Page 97 of Seducing Hope (The Hope Legacy)

“So, the second time, I was also pissed when I faced Khalkaroth.”

I nod, deep in thought. “Should I call Zac?”

Natia rolls her eyes. “Pretty sure it’s me that infuriates him. He just amuses me,” she mutters. “Then again, I could do with comedic entertainment. Zac!”

He appears in the center of the room with his arms folded. “What?” he grinds out.

“Hey, Zacy… how’s it hanging?” She bats her eyelashes.

He turns to me, barely contained fury tensing his muscles. I chuckle. “She’s making a point.”

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” he mutters at Natia, who starts shaking with laughter. Then he disappears.

“See, only amusement on my behalf.” She crosses her arms and pouts. “Poor Zacy.”

I shake my head and step away from her. If only she knew who she was baiting. “Let’s do this a different way. Forget the magic. I want you to fight me first.”

Startling me, she sprints toward me. Her muscles tense before she launches herself, and I move my arms, ready to grab her around her waist. But her jump is too high, and she manages to wrap her thighs around my face before thrusting her weight down so I collapse backwards. She rolls off me and springs to her feet, leaving me blinking at the fluorescent lights. “I might have enjoyed that under different circumstances,” I pant.

She snorts and, taking advantage of my stunned state, grabs my arm and twists it back around, forcing me to roll. I allow it but grab her wrist and pull her underneath me. I grin down at her. “I see you’re not below kicking someone when they’re down.”

She pats my cheek, a brilliant grin lighting her face. “Absolutely. The fights I have aren’t in the safety of a ring. Typically, it’s to the death, and kicking someone when they’re down isn’t playing dirty—it’s essential for my survival.”

“It wasn’t a criticism. Take every advantage you have.”

Her long, bare legs wrap around my waist, caressing the naked skin of my back. Arching her back, she pushes her breasts against my chest. “You’re playing with fire,” I mutter against her neck, nipping her accelerated pulse. In a split second, she has me spun around and is straddling my chest. Her elbow slams into my throat, cutting off my air. “What are you doing?” I rasp.

A slow grin spreads across her face, her eyes bleeding to that alluring azure. “Taking every advantage I have.”

Wrapping my hands under her ass, I stand with her clinging to me. She releases my throat and, with a pout, drops to the floor. I laugh. “You’re playing with the big boys now, Natia.”

She rolls her eyes as she strolls to the center of the room. “I’m not sure how to even respond to that.”

“Do you have any routines you practice alone?” I ask.

She nods. “Sure, Zee taught me a few.”

Leaning against the wall, I wave my hand. “Let’s see them.”

She moves with a grace and fluidity most will never accomplish. Lost in the moves, I can tell some are her own, improvised to complement her strength and ability. My eyes track the long lines she creates with her limbs, the obvious strength and tone of her body flexing with each move. “You fight like you dance,” I comment as she stops, slightly breathless.

She cocks an eyebrow. “Strong and dirty?”

I smile—I’ve found myself smiling more with her in the last few days than what I can remember doing in decades. Stalking toward her, my eyes track the bead of sweat trickling down her throat. “You’ve already experienced a dangerous overload and burn out with your magic. You need to use it in controlled bursts and look out for the signs that you’re using too much.”

“Can it kill me?” she asks, nibbling her lip.

“Yes.” Releasing her lip, she thins them instead—far less sexy, but infinitely less distracting. “With power comes responsibility.”

She bends over and laughs out loud. “Come on! You’re killing me! You’re near enough stealing Spiderman quotes without even knowing it?”

I sigh and run my hand through my hair. Her laughter dies out, and she stands up straight, her body tense. One look at me, and she falls to the ground laughing again. I wait for her to collect herself, and as she stands, she waves her hand at me. “Okay, okay, I’m done. I’ve got this.” Her lips twitch a few times as she meets my eyes, but thankfully, she holds herself together.

I move on. “When you fight, you need to know the right time to use your magic. It’s not all the time; otherwise, you’ll burn out quickly, and either the thing trying to kill you will get lucky, or you’ll kill yourself. So think of it as a complement to your existing skills. Now we just have to get you to access it.”

“So, no taking advice from Mickey and commanding the broomsticks to tidy the house?” she asks.

I frown. “Mickey?”

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