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She leans into him, sighing with annoyance aimed very clearly at me. “Maybe it would be if it wasn’t still pitch-black outside.”
I ignore the quip and walk out the front door, leaving Gabriel to lock it behind us as we pile into the vehicle.
It’s a twenty-minute drive to the fitness club, and I peer in the rearview to find Calla dozing off against Lex’s shoulder. The corner of my mouth tugs up, and I slam on the breaks after making sure there’s no one behind us.
Calla startles, yelping in surprise and whipping her head around. “What the fuck?” She meets my gaze in the mirror and scowls. “Bastard.”
“Just making sure everyone’s awake and alert,” I say in a level voice, switching my foot back to the gas and speeding up again.
She grabs her mug from the cup holder beside her, evidently choosing to drink her Americano instead of responding to me.
I use the spare key the owner, Dom, gave me years ago, and unlock the garage door entrance, pushing it up to reveal the commercial garage turned fitness club. It’s been closed to the public for months, so Dom invited us to use it.
“Whoa,” Calla murmurs, wandering around the second we’re inside. “This place is cool.”
I close the door behind us, not needing any outside attention to what we’re doing. “Warm up.” I direct that order at Calla, and she arches a brow at me.
“Maybeyoushould warm up,” she replies, and there’s a clear challenge in her voice.
One I’m all too happy to accept.
I move across the room and snatch the coffee mug out of her hands, tossing it into the kitchenette sink nearby. It clatters against the stainless steel, and Calla’s heart lurches in her chest. I back her up against the wall, caging her in.
She catches me off guard, slamming her knee into my stomach with newly amplified speed and strength, knocking me back a few steps as I grunt in more surprise than pain. She advances without giving me a second to recover, her fist flying toward my face. I duck in just enough time to avoid it connecting with my jaw and grab her upper arm, pulling her back against my chest as I wrap my arm around her neck in a chokehold.
“Okay, I guess we’re not warming up,” Kade comments mildly, amusement lacing his tone, and Lex chuckles. The two of them begin sparring as Gabriel walks over to where Calla is struggling to break free of my grasp. Despite her newfound strength, I still have decades on her. Without the element of surprise, she doesn’t have much of a chance against me. And if she genuinely wanted to bring me harm, which I don’t believe she does—even after hauling her out of bed this morning—because I sired her, she’ll never be able to.
Calla slams her elbow into my ribs over and over, gritting her teeth until her molars grind, and growls deep in her throat. “You’ve made your point,” she says under her breath, digging her fingers into my skin as she attempts to pry my arm away from her neck.
I let her go, turning her around to face me. “You’re stronger,” I tell her, “which is good. Your previous training will also lend you a hand.”
She arches a brow at me, then her eyes narrow. “Why do I feel like there’s a ‘but’ in there somewhere?”
“I think he’s trying to compliment you, angel,” Gabriel says, leaning against the wall near us with one ankle crossed over the other. Gabriel has never been one for fighting—not since he escaped Selene’s clutches. He tends to leave the violence to Lex or Kade—or both, depending on the situation.
“Oh. Thanks.”
Instead of responding, I attack again, coming at her from the side and taking her down onto the mats. Calla grits her teeth, her sharp silver eyes narrowed at me as I trap her wrists above her head. She immediately bucks her hips, knocking me to the side and slamming her foot into my ribs. I grunt, releasing her wrists, and she gets up in a blur of movement.
Kade moves in next, and I get off the mats, watching their technique closely. He launches at her from behind, but she hears him coming and whips around, throwing her arm out and catching him in the chest. He goes down hard, and she drops to the mats with him, kneeing him in the stomach and wrapping her fingers around his throat. Both their hearts are pounding, and despite his position, Kade is grinning like a child on Christmas morning.
Lex joins the fight, snaking an arm around Calla’s waist and hauling her off Kade. She slams her head back, and it cracks against his jaw. He curses, letting go of her, and she whirls on him, kicking his legs out with a grunt. Her breathing is heavy and sweat dots her brow, but she isn’t giving up. Our girl is strong and resilient, and I expect nothing less from her.
I glance toward where Gabriel is observing the match. He meets my gaze, and I nod at him to join the training. He inclines his head slightly and pushes away from the wall, stalking forward as Lex jumps up from the floor. The three of them converge on Calla, and her gaze bounces between them.
“Seriously?” she breathes, still trying to catch her breath as she inches away from them. “Three against one? That’s hardly fair.”
“Focus,” I snap at her.
Gabriel shoots forward first, grabbing Calla by the shoulders. She growls in his face, her pulse pounding as she focuses her energy on defending herself against his attack. Shoving against his chest, she manages to put a bit of distance between them before taking a swing at his face. He catches her fist at the last moment and pushes her back—right into Lex’s chest. He wraps both arms around her like a cage, holding her arms against her sides, and lifts her off the floor when she tries to pull away. She throws her head back, and Lex barely manages to avoid taking it square in the face. He drops her, and she slams her elbow back into his ribcage, making him grunt. Kade barks out a laugh, retreating toward the mini-fridge, and grabs a bottle of water, downing half of it.
Before the others can make another attempt, I close in on her, snaring her attention immediately.
“Are we done?” she asks, glancing at Gabriel and Lex before returning her gaze to me. “I need a shower.”
“In a minute.” I’m fairly satisfied with what I’ve seen. I wasn’t expecting her to be able to fight off all of us at once, but what she managed to do did impress me. “What do you do when a hunter gets behind you?”
She swallows, licking her lips as her chest continues rising and falling quickly. “I’d start by—”
