I selected one of my favorite sabres from the equipment room, testing its weight and balance with a few experimental cuts through the air. The familiar weight in my hand helped center me, pushing thoughts of blue-eyed strangers to the back of my mind where they belonged.
I’d been working through a series of advanced combinations for about twenty minutes when I heard slow clapping from the entrance to the salle.
“Very impressive,” came Lila’s amused voice. “Though I have to say, you seem unusually... energetic this morning.”
I lowered my sabre and turned to face her, not bothering to hide my exasperation. “Don’t you have your own friends to terrorize?”
“They’re asleep,” she said, practically floating down the steps toward where I stood. “Besides, I wanted to hear all about your mysterious disappearance last night. One minute you were talking to that gorgeous human, the next you’d both vanished into thin air.”
“We went for a walk,” I said carefully, returning to my practice routine.
“A walk.” Her tone was flat with disbelief. “Valen, you look like you’ve been fed by a five-course meal at a Michelin-starred restaurant. That wasn’t just a walk.”
Damn vampire senses. Of course she could tell I’d fed recently.
“Fine,” I conceded, executing a perfect lunge that would have taken my opponent’s head clean off. “We had sex. Several times. Are you happy now?”
Lila’s delighted laughter echoed through the empty salle. “Ecstatic! Finally, my uptight brother gets laid by… someone. That’s definitely an improvement for you.”
“He was just some college kid on vacation with his family,” I said, trying to keep my tone casual as I moved into a more complex sequence. “It was nothing special.”
“Uh-huh.” I could practically hear her smirk. “And that’s why you’ve been practicing the same combination for the past five minutes instead of actually focusing?”
I paused mid-thrust, realizing she was right. My mind kept drifting back to the way Archer had felt in my arms, the little gasps he’d made, the way his ass felt stretched around my cock…
“It was just a one-night stand, Lila,” I said firmly, more to convince myself than her. “I enjoyed it. Nothing more.”
“If you say so.” She hopped up to sit on one of the benches, swinging her legs like a child. “Though I have to admit, I’m curious about this human who managed to put such a spring in your step. Usually they aren’t that great of a feed. What was he like?”
I considered deflecting, but the truth was, I did want to talk about him. Even if it was just to get him out of my system.
“Smart,” I said, moving into a defensive stance. “Funny. Had this way of bantering that kept me on my toes.” I executed a series of parries, imagining an invisible opponent. “And the way he moved... there was something almost elegant about it. Like he’d been trained in some kind of formal discipline.”
“Hmm.” Lila’s tone had shifted slightly, becoming more thoughtful. “Trained, in what?”
“I don’t know,” I replied honestly. “He said he was a communications major, but he moved like a dancer. And he was very fit.”
“Or maybe he did fencing,” Lila said casually, examining her nails. “That would explain the elegant movement and the fitness level.”
I froze mid-parry, the tip of my sabre wavering. “What did you say?”
“Fencing,” she repeated, looking up at me with suddenly sharp eyes. “You know, that sport you teach? The one that requires years of training to develop that kind of precise, controlled movement you just described?”
“What are the chances of that?” I said, laughing it off. He was probably an ice skater or something. He was definitely sassy enough to be one.
“How many ice skaters have you known?”
“None,” I sighed. “But I’ve been known to get on social media now and then when I’m off campus. I’m not a total hermit.”
“Could’ve fooled me.” She stood up from the bench and dusted off her jeans. “Wanna duel?”
“You know, you’re not very nice to me,” I retorted, giving her my best grumpy face.
“I asked if you wanted to duel, not about your feelings.”
I rolled my eyes but couldn’t help grinning. “Fine. But don’t blame me when I kick your ass. I’m feeling pretty good today.”
“Oh please,” Lila scoffed, selecting a sabre from the rack with theatrical flourish. “I’ve been sword fighting longer than you’ve been teaching it.”
