gym portion of the house, while the others get changed. Apparently, this room was once a ballroom, but his parents refurbished it because they wanted the guys to have a safe space to train. Nolan wasn’t kidding about his parents adopting his friends. They seriously go all out.
The room is divided by heavy wooden pillars, one side having various workout equipment and the other empty except for a large, thick grey mat secured to the floor. On the far wall, there are floor to ceiling bay windows looking out onto the peaceful stream that meanders through the backyard. Near the mat, there’s a wall of mirrors, I’m guessing to be able to check for technique, and littering the rest of the walls is a barrage of weaponry. I’m kind of intimidated just sitting here.
We don’t wait long for the rest of the guys. I suddenly feel overdressed in my sweatpants, t-shirt and loose pullover, because apparently, shirts are optional while training, and they’ve all opted out. It’s like the time Donovan showed me his wings, only times a thousand.
Kaleb and Donovan are massive with thick, sculpted muscles that would make bodybuilders weep and are wearing loose drawstring pants. Connor and Nolan, dressed in workout shorts that come to just above the knee, are leaner in comparison, but not any less strong or well defined. I’m experiencing a kind of deer in headlights feeling, and I’m worried my ability of cognitive thought might be leaking out of my ears.I thought earlier this morning was bad. I’m going to need those sunglasses much, much sooner-- and find an excuse to wear them indoors.
Don’t blush!I remind myself as they walk across the room, my heart fluttering in my chest.And blink-- but not too much! And don’t drool!There are a lot of components to looking like a normal, unaffected person.
Donovan is in the middle of a stretch, one arm bent behind his head and the other pulling on his elbow, when they all reach Felix and me on the floor. I make a conscious effort to keep my eyes on his face, and not on the rippling muscles on display over his ribs. I’m pretty sure I’m smiling, or have something resembling a smile on my face, but I can’t be positive since my face feels a little numb. My hands grip the loose fabric of my sweats to keep myself from checking.
He switches arms and says, “Hey, so while I do my sparring sessions with Kaleb and Connor, Nolan can help you warm up with stretches and some light cardio. I figured we’ll focus on teaching you a combination of Muay Thai and Brazilian Jiu-jitsu. Both martial arts styles work well for people your size and can be effective against larger opponents.”
“You mean pocket-sized people that weigh nothing?” I joke, proud that I can make complete sentences.
“Yeah-- expect a lot of weight training in your future,” he chuckles, dropping his arms and giving me an assessing look. “Your high pain threshold is going to be a plus. To get really good with Muay Thai, it’s going to hurt-- a lot, but work through the pain, and your whole body becomes a deadly weapon.”
“This should be fun,” I snort. “But hey, silver linings to everything.”
Kaleb, Nolan, and Felix look taken aback by Donovan’s casual reference to the painful abuse I’ve experienced, but strangely, it makes me feel better. He listened when I told him not to treat me differently, and he’s finding ways to use what I’ve gone through to make me stronger.
Felix stands up, and Connor reaches down to help me to my feet. Connor’s expression is difficult to read, and I fear he also has a high pain threshold learned out of necessity. He has no scars, but I wonder if that has less to do with lack of abuse or more to do with being a wolf shifter. Does he heal like I do?
Kaleb folds his arms across his chest, his biceps bulging with the gesture, and he has a look of strained patience. “Shouldn’t you be focusing on teaching her how to get away from attackers?”
Donovan mirrors the gesture, adding a raised brow and an asshole smirk. “When she masters what I plan to teach her, she’ll have no problem getting away, because the fucker will either be on the ground in too much pain to follow her or they’ll have already run off scared.”
A wicked smile pulls at Connor’s lips. He’s clearly all for me beating the shit out of anyone that tries to hurt me. Can’t say the thought doesn’t appeal to me too.
“Have you considered Callie’s healing abilities?” Kaleb counters, his annoyance beginning to take over his features. “Muay Thai relies on the bones of her shins thickening and the slow deadening of the nerves through constant conditioning. Callie heals quickly through injury, so it’s unlikely the conditioning will have the same effect.”
“Her bones will grow stronger faster, because she has accelerated healing. Same with her muscles. It’s the healing over the damage that will make them stronger,” Donovan challenges, the rest of us watching the discussion like spectators of a tennis match.
What is it with them talking about me like I’m not standing here?
He continues, “And yeah, she’ll continue to keep feeling it, but she already knows pain. At least this time it will be because she’s protecting herself.”
“Is it?” Kaleb’s eyes narrow. “Sounds more like ego. Teach her how to break holds and where to hit so she can get away. Staying around to beat up someone who’s likely to be significantly bigger than her is just foolhardy.”
“She won’t have to stick around after she’s broken a guy’s knee or crushed his larynx,” Donovan growls and starts squaring his shoulders in a way that makes him look even bigger.
