He wasn’t kidding about the blindfold, but we didn’t get to that until day three. By the end of the week, I was exhausted but also invigorated. I went to class in the morning, had magic lessons after lunch, and trained with Caden in the afternoon. We even squeaked in a little bit of investigating, interviewing a few more of the suspects on our list. Mostly Professor Roberts’ colleagues, but they didn’t provide any more useful information, so we were counting on a new lead from Oscar who’d been digging for information on the Soulbinder.
An icy wind scattered the leaves across the ground. I shivered as the cold seeped through my layered pullover. Caden moved behind me. I tensed, waiting for his instruction.
“Your blade’s gone. The demon’s at your back. What do you do?”
“Elbow strike.” With my elbow bent, I pivoted on my foot, rotating my hips to strike backward with my elbow.
“Good.” His arm snaked around my middle. Tightening his grip beneath my rib cage, his warm breath skated along my collarbone. “What do you do when they’re bigger than you?”
I shivered again, but not from the cold. Bracing my feet, I centered my gravity, trying not to be distracted by Caden’s body pressed against mine.An impossible feat!Let’s face it: I had the hots for my teacher. Not ideal after days of close-contact training. But also not unexpected. Witches were human too! And apparently, sexy fight training was a thing. At least in my head.
I cleared my throat and got back into the zone. “Don’t panic. Look for a weak spot. Speed and magic is my friend.” Shifting my hips, I executed a flaming hammer fist toward his kneecap, halting the move before I made contact. The fire licked his pant leg, and I spread my fingers to dispel the flame.
Turning to face him, I cocked a brow as his hands seemed to settle instinctively around my waist. His gaze centered on my mouth as I licked my wind-dried lips. Maybe a mutual attraction wasn’t all in my head. He’d been pushing my limits for days and it was only fair to retaliate a little bit.
“We should try that last one again. I’m not sure I got it right.”
“No, you got it,” he murmured low in his throat.
“Are you sure? I don’t think I’m using my hips correctly. Can you show me again? Maybe slower?”
“Slower?” He groaned. “You’re killing me, Graves.”
“I know. I just want the move to be perfect. It’s life and death, after all.” I flashed him an innocent smile.
Caden’s eyes blazed as I trailed the edge of my fingernail across his abdomen. Swallowing hard, he captured my hand and spun me around. Voice tight, he said, “Your hips are fine. Pick up your dagger.”
He shoved me toward my abandoned blade. That was too easy. I stifled a satisfied grin as I scooped it up and tried to get my bearings. The mound of tires was on my left, creating a barrier. A glass field of broken bottles littered the ground in front of me.
The wind whistled through the brush, masking the sound of Caden’s charge. He wasn’t playing anymore. I might have pushed him too far. Spinning on my heel, I blocked his blow with my forearm. He came at me again, faster. My tennis shoes slid over loose gravel as I ducked his swing.
The sun filtered through the trees, getting in my eyes as I performed an attack move. I misjudged the angle of my blade, squinting from the harsh sunlight. He easily blocked my kill strike and swiped my feet out from beneath me.
I landed on my tailbone in the dirt, sucking in a lungful of air. A few feet to the left was an Elle-sized indent in the weeds. During this training session, I’d been on my butt more than I’d been on my feet. I groaned in frustration and bent to tighten the laces on my shoes as if they were the cause of my misfortune, and not my inexperience or pent-up sexual tension.
Caden tossed me a bottle of water. I twisted the top and drank half in one pull. He stood over me, a halo of sunlight behind his head. Except he was no angel.Well, Angel of Death, maybe. Angel of Kicking My Ass and Enjoying It—definitely.
“You need to focus, Graves.”
Ha!As if he was focused on anything besides my hips, a moment ago.
“I am! The stupid sun got in my eyes, and it’s cold today. My hands are frozen.” I blew into my palms to prove my point.
Caden crouched next to me and shook his head. “Next time you’re fighting a demon, make sure to ask them to stand in the shadows and give you a hot chocolate first. I’m sure that’ll work out just fine.”
I splashed water on his boots and wrinkled my nose. “Your sarcasm is noted.”
“Come on. On your feet. I’ll warm you up.”
“You will?” I scrambled to my feet with a little too much enthusiasm, losing the cap on my water bottle without giving it a second thought.
“Yeah, hold on.” He walked out of the fighting circle and reached for his bag. Rummaging through it, he withdrew something and tossed it my way. “Here—try these.”
“Fingerless gloves?” I grumbled, sliding them onto my hands.
“They’re great for training. What did you think I meant?”
A combat training snuggle session.But I wasn’t saying that out loud.
