Page 29 of A Ballad of Beasts and Brothers

"Why don't we make this interesting then, Princess," he coos. "If you manage to knock me off my feet, I'll buy you whatever you want: clothes, jewelry, a new weapon, you name it and it's yours."

He certainly knows the way to nab my attention. To say I'm intrigued would be an understatement. Traveling through Tronovia every day and seeing the countless shops filled with dazzling goods has me considering taking him up on his wager. "Let's say I fail. What do you get for stopping me?"

"If I pin you," the wicked gleam in his eyes has my stomach in knots, "then you have to answer one of my questions truthfully."

"Is this a one-time offer?"

He shakes his head and strands of rebellious hair fall across his forehead. All I want to do is tug my fingers through it. "No," his voice slices through my thoughts. "My offer stands for the entire semester."

I mull over his proposition. I know there's no way in hell I'm pinning him to the mat today, but is it worth embarrassing myself over? Is it worth answering any of his personal and intrusive questions truthfully? I glance over at the bleachers where Nyx and Ronan are perched like two lazy, mischievous cats. Neither of them says anything, but from the competitive gleam in Nyx's eyes, I know he wants me to take the deal. Honestly, just the thought of Atlas' hands being all over my body has me willing to shake hands on the matter.

I purge that thought from my mind, hoping my hands don't start to glow and extend my hand to him. "It's a deal."

A crooked grin snakes across his face as he takes my hand in his and squeezes. "Let's see what you've got, Princess."

I rack my brain for everything Nyx taught me during our trek through Bava and take a defensive stance. Atlas quickly stomps toward me and once he's within reach, he snatches my arm and tries to whip me around, but I slam my arm down against his, breaking the hold.

He nods in approval, "Good girl. Now when you slam down on my forearm," he takes my hand in his and presses it against his arm, "make sure you put more force behind it and hit this pressure point." I glance up only to see he's already watching me. "Again?"

"Again." My mouth is suddenly dry.

Atlas takes a step back before grabbing my wrist again. I do as he instructs and slam my arm against the pressure point, and he instantly releases and shakes his arm out.

"Good. Much better."

"Did I hurt you?"

"Not yet," he shakes his head. "Again," he resets.

We repeat the same motion several times before he adds in a second move. When I block his attack, he allows that momentum to take him and turns around with an elbow coming straight for my face. Thankfully his movements are slow and I'm able to dodge the blow. He bobs his head again and straightens.

"Good. Let's try that again."

Over and over and over we repeat the same two moves without adding anything new. Growing bored and tired of the repetition, the moment he goes to restart I hold a hand up, stopping his advancement.

"Is something wrong?" he asks, and I shake my head.

"Is this all you're going to teach me today?" My question seems to catch him off-guard. "Nyx already showed me these moves in Bava and I was hoping to learn something different."

I don't mean for my words to come across disrespectfully, but when Ronan and Nyx howl in delight I can't help but fear I offended Atlas. Quickly, I tear my eyes from the two laughing buffoons to glance up at Atlas and thankfully, I only see curiosity in his gaze. So, why does that make me more nervous?

"I am more than happy to move on to more advanced material," he says.

I arch a brow, suspicion stirring within me at his ready compliance. My heart races and my head screams in warning that this is a trap, but I ask, "Really?"

"Really." He smiles, and a sinking feeling in my stomach has my shoulders tensing. "Show me what else Nyx has taught you."

Shit. This isn't going to go well.

I take my defensive stance and let loose a shaky breath. He stalks toward me and just as all the other times before, he reaches for my wrist, and I block his attack. Spinning in the direction I slammed down on his arm, he turns, bringing an elbow straight to my face. I easily dodge the blow, oddly proud of myself for keeping up with the increased speed, but I fail to notice Atlas' leg sweep my feet out from under me. I fall, but before I hit the mat, he slips an arm under me and catches me and lowers me to the mat before straddling my hips.

As he stares down at me, he smirks and says, "You owe me a truth." But I don't care. The image of him hovering above me naked has my breathing ragged.

Planting his hands on either side of my head, he lowers himself, so his chest presses against mine. His lips brush my ear and every hair on my body stands at attention.

"Because of your impatience," his whisper instantly melts me, "you are now at my mercy. I can do whatever I want to you and there's nothing you can do to stop me."

I'm not sure whether I should be intimidated or thoroughly turned on. I turn my face to meet his line of sight and my cheek brushes against his. "Ask your question."

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