Gage spoke with hardness tinged with a hint of compassion.
“It’s not like that.”
“Then explain it.”
“Church was a couple of hours,” he murmured. “I went back to my quarters after and laid down. I didn’t mean to doze off.” He paused, breath brushing Scar’s skin. “And I didn’t mean to make you wait.”
A tiny fraction of Scar’s anger dissolved.
Soft strands of Gage’s hair brushed his cheeks, light threads against the dark band of his sunglasses. His skin looked warm, and the sharp lines of his face, that straight nose, firm jaw, and soft mouth, made Scar’s gaze snag and stay there.
He was beautiful in a way that had to be admired.
“You said you wanted to fight…” Gage lowered his voice to a smooth, easy threat. “So let’s fight.”
Scar answered by removing his shirt.
Gage lunged, fast, controlled, and borderline disrespectful. Without warning, he hooked his cane’s shaft behind Scar’s ankles and, with a quick jerk, stole his balance.
The air punched out of him as his back slammed into the floor.
He stared up at Gage in shock as his body lit up like a fuse.
Gage stood over him, cane grasped in his hand like a Japanese spear. He tilted his head…listening. “You wanted to see what I’ve got…get up.”
Scar grinned. He was about to fucking enjoy this.
He rolled to his feet and got into position. He chose to forgo a weapon. His skills and hands were enough. He wanted up-close-and-personal combat with his partner.
Their first few exchanges were them measuring each other out.
He went for Gage’s shoulder, but he turned at an angle and slipped out of his grasp.
Gage did an instant counter, checking his wrist with the blunt end of the cane—a quick tap that wasn’t too painful but a clear warning.
He could make it hurt…if he wanted to.
Gage raised the cane, spun it around his back, and swung, but Scar caught it mid-swing, and for a split second, he had Gage’s weapon in his grip.
Gage didn’t yank or fight for it.
He stepped in, close enough that their chests brushed, and used Scar’s hold against him. He rotated the cane like a lever and pulled him into a knee that just stopped short of connecting with his stomach.
“You’re trying not to hurt me,” he said.
Gage smiled. “Nope, I’m giving you all I got.”
“Yeah right.”
“You’re not exactly fighting like you’ve been trained by Meridian.”
“Then hit me,” he growled.
Gage struck fast with a two-beat combo of cane and fist.
Scar clocked the timing, caught Gage by his wrist, and spun him until his back was against his chest. He wrapped his other arm around Gage’s waist in a way that told him he shouldn’t try to get away.
“I hear you learn fast,” he murmured, dragging his nose along the back of Gage’s neck. “Yet you still don’t know what you’re doing to me.”
