Then, the rhythm changed. He lunged first this time, a quick series of precise strikes aimed at her torso and face. Rynna deflected the first blow with her forearm, grunting as she met his next attack with a sharp block. Her arms moved rapidly, blocking, dodging, and absorbing the force behind his ever-quickening attacks.
She retaliated with a fast front kick aimed at his midsection, but he twisted away, his body flowing out of reach as if anticipating the move.
Rynna followed with a second, faster kick, her leg sweeping low at his ankles. He leapt, air hissing through his teeth as he touched down light as shadow, immediately driving a fist toward her shoulder. Ducking, she rolled beneath him and sprang back up with apowerful sidekick. His forearm shot up just in time to block, but the sheer force of her strike sent him sprawling to the ground.
Lying on his back, coughing and laughing, he stared at her in disbelief. “Void in the night, woman! That was a kick!”
Rynna grinned, not hesitating for a second as she leaped forward to land between his knees and raised her leg high for an ax-like kick. At the last moment, though, she pulled back the power, and her heel came down with controlled precision, landing firmly on his stomach.
“I tried to warn you.”
But before she could step back, he twisted, turning his legs around in a quick spin, his shin catching her ankles. She stumbled, arms flailing as she lost her footing, and before she knew it, she had toppled into his lap, her body crashing down onto him as they both collapsed into a tangle of limbs.
Rynna’s breath came in shallow bursts, her skin humming with adrenaline. She felt the warmth of his body beneath her, the solid press of his chest rising and falling under her hands.
“What Reach did you say you were from, again?” He whispered as his hands slid up her back. “A Vessel couldn’t be here without permission from the Warden.”
Her skin tingled where his fingers grazed her beneath the fabric of her loose training shirt.
“I didn’t,” she murmured, shifting her weight and settling deeper into his lap.
“Ah. Warden level secrets, then.” His voice went low as his hips adjusted to her weight.
That’s when she felt it, hard and thick beneath the deceptively simple material of his pants. Apparently, she wasn’t the only one turned on by a good fight.
A jolt of heat shot through her in response.
She should’ve pulled back—should’ve said something to defuse the moment—instead, her body moved faster than her thoughts, the need curling low in her belly louder than reason.
She leaned in, each inch narrowing the distance between them. “But if you remain tense…there are other ways to clear the mind.”
Her words dropped like a challenge, and his entire body locked beneath her.
Strain rippled across him, taut and electrified.
Then: “And you, mysterious woman…” His voice was controlled, but something darker laced the edges now, rich and warm. “Are you still tense?”
Her hands traced upward, fingers exploring the ridges of muscle beneath his tunic. Heat radiated off him in waves, each contour sharper than the last, sculpted and solid beneath her touch. When she reached the edge of his mask, she hesitated, letting her nails drag just lightly enough to draw a shiver.
Her mouth hovered near his. “What if I said yes?”
Rynna’s pulse thundered.
In answer, his hands moved, settling firmly around the swell of her ass as his fingers sank into her flesh, dragging her against him.
Then came the sound—a low, guttural growl, deep in his throat, vibrating through her as much as it echoed in the space between them. His hips lifted, grinding into her with the hard shape of his cock, dragging against the aching seam between her thighs. Heat licked up her spine, spreading outward in pulses, and a broken sound escaped her lips before she could swallow it down.
Gods, she was already close. Too close.
What am I doing? Rynna wondered, watching herself from the edge of bliss as she boldly slid her fingers beneath the mask.
He didn’t stop her, but his posture shifted, just enough to feel it. A subtle pause in the steady rhythm of breath between them.
Her fingers froze.
She knew better. He wouldn’t wear a mask without reason. Peeling it away now to reveal his face felt like stepping across a line she had no right to cross.
So she shut her eyes. And kept going, tugging the thin material down.
