It was one of the first things Sigma had taught him, and the lesson ran deep.
“Can you let go?”she asked, finally.“I’m getting a little tired of this.”
He released—but not right away, just to drive home the fact that hecouldkeep her.“You’re still sloppy.”
“I’m ready,” she parried, rubbing at her arm.“Even if you don’t want to think so.”
“We’ll see.Yoshi has a kit packed for you.We’ll pick it up tomorrow.For right now, we’ll start with the heavy bag.”
A flash of surprise, crossing her face.
Oh, no, I’m not going to let you off easy, angel.I’m going to have to be twice as harsh as anything you’re likely to find out there—and they won’t stop because you’re tired and bloody and hungry.
“Heavy bag,” she echoed, and her face expression like a door.She couldn’t keep him out of her head—not completely, not with them sharing a bed every night.But both of them avoided contact, and it was almost as good.
“What are you standing around for?”he barked.“Move, girl!”
Her eyes flared.“Make me,” she flung back at him, her hands on her hips.“What iswrongwith you?”
He took two steps and had her in an armlock, ignoring the sudden gasps from their audience, marched across the dojo to the line of heavy bags, then gave a shake before letting her loose.
“Let’s see you do the standard, operative,” he said crisply.“And the longer you fight me, the longer you’ll be here.”
Her nostrils flared; her chin lifted.She wiped at the blood on her face, smearing it across one cheek.Delgado’s heart began to ache.
Without another word, she spun on her heel and attacked the heavy bag.Delgado glanced up, seeing shocked faces and slack jaws.He narrowed his eyes.
People scurried back to what they had been doing—except for Ellis, who watched Rowan as she worked the heavy bag.The man looked shocked, eyeing as if she was a new species, one he wasn’t quite sure was poisonous or not.
Her face was set and flushed.Her training held, though—she wasn’t emitting waves of anger or distress.
“Is that the best you can do?”he snarled, hating himself.
The skin over her knuckles left bloody prints on the bag.Her hands blurred; she cursed at him with an inventiveness he found grimly amusing right before he decided to stop this.
It had gone far enough.He’d made his point.
“Rowan—” he began.
She whirled away from the bag, her ponytail whipping.
“Ihateyou!”Her voice bounced off the mats and the ceiling, drilled through the whispers.“I wish I’d never seen you!”
He stood rooted to the spot while she gave the heavy bag one last kick—good solid contact, her boot thudding onto heavy vinyl, the entire bag shuddering like a side of beef on a conveyer belt—and stalked past him, her hands and face bloody, and her head held high.
Well,the little voice in his head said clinically,looks like it’s no warm bed for you tonight, Del.Straight to the doghouse.
What the hell’s gotten into you?
CHAPTERTHIRTY-SIX
Her hands ached,but they were steady.Rowan dabbed at her lacerated knuckles, the cotton ball soaked with cold antiseptic, and hissed softly.“That stings.”Her eyes watered, and she set her jaw.A single tear from the stinging rolled down her cheek.
“Bet it does.”Catherine popped her bubblegum.She leaned against the bathroom door, electric light glowing off vinyl pants and skintightAmbrixesT-shirt.Her nose-rings glittered.“You’re serious?Del did that?”
“I did it, on the heavy bag.But he kind of pushed me into it.”Rowan sighed, tossed the bloody cotton ball into the wastebasket, and picked a fresh one, dipping it in the antiseptic.“I’ve never seen him like that before.He saw me sparring with Ellis and just kind of went…”
“Was that before you got your nose socked or after?”
