Page 28 of A Court of Thralls and Thorns

We began to circle one another, our movements slow and measured, testing the distance between us.

I lunged first, fast and low, but Zander slipped away easily, his feet moving with practiced ease.

I tried again, quicker this time, aiming for his ribs.

He dodged. Again. Effortlessly.

“Too slow,” he murmured, his voice infuriatingly calm.

I growled and dropped lower, sweeping a kick toward his ankle. He leaped back, just out of reach, and I barely had time to brace before he countered with a quick pivot, his leg catching the back of my knee.

I hit the ground hard.

Before I could scramble up, Zander crouched beside me, voice low in my ear.

“Keep your weight balanced. You overextend your strikes.”

His lips were too damn close, the heat of his breath far too distracting, and my pulse jumped before I could stop it.

I shoved him away and got to my feet.

We circled again.

This time, I didn’t attack first.

I watched.

Zander moved like a predator, deliberate and waiting for me to make the next mistake.

Not this time.

I waited. Studied him.

It happened just before he struck, a barely noticeable tell, but I noticed it. A slight dip in his left shoulder.

I ducked to the left at the last second, twisted, and threw a sharp right hook.

It connected.

A solid crack echoed through the quiet morning as my fist struck Zander’s jaw.

The moment of impact sent a jolt up my arm, satisfaction curling in my chest just as I heard?—

“Holy shit.”

I didn’t need to look. Jax. My squad had arrived.

The hesitation cost me, though.

Before I could step back, Zander recovered far too quickly.

He grabbed my wrist, yanked me forward, and in a blur of movement, took me down again.

Harder this time.

I gasped as my back slammed into the dirt, and suddenly, Zander was right above me, his weight pressing me into the ground just enough to make me squirm.

His breath brushed my cheek as he leaned in, voice low and teasing, full of something dangerous.