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From my place on the floor, I wrapped one hand around his ankle and tugged. His foot slipped, but he recovered quickly. Regaining his balance, he sent the booted foot I held straight into my chest. It was more of a push than a kick, but it was more than enough to knock me on my back.
He was there a second later, his weight pressing down on me, pinning me to the floor while his wings spread out behind him, making a canopy over our heads.
“Why do you get your wings out every time you fight?” I gasped out, trying to catch my breath.
“They help with my balance. Your move might have been successful in dropping me if I hadn’t had them.”
“That sounds a lot like you cheated,” I muttered.
“And moping about it doesn’t do you any good.” He dropped one of the knives to catch the fist I sent toward his throat. “That wasn’t very nice.”
“You only said no cutting or stabbing.” That wasn’t an option for me at the moment. My other hand, the one that clutched the stake, was trapped at my side, held in place by Nathaniel’s knee.
He forced the hand he held to the floor beside my head. “That’s true.”
I gritted my teeth, fighting against his grip even though it was useless. He was too strong and too heavy. How much did those wings of his weigh anyway?
The press of Nathaniel’s remaining knife against my neck forced me into stillness. “I win,” he whispered, leaning in so I could feel his warm breath on my ear.
My own breath caught. We’d never been quite this close before—every hard part of him lined up with all the soft parts of me. I felt vulnerable and turned on at the same time. Was this supposed to feel erotic?
I swallowed hard, acutely aware of the blade that was dangerously close to breaking my skin. “Are you going to move the knife in the near future? I think you made your point.”
He pulled the weapon away from my throat without breaking eye contact, his body radiating tension above me.
Distantly, I was aware that there was some consequence to my losing, something I’d promised him, but I couldn’t remember what. And I didn’t think victory was on his mind at the moment either. His eyes bored into mine with a hungry sort of intensity that made my whole body feel hot and tingly.
I was aware of every breath I took, the way my chest brushed against his when I inhaled. My skin buzzed everywhere our bare skin touched, and my lower region was starting to throb.
I lifted my hips, trying to find some kind of relief, and felt him harden against me. So I wasn’t the only one affected by our current position.
“Don’t,” he warned in a strained voice. “If we start, I’m not going to be able to stop, and we can’t do this. It’s not safe.”
I rolled my hips, testing how far I could push him. I wasn’t sure where the sudden brazenness had come from. I wasn’t normally like this at all, but I’d also never wanted like this before either.
“Sierra,” he rasped. “Please don’t test me. I’m not that honorable.”
“I thought you were an angel.”
“I’m awarrior.”
His words sent a shiver down my spine. Reminding me that he was born to kick demon ass might not have been the best way to cool this situation. It was secretly one of the things I found most attractive about him. Sure he was physically gorgeous, but that was just a bonus to the rest of the package.
“Why is it not safe?” I whispered, letting my body slump back to the floor.
Nathaniel groaned and pressed his forehead against mine. “I’m not supposed to…” He shook his head and climbed off me. “I’m not good for you, Sierra. Entertaining anything physical between us is asking for trouble.”
I lay there for several seconds, trying to get my breathing back under control and willing the fire igniting under my skin to go away. He was right. We shouldn’t do this. He was my bodyguard and I was his job.
“Come on, get up.” He held out a hand to help me off the floor. “I won, which means you promised me no complainingandthat you’d listen to me.”
I’d have been tempted to pull him down if I thought I could manage it, but I knew it was a lost cause. Instead, I let him pull me to my feet. “What exactly are we doing?”
“I’m teaching you how to fight demons. I’d still rather you stay out of the fight if at all possible, but if a demon comes at you, I want you to be able to hold your own.” He retrieved his knives and sheathed them in his boots. “First rule, don’t ever touch my knives. No matter what.”
“Why?”
“Because they’re angelic weapons infused with heavenly fire. They’re deadly to humans and demons alike. Only an angel can ignite the fire in them, but even when that fire is dormant, the weapons are still lethal to anyone without angelic blood who tries to use them.”
