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There’s still three hours until Madame Keller, the architect of St. Monarch’s, gives the welcome speech at dinner. Grabbing my hand tape, I walk out of my room and start to wrap the fabric around my fingers, palms, and wrists. I don’t look up as I make my way to the gym.
Soft murmurs fill the hallways as all the new attendees make their way to their assigned quarters. St. Monarch’s Academy used to be a castle built in the late seventeen hundreds. It’s situated right outside Geneva, and although the furnishings have been renovated, the wooden floors creak with every step.
I walk to the back of the academy and enter the last sparring studio at the end of the hallway. There are a couple so we can have privacy when we train. Growing up, I’ve learned every fighting style known to mankind. I’ve spent the past eighteen months creating my own combination, taking moves from Muay Thai, Krav Maga, Kung Fu, and wrestling.
Removing my earphones from my pocket, I’m just about to put them in when I feel eyes on me. Glancing over my shoulder, my gaze connects with Paulie’s. Paul Connor will probably end up working with Winter Hemsley, seeing as they’re both Irish.
“Did you even go home?” Paulie asks as he steps into the room.
“No.” After my uncle joined Demitri in America, there’s nothing to go home to.
I watch as he wraps his hands, then he grins at me. “Take it easy on me.”
I turn my body to face him. “There’s no such thing as easy in our world.”
Paulie lets out a chuckle. “Fine. Just don’t break anything.”
“You should fight Hugo,” I say. I actually like the Irishman.
“He’s not here yet.” Paulie begins to circle me. “Come on. Teach me something.”
Slowly, I shake my head. “You know that’s not how it works.” Paulie starts to jump lightly, and it has me adding, “Take the out I’m giving you, Paulie.”
“I’ll fight,” a woman’s voice comes from behind us, and it has our heads snapping in the direction of the door.
“As I live and breathe,” Paulie chuckles. “The Blood Princess in the flesh.”
She’s even smaller and more stunning up close. Her creamy white skin makes her red hair look dark, and the fierce expression in her eyes has them sparkling like emeralds.
With the full intention of finding another empty studio where I can train, I begin to walk toward her.
“You’re leaving?” Paulie asks.
“It’s crowded,” I mutter as the side of my body bumps against Winter’s when I pass by her. To my surprise, she doesn’t stagger backward, and a spark jumps between us.
“Or just afraid to get your ass kicked by a woman,” she says, an edge to her voice making it sound like a warning.
Stopping in the hallway, I take a deep breath before I glance over my shoulder. Our eyes lock, and for a moment, heat sizzles between us.
I wonder if she’s as feisty between the sheets.
She doesn’t look away, but instead, her gaze narrows on me as if she can read my mind.
Deciding to teach her a lesson, I murmur, “If you can beat Paulie, I’ll consider fighting you.”
Chapter 4
WINTER
My eyebrows lift as I point over my shoulder at the guy standing in the studio. “Is that Paulie?”
The man who was about to leave nods. My gaze drifts over his body that looks like a lethal weapon, his muscles tense as if he’s ready to attack at any moment. Bringing my eyes back to his face, I take in his chiseled jaw, his sharp cheekbones, and then his dark eyes. There’s no emotion in them.
Everything about this man screams danger, and it makes a shiver crawl down my spine. Still, he’s the most beautiful man I’ve ever laid eyes on.
“Don’t go anywhere. This won’t take long,” I say, the corner of my mouth lifting with confidence, but all I get in return is an impassive expression, and for some reason, it only makes him look hotter.
I walk toward Paulie, the guy I’ll fight first. He’s shorter than the other man, with a broader chest. His stocky build will make him slow. I can use that to my advantage.
Glancing at the door, I notice the other man leaning against the doorjamb, crossing his arms over his chest. It makes the toned muscles and veins in his arms prominent and hard to ignore.
Danger has never looked so attractive before.
Paulie tosses me the hand wrap, and I quickly cover my palms and fingers with it.
When I’m ready, Paulie gives me a toothy grin as if he’s already won the fight, then he chuckles, “Unlike Damien, I’ll take it easy on you, Princess.”
Damien?
Damien who?
“Remind me to thank you once I’ve won,” I reply, my lips curving slightly.
We begin to circle each other, and I keep my body relaxed while holding my hands up in front of me.
