Xander’s face had a cut down one side, blood flowing freely, streaking his cheek. Gurion, too, was covered in sweat and blood.
Stars, Xander was slowing down. He was hurt. Mal stared so hard her eyes were blurring, willing him to win the fight.
Gurion lunged and landed a vicious blow to Xander’s head. He staggered and hit the floor hard.
With a roar of laughter, Gurion landed a hard kick, flipping Xander’s body over.
Mal bit down on her lip. Blood filled her mouth and she felt the slide of a tear on her cheek.Get up, tough guy.
Xander rolled over and got to his hands and knees. Agonizingly slowly, he pushed to his feet. His hard gaze was focused on Gurion, and even from a distance, she saw the faint green glow in his eyes.
Then he moved so fast it was shocking.
He kicked Gurion in the chest, and the Rahl fell backward. Xander followed it with a series of hits and punches. Each one made the Rahl leader flinch, stagger, and let out agonized grunts.
Xander’s face was blank. His entire focus on his opponent.
The crowd had gone silent. Only the hard beat of the music battled the sounds of the deadly fight below.
Mal’s entire body filled with excited energy. He was winning! And he was doing it easily.
Another hit to the back of Gurion’s neck, and the big Rahl face-planted onto the floor. He attempted to lift his head, but with a groan, he hit the dirt again.
The crowd stared in horrified silence.
Mal let out a long breath.Thank the stars.
Now, Xander moved. He bent his legs and in a giant leap, jumped onto the platform beside her. With a careless swat, he knocked over the Fightmaster, who fell off the edge and into the pit below with a strangled yell.
“Xander—”
He scooped her up, his hands sliding under her bottom. On instinct, she wrapped her legs around his waist. His face was still blank, but in his eyes, she saw the burn of something that made her heart trip.
He pressed his face to her neck, breathing in. She ran her hands over his short hair.
Then he kissed her.
It was hard, almost brutal. Like he was trying to purge something beating deep within. She held on, unable to do more than cling to him and let him ravish her mouth.
Then he was moving, heading up the steps, spectators stumbling out of his way.
CHAPTER TEN
Xander yanked his mouth away from Malin’s and charged forward, not sure where he was headed.
Blood pounded through his veins as his systems worked overtime to cool him down. And dammit, emotion he couldn’t control stormed through him, leaving a blood-red haze across his eyes.
The taste of her was still strong in his mouth, competing with the thoughts that thundered through his brain. The throb of his injuries. Gurion. The thought of that Rahl touching Malin. His planet. Lastly, his team and his brother, trapped, tortured, and killed.
His mission was so tangled up with Malin Phoenix he couldn’t separate the two.
He didn’t want to.
But his desires really didn’t matter. He shouldn’t be allowing distractions to interfere with his mission. She was the one causing these unfamiliar emotions. He needed focus.
He set her down.
“Xander, are you okay?—?”
