Page 92 of Hate Me

~Caleb~

“You’re being too gentle yet again,” Skylar told Bastian, as he stepped back and wiped blood out of the corner of his mouth, while she bounced on the balls of her feet, her fists ready and raring to go in for another round after Bastian had just called a timeout.

For the fifth time since they’d started sparring in the King Manor gym.

During breakfast several days ago, Bastian had told her all about his recovery plan and how doing a whole lot of MMA with Luke was a part of it with him needing to keep physically healthy and also the fact that it assisted with his focus. Skylar had been all curious and interested and she’d wanted him to show her what he’d learned.

And now, once again, for the last hour or so, they’d been holed up in here going at it.

Just not in the way Bastian clearly needed them to be going at it.

It was obvious to me that he was trying to limit their physical contact right now, because he was really sexually frustrated and any skin-to-skin contact he had with her was causing a strain on him. Normally, he’d never shy away from making the first move. With her, it had been their thing from the get-go. But after them fucking when she’d first come back here and it being all empty and everything, he’d gone a little gun-shy. So he was waiting on her to show him—and us—that she was ready.

He made his way back to her in the center of the mats. “This is how we’re doing it, so take it or leave it, woman.”

She tugged at her ponytail. “Somehow it actually managed to slip my mind as to what a stubborn shit you can be.”

He scoffed. “Me?”

“Yes,” she insisted.

“If anybody’s campaigning for Stubborn Shit of the Decade, it’s you.”

I smiled to myself. This was actually a very good sign, the two of them getting back to their provocative banter.

In a lightning-fast move, Skylar hooked the back of his knee, then executed a follow through that had him on his back on the mats with a jarring thud.

Hell, yeah. My dick jerked in my sweats at the sight. There was nothing hotter than when she got good and rough and really went for it.

She grinned down at him as she stood over him. “You were saying?”

In the next beat, he smirked, then swept his leg at her ankles, bringing her down on top of him. He rolled, then pinned her beneath him, caging her in. “That’s what you get for pulling an underhanded move like that.”

“Aww,” she teased. “Do you need me to kiss it better?”

He hesitated and pulled back slightly.

It was all she needed to switch their positions with a hella impressive jujitsu move. She slammed his hands down either side of his head. “How about now?” she chuckled.

He gazed up at her, intensity flaring in his eyes. “A kiss isn’t gonna cut it. When you’re ready to go the distance where that’s concerned, say the word.” He twisted to the side, hooked around her leg and ripped her off him, before springing back to his feet. He gave her a hand-up, then stepped back. “Until then, we’re gonna have to limit the hardcore physical contact like this.”

“I… okay,” she said, caught off guard that he was bringing that brazenness of his out again after a couple of weeks of really holding off with that until she’d acclimated more to us.

I rolled my eyes. The problem was, somebody needed to break through the weird stalemate thing going on. It had reached an awkward place now.

I was all for doing it, but Cas had advised that it should be her.

Of course, he was right.

I turned away from checking in on them, hearing Bastian suggest they do some knife-throwing outside together, something they’d had a lot of fun doing and bonding over before.

I made my way through the mansion until I reached Caspian’s bedroom.

There was something I needed to talk to him about, something I’d been putting off because of its nature. I was worried how he was going to take it. We were back on good terms, solid standing, and this could screw with that, the last thing that I wanted.

But after he’d made that deal with Skylar, I couldn’t put it off any longer.

The door was ajar and I went to knock anyway, but pulled up short as I heard his voice.

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