Page 104 of Riftborne
“Ready yourself,” he stated, the sternness returning to his voice.
I exhaled calmly, turning all of my attention to what I could feel around me. The mat shifted as he circled, each step heightening my senses. I knew the attack was coming. I braced myself, getting into my defensive position.
I sensed something in front of me, but my attempt to dodge was cut short as his hands seized my waist, slamming my back into the mat and knocking the air out of me. It all happened so quickly. I heard a few laughs from the other recruits, and my skin flushed.
I pulled myself up onto my elbows. But I was forced back as his hands wrapped around my wrists, pinning me down. I tried to twist my lower body to escape his grasp, but his leg flew over my waist. Then he was on top of me, forcing my legs into submission as he locked them closed with his own. I was trapped. Embarrassment swept over me.
“If this were real, you’d be dead,” he murmured before releasing his grip.
“Get up,” he commanded. I felt him walk away.
I threw my palms onto the mat and stood. He hadn’t taunted the others like this.
After five more failed attempts, I sat up, breathless. I wanted toattack him, to slap away that smug look that I knew was gracing his features as he paced back and forth, eager for another impossible round.
“Again,” he said with too much excitement.
I stood, balancing myself as I heard him let out a chuckle from the other side of the mat, and my blood began to boil.
Enough of this. I wasn’t going to let him win again. I summoned the webbing, goading it up my spine, urging it to send out feelers into the space around me. A second sight. I picked up the slivers of a mind slowly approaching from behind and bit back a wicked grin, glowing like it was lit from within. I put every ounce of my concentration into tracking Laryk.
Suddenly, the pulse shot towards me, and I dodged to the right, angling myself as I felt my thighs make the connection. A gasp ran through the room as I laced my legs through his and brought us both down, hard against the mat. But I wasn’t finished. I could still sense him. I tore myself free, tackling him as he got to his feet, and we tumbled back down. I reached out, grabbed his arms, and pinned them behind his head as I straddled him, locking my ankles around his upper thighs.
I couldn’t hold back a triumphant smile as I released his hands and tore the blindfold off. I wasn’t going to miss getting to see the look on his face.
The room was still silent, save for a few murmurs.
I looked down to see Laryk smirking, a dark intensity burned in his eyes.
“Impressive,” he stated. “Care to release me now?”
This position of power felt… better than good. I shoved away the heat that was building in my core, seeing him below me.
In a swift motion, I untangled my ankles and climbed off, returning to my feet once more.
He threw his legs back over his head and rolled into a crouch before standing. What an incessantshowoff.
I glared at him as I held out the blindfold, angling my head sothat the rest of the class couldn’t see the smirk now etched onto my lips. I couldn’t even help it. I was beaming.
He walked slowly over to me, close enough to whisper in my ear as he took the fabric from my grasp.
“Cheater,” he murmured. The word was low and silken with a dangerous edge. Heat surged through me as I returned to my seat, shifting my weight and trying to quell the burning inside me.
Class was dismissed early, and I rejected the invitation from Raine to join her for dinner in the mess hall. I did not need to be around people right now.
I rushed into the hallway just in time to see two redheads walking down the corridor together. My heart froze in my chest, but the burning in my core only intensified.
Blood Clot looked back in my direction, smiling as she looped her arm around Laryk’s waist. I was going to explode. I tore my eyes from the sight of the two of them and ran in the other direction. I needed the safety of my own space.
I flew inside my room, slamming the door behind me and locking it, grateful to finally be alone. I crawled onto my bed and looked toward the ceiling.What did he see in her? I wanted to scream. I needed something that was just out of reach. My entire body ached to be relieved of this heat. To feel his hands on me. I tried to focus on my accomplishment… finding him… tracking his mind. There was something intimate about it, but that only left me wanting more.
Then there was the feeling of his body pressed against mine. His legs pinning me down. the heat of him taking over my senses. I felt flushed when I thought of his arms wrapped around me, the weight of him pressing against me. A burning desire was pooling at my core that had me wishing for more.
I needed a release. Maybe I hadn’t been physical with someone in so long that even the violence of sparring could get me going. Maybe it wasn’t him at all…
I knew I was lying to myself. My whole world had been incinerated by thoughts of him.
Thoughts I wished I could turn off. Eradicate.
