Page 52 of Ashley & the A-Listers

Dylan stood on the mats across from Ashley, gloved up, and he couldn’t breathe. Mostly because every breath was filled with her scent, citrus and ginger zapping him to life, and partly because Dylan couldn’t believe he was standing this close to her. Making eye contact.

“Cam wants to see what a few of the moves that I’m teaching him look like, that’s all.”

“I’m just a demonstration dummy,” Dylan said, and her lips twitched before she got her expression under control.

“Exactly. I’ll go easy on you.”

“I thought he wanted to see a sparring session.”

“We’ll get to that,” she said.

“Come on, we’re gonna run out of time,” Cameron called out.

“You’re my last client of the day, so no worries if we go over,” Ashley said, surprising Dylan.

“Nic won’t mind?” Dylan asked.

Ashley arched a brow. “Have you met Nic?”

“Right,” Dylan agreed with a shake of his head.

“Ready?” she asked a moment later.

“As I’ll ever be.”

“Alright, so,” she said, projecting her voice as Cameron stepped closer, at the edge of the mats. “This is what you’ve been learning,” she began.

Ashley was so knowledgeable. So capable.

She told Dylan what move she was going to make and how he was likely to respond, and while Dylan had of course taken his share of defensive and offensive courses with the company that hired him, it was so intriguing to have it broken down so simply.

She’d sweep his leg out and push on his shoulder to send him sprawling, and Cameron wouldoohandaahfrom the edge of the mat.

She threw him over her shoulder at one point, almost making his nightmare a reality. He had to talk himself down.

They traded slow punches until they got used to the rhythm and could pick up the speed. Dylan was tentative at first, afraid he’d accidentally hit her, but Ashley was…

Terrifyingwas one word for it.

She knew so much about the body and its reactions.Howto hit himwhereto make him move a certain way so she could finish him.

Dylan was usually instinctual about that kind of thing. Ashley had it down to a fucking science.

She’d aim for his left side, knowing he’d shift to defend, and then go for his right at the last second. Where she saw a weak spot, she showed no mercy, and Dylan knew he’d be sore the next day.

Maybe this was good for him, too. He didn’t think he was so out of practice.

“That’s the thing about alphas,” Ashley said as she pulled him up from the mat. “They depend too much on being an alpha, think it’s all reactive—that it comes naturally.”

His pride was bruised, but that was the least of his worries. “It’s probably situational,” Dylan said. “Sure, here on the mat with a professional, instincts won’t do much good, but try to get between an alpha and their omega, and I think it’s a different game.”

“Oh, yeah?” Ashley asked, gaze darting to Cameron and back to Dylan.

“Not likethat,” Dylan said. He didn’t want her to get the wrong idea about them.

“Ouch,” Cam said, and Dylan rolled his eyes. Of all the sparring today, he knew this was one fight he couldn’t win.

“How about one true sparring session, then we can call it?” Cameron asked.

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