Page 71 of In My Heart
Arran huffed out a laugh. “Careful, Lad. She’s looking mighty pissed right now.”
Cal didn’t look away from me, but he nodded. “Good. Means she might stop holding back this time.”
That did it. I moved first. Using my speed to my advantage, I closed the few feet between us in a heartbeat, reaching for his wrist while hooking my left foot behind his ankle. He reacted immediately, completely ready for me, catching my forearm and starting to pivot, but I twisted out of it, adjusting mid-motion, slipping free before he could lock it in and pin me.
“Better,” Arran said from behind me.
“Don’t encourage her,” Cal muttered, though I caught the hint of amusement on his face. He was enjoying this as much as I was.
I slipped free of Cal, ducking under his arm and bouncing back away from him. I was already panting, my breathing picking up speed with the exertion. And of course I couldn’t even hear Cal’s breathing. Had it not been for the fight with Arran, I doubted he’d have even broken a damned sweat.
“Aren’t you both supposed to be encouraging me? That’s literally why I’m down here,” I pointed out breathlessly, swiping my arm across my sweaty brow.
“We’re teaching you control,” Cal returned, as he slowly stepped closer and circled me like he was looking for weakness.
Had it been anyone but Cal, I would believe that was what they were doing, but knowing Cal, I was pretty sure he was checking just how exhausted I was. Worrying whether I was up to going on.
“It’s no’ all about what yer know, Cara. It’s about how you use it too,” Arran added.
“I know that. I can handle myself.” I flicked a glance toward him stubbornly.
Cal’s gaze ran over me, drawing my attention back to him. It was sharp, assessing, but there was something else in it too. Something quieter that made my chest tighten just a little.
“We know,” he said. “That doesn’t mean we stop making sure.”
The way he said it changed the air between us, shifted it. My determination and fight gave way to need. I felt it settle under my skin, warm and so distracting.
I forced myself to take a deep breath. This was what Cal wanted – to throw me off and show me that I wasn’t in control, exactly as they had said. I wasn’t going to be distracted. Cal was going down this time.
“I’m not falling for this. Less talking,” I told him, lifting my hands as if that would ward off the power he had over me. “You should focus more on not getting crushed.”
Cal stepped in again, testing my guard. I blocked instinctively, and he feinted to the right. I adjusted and my body took over, knowing what to do from the amount I had practiced. The movements came faster now, sharper, falling into a rhythm that pulled me fully into it. I found that place of calm within me, the quiet that blocked everything else out but that moment, that fight.
I could hear Dio’s barked words in my head.Contact. Break. Move.I could feel myself smiling, even as my breathing got faster.
“You’re holding back,” I told Cal when he backed away from an opening I had stupidly left.
“You want me not to?” he laughed.
“Try me.” I held my hands out and waved my fingers in invitation, taunting him to come for me.
“This should be good,” Arran murmured with a chuckle to himself.
Cal didn’t hold back this time when he came at me. He just moved, faster this time - grabbing, turning, using his weight in a way he hadn’t before. I barely avoided being pinned, twisting hard, my back brushing briefly against his chest as I slipped pasthim. Just that contact sent a sharp, unexpected jolt through me, the heat rising within once again.
“Okay, that’s new,” I conceded as I pushed away quickly.
“You said try you.”
“Yeah, yeah! You haven’t won yet. Don’t get cocky,” I huffed out.
But seeing the true fire in Cal seemed to have lit mine too. I went at him again, more aggressive this time, pushing harder, faster. Cal met me fully, no hesitation. Our bodies collided in controlled force, his strength pressing against my speed. He caught my wrist again, but I dropped my weight instead this time, pivoting in close, using the movement he’d committed to, against him, and then he was falling.
“Oh!” Arran’s voice echoed in the room, clearly surprised.
Cal hit the mat with a solid thud, and triumph flared through me. I did it. I got him down. Then Cal’s hand reached for my wrist and caught me.
“It’s not over yet,” he reminded me, and before I could react, he pulled.
