Page 20 of Ruining His Smirk

“And… Arthurian legends.”

“Naturally.”

“And whales.”

“You know me well.”

“Hmm… and the last one… fencing.”

“Okay, that’s slightly insulting. Am I that predictable?”

He grinned. “I just know you that well.”

“Fair enough.”

I looked back toward the horizon. “Obviously, I didn’t expect anyone else to have written anything remotely similar. Maybe whales. The main organizer even apologized to me. I was preparing to leave the room, but then one of the organizers came looking for me.”

I could still picture the grin on the woman’s face.

“She walked straight over and said, ‘Dr. Braddock, I think we’ve found your match.’”

“What did you say?”

“I asked how many people had matched. She laughed and said, ‘Only one other on the continent wroteThe Three Musketeerson his bingo card.’” I shook my head. “I thought she was joking. But she showed me the other sheet.”

“What did it say?” Keith was riveted, his eyes on my face.

I could still remember reading it. “The Three Musketeers. Swordsmanship.Prince Valiantcomic.”

“Damn. Swordsmanship too?”

I smiled. “Right? I remember thinking… who on earth is this person? She took me over to introduce us.” I looked out across the ice. “And there he was. Garrett Landry. I think the organizer felt the tension because I remember her blushing furiously as we both stood staring at each other.”

Keith exhaled a sigh. “Frankly, you both still have enough tension to blow up this ship.”

I snorted and looked down at my gloves. “Yeah. I was so excited when he accepted a fencing match.” I smiled at the memory despite myself. “As soon as I said I had my fencing kit with me, he was game.”

“He didn’t hesitate?”

“Not for a second.”

I could still picture the room where we’d changed into our fencing whites. “The first exchange was exhilarating.” I had replayed that moment so many times in my mind in the past year that it felt like a dream.

“Was he good?” Keith asked.

“He was amazing. He moved far better than I expected. His technique wasn’t polished, not in the way someone formally trained would move, but none of that mattered once the boutactually began. He was astonishingly quick for someone of his bulk. Every time our blades met, I could feel just how strong he was, and fuck… that was so hot, Keith.”

My friend chuckled.

“I’d attack; he’d defend. I’d change tempo; he’d adapt almost immediately. I kept expecting him to make mistakes, but instead he forced me to earn every single touch. I’d trained for years, and to think I had met my match in the most attractive man I had ever seen? I think I was high enough to fly.”

He let out a quiet breath. “Sorry, man.”

My smile faded. “You know the score stayed close the entire time? Right until the final exchange. We both committed at almost exactly the same moment. Our blades landed almost together, but I had established right of way. The referee awarded me the touch, and with it the match.”

I was quiet for a moment.

“I took off my mask expecting him to smile, shake my hand, maybe ask for coffee or maybe my room number. He looked even more gorgeous, all sweaty and panting.”