He caught her ankle with one hand, twisting at the waist and flipping her neatly onto the ground. She rolled with the momentum and came back up with the grace of a predator, already throwing her elbow toward his ribs. He blocked her with his forearm, smirking at the sting. f\r(e)ewe.b no\vel.com
"Still slow," he taunted.
"You’re still an ass," she shot back, spinning low and sweeping for his legs.
They collided, parted, and collided again; quick, sharp strikes and elegant footwork that kicked up dust under the moonlight. Neither was holding back. They fought like fire and lightning, beautiful and deadly in their own right. His raw strength met her fierce agility in a brutal dance, their bodies clashing and brushing far too often, far too close.
Every strike was personal.
Every block was a challenge.
And every glance held too much tension, too much heat, to be anything close to innocent.
Kyllian landed a hit to her stomach, knocking the wind out of her, but she retaliated with a knee that nearly caught him in the groin.
"Seriously?!" he hissed, backpedaling with an exaggerated wince.
"Oops," she said with a wicked grin, panting. "Was that off the table?"
They circled each other, sweat starting to slick their skin, moonlight glinting off the sheen on their bodies. Her shorts clung to her thighs, and her tank top was slowly starting to betray her, riding down to reveal tantalizing flashes of lovely cleavage.
Kyllian did his best not to notice.
She sprang at him and their bodies slammed together, arms locking, legs tangling, heat surging. For a moment, they were so close their breath mingled, her chest heaving against his, his arm around her waist, both of them gripping each other.
And for one stupid second, they forgot they were fighting.
Then Luna twisted, using that proximity, that maddening closeness, to her advantage. She slid her leg between his, swiveled her hips with infuriating grace, and pressed her body against his in a way that was both seductive and absolutely strategic.
Kyllian’s brain left the chat.
Her scent overwhelmed him. His hand faltered at her waist.
And in that heartbeat of distraction, Luna grinned.
She yanked his arm, pivoted under his shoulder, and flipped him with the elegance of a woman who’d been trained by a warrior and a king. He hit the ground with a grunt, air whooshing from his lungs. .com
Before he could recover, she straddled him and pinned his wrists down over his head, leaning over him with a victorious, breathless smirk.
Chest to chest. Hips to hips.
"You cheated," Kyllian breathed, staring up at her.
"I won. You leave me alone."
"I knew it." she said.
She slowly let go of his wrists.
She slid off him and stood, brushing herself off.
Kyllian sat up, dragging a hand through his hair, still catching his breath. "You cannot stop fighting, Luna."
"I am not having this conversation with you. I won fair and square. We had a deal."
Her name slipped from Kyllian’s lips. He took a step toward her, his heart still racing from the fight...no, from her. Always her.
"Kyllian!" she snapped, holding up a hand. "What am I supposed to do with two mates? Tell me! I’m with you...I lose my will. I’m with him...I lose my decency. Just... just leave me alone."
She turned her face away, her chest heaving as if she were running from something. But it wasn’t the battle that left her breathless, it was the war inside her. Between duty and desire. Between fate and freedom. Between love and loss.
"So what?" he asked, eyes locked on her profile. "We’re just supposed to watch you die? In what universe do you think that would hurt less?"
He took another step closer. "I want you. Yes. I love you. Yes. But gods, Luna...I would rather you choose Damien, marry him, bear him a dozen blood sucking babies if it meant you’d stay alive."
"Kyllian..." she whispered, eyes full of storm clouds. "Please don’t make this even more difficult."
He sighed, dragging a hand through his already tousled hair. "You beat me," he admitted, "You cheated, but I accept the loss..."
That got her. She blinked, turning toward him fully now, eyes narrowing. "How exactly did I cheat?" she asked.
He gave her a long, meaningful look. "Well..." He gestured vaguely in her direction. "You distracted me."
Luna stared at him ridiculously. "How the hell did I even do that?"
Kyllian looked at her like she was the idiot. "You... you really have no idea what you do to me?"
She blinked, genuinely confused. "What are you talking about?"
He stepped closer, now only inches between them. "I told you...I don’t feel the mate pull. But that doesn’t mean I don’t feel anything."
He was all but vibrating now, the tension between them stretching. "I want you in ways I’ve never wanted any woman in my life. So when you’re looking like that..." He gestured vaguely at her again, flustered now. "I lose my senses."
Luna glanced down. Her tank top, loose from the fight, now hung off one shoulder, and with the moonlight catching her sweat-slicked skin, it was... yeah. Her breasts were half exposed.
She flushed and tugged at the top instinctively. "This? That’s what threw you off?"
He nodded, almost shamefully. "Also the hair. And the legs."
"Okay, stop." She raised a hand again, this time to hide a smile. "Are you seriously blaming your loss on my legs?"
"And the smirk," he added solemnly. "Devastating."
"Are you hearing yourself?" she laughed, a breathless sound that felt like relief for both of them. "You’re saying my boobs, hair, arms and legs broke your brain."
"Yes," he said. "And I’m not even sorry. I’m only a man."
She snorted. "A man who got his ass handed to him."
He grinned. "I’d let you do it again."