Page 123 of Nicky and the Night Owls, Part One

Mom nodded again. “You can bring whoever you like to family dinner. I can’t promise I’ll do everything right, but I can promise to try.”

I kissed her cheek with a wistful sigh. “That's all I can ask.”

It was full dark by the time my family departed for the evening, and I felt a lot lighter.

Hana approached me, her fingers fidgeting. “Nicky, I’d like to teach you how to fight.”

37

NICKY

Thiswasaterribleidea. My limbs weighed a million pounds, and my sweaty hair clung to my face.

“You’re doing very well, Nicky,” Hana crooned.

“Doesn’t feel like I am,” I said, gasping even as I ate up the praise. I hadn’t landed a single hit, but I’m not sure that I expected to during all of this.

“Do you think it would help if you had more of a visual aid?”

“I don’t know, maybe?”

Hana nodded decisively and tapped away on her phone. A few minutes later, Gabe came down the stairs into the basement where we were practicing, dressed in some sweat shorts and a tank top. My brain tripped happily. It was honestly unfair how gorgeous he was.

“Your model has arrived, ladies.” He grinned and took his position in the middle of the mats.

“Nicky,” Hana said, “don’t worry about Gabe. He's had plenty of experience with being thrown to mats by me.”

Gabe winked at me, and even though I was already sweating, I was still far too aware of the heating of my cheeks.

“Okay,” Hana said, “Gabe come at me.”

A flare of adrenaline licked up my spine as Gabe charged her. He was met with her dropping down and hefting him by the legs straight over her head. Gabe recovered quickly, and she blocked some of his blows, sidestepping the others. I held my breath as she advanced on him, and then he was the one who had to try to block and avoid.

She caught him in some whip-fast maneuver, and he ended up flat on his back again with her knees on each side of his chest and her hands bracing down his wrists. His body heaved beneath her, and they rolled. Even when he managed to get on top and pin her, it lasted only a couple of seconds before she used some kind of witchcraft to get herself back on top and flip him over, firmly pinning him with a knee to his spine and his arm wrenched behind him.

“Holy shit,” I whispered.

That waswayhotter than it had any right to be.

Hana let him up, and Gabe gave me a cheeky grin from his place sitting on the mats.

“You’ll be able to do the same with some significant training,” said Hana. “But to start with, we’re going to work through the basics that will do the most damage and give you the most time to escape. The main thing you want in a fight that's not planned is to get away from your attacker. You don’t want to give anyone a chance to get their hands on you, okay? If it comes down to it, you want to deliver some fast hits to key areas, and then I want you to run. Come on over here.”

I committed her words to memory and crossed the mats to stand in front of the two of them, Gabe climbing to his feet.

“There are several important points to aim for,” Hana explained. “Alphonse and Gabe have the same basic structures, so you’re going to want to hit here, here, and here,” Hana said, pointing to Gabe's nose, stomach, and crotch. “Other good spots are the eyes and throat. Ultimately, anything tender or a little more delicate is going to be where you want to hit. I’m hoping if we can get some good practice, then your brain will link back to that instead of panicking if an actual situation occurs.”

Hana showed me how to move, alternating between use of small weapons like car keys and application of certain techniques: how to hit with the most force, how to strike with the heel of my hand, and how to kick without knocking myself off balance.

“You really think he's going to attack me?” I asked.

“Hard to say.” She shrugged. “But I would rather this be training that you have and not need than training that you need and don’t have if it ever comes down to that.”

“Okay, that's fair.”

I didn’t think my anxiety levels could handle him actually turning violent towards me.

“Now, come over here,” Hana ordered and tapped her toes on a spot in front of Gabe. She stood directly behind me, moving her hands down my arms to adjust mine into the proper position, moving me slowly through a strike, repeating to each of the vulnerable points on Gabe's body. We did that three times for each while I struggled to force down the rebellious thoughts that popped up from being entirely surrounded by two rather alluring alphas.

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