“You didn’t save me,” she said through gritted teeth. “I was fine.”
“Sure. You keep telling yourself that, sweetheart.” He turned to Seb. “I was serious last night, you need to teach her to fight. She’s lethal with the chakram, but otherwise, she’s a babe in water.”
“I know how to fight!” she protested.
Seb scowled. “She doesn’t need to know how to fight.”
She clenched her hands into fists. “If that’s all you’ve come to say then you can leave.”
“Now why would I leave when I’ve just spent the last ten minutes unpacking?”
Unpacking? What? Oh no. She turned to Seb who was gesturing to Nicolas to take a seat. “You can leave now, Kaley.”
She looked between them both. “Seb, you didn’t take him on for a job?”
Please, don’t let it be so.
“Nicolas has paid us to escort him to Costa Rica. Now leave. We have things to discuss that have nothing to do with you.”
She spun and barely resisted slamming the door. Barely.
Nicolas grinned at Seb. “She’s pleased to see me. She just finds it hard to show her true feelings.”
Seb shook his head. “Should I be worried by whatever is going on between the two of you?”
“There’s nothing between us.” Not yet, anyway. But he couldn’t tell Seb that, knowing how over-protective the other man was towards his baby sister.
“Come on, Nicolas, even a blind man can see how you feel about her. And how is it that you keep turning up, right when she’s in the midst of trouble?” There was a note to Seb’s voice that told Nicolas he better tread carefully. They were old friends, but family always came first with Seb.
And what Seb didn’t know is that Nicolas had engineered their friendship. He’d needed a reason to insinuate himself into Kaley’s life. So, he’d ensured that he was there when Seb found himself in trouble with a few lowlifes who’d decided he was an easy mark. He’d saved Seb’s life, built up a friendship with the other man, and made certain that Seb introduced him to his family. Kaley had only been seventeen at the time, too young for his attentions. But he’d kept watch over her, imprinting on her so he’d always know where to find her.
Little did he know that keeping her out of trouble would become a full-time job. This last adventure had sealed it for him. Enough was enough.
“I don’t turn up whenever she’s in trouble,” he protested. He tried, but he couldn’t always be there.
Seb gave him a knowing look. “I know you’re keeping things from me. I’m not stupid. Neither is Kaley. She’s going to start asking questions soon. Wouldn’t it be better if you told her the truth now?”
Shit. Obviously, he hadn’t been as circumspect as he’d hoped.
“You don’t have to tell me all your secrets. Although I know what it’s like to be different. But if you’re serious about Kaley, then she needs to know.”
“She’s not ready.” She wasn’t mature enough. She couldn’t handle the truth about him. She’d be horrified by his other form. He wasn’t certain that he could take his mate being terrified of him.
“She might surprise you. You’ve always seen her at her worst. For some reason, you seem to enjoy riling her.”
What? “I do not. You think I enjoy being at odds with her?”
“Either you enjoy fighting with her, or you have no idea how to talk to women.”
“This, coming from a man who never even leaves this ship.”
“Doesn’t mean I don’t lack for female companionship.”
Nicolas ground his teeth together. “I know how to talk to women. She keeps putting herself in harm’s way. Eight months ago, it was a poker game that went wrong. Before that, she was cornered by alley rats. Then there was the time she attempted to jump off the side of a volcano. If you watched over her better then maybe I wouldn’t have to step in. She’s going to get herself killed if she keeps going on like this. She’s reckless, and she thinks she’s invincible.” His beast stirred as anger filled him and he fought for control. Not claiming his mate was wearing on him.
“You think I don’t know that? If she remained on the ship, she would be safe.”
“So your plan is to keep her in her room forever? This is Kaley, she finds trouble more easily than a druggie scores a hit. You can’t lock her up for her own safety.”
“You think I don’t know that?” Seb let out a long breath.
“So teach her to fight.”
“She has some skills.”
“But not in hand-to-hand.”
Seb clenched his jaw. “Fine. I don’t like it, but fine. You can start tomorrow.”
“Uh, what?” He must have heard him wrong.
“Teaching her to fight. I don’t have the time, and you’re the second-best fighter I know.”
Second-best? “Who’s the first?”
Seb grinned. “Me, of course.”
“In your dreams, maybe.” He was quiet for a minute. “You really want me to teach her?”
Seb shrugged. “You’re right. She’s going to keep getting herself into trouble. She needs to know how to defend herself.”
Nicolas nodded then stood.
“You got everything you need?” Seb asked.
“Yeah, thanks.”
“Hey, you’re the one paying for it all.”
“What? You want me to pay? And here I thought you were doing this out of the goodness of your heart!”
“Lost that part of myself a long time ago, my friend.”
Nicolas turned away. He didn’t know how he was going to cope with being at sea for the next six weeks. He usually avoided the ocean as much as he could. The irony of him choosing a mate who lived most of her life at sea didn’t escape him.
“Nicolas,” Seb said.
“Yes?” He turned back.
“If you were anyone else, I’d be telling you to back off my sister and never come near her again. I don’t think anyone is good enough for her, including you.”
“So why aren’t you?”
“Because I get the feeling that no matter what I say, you won’t be giving up. You’ve proven time and again that you care about her, that you’ll protect her. But most importantly, I can tell that beneath all that animosity she has towards you, she actually cares about you. But none of that means anything if you hurt her, got me?”
“Yeah, I got you.” The warning was no less than he expected.
Kaley sat on the deck, staring out across the ocean. The worst of the storm had passed, but it was still a little wild. Waves crashed in against the ship as they set out away from the coast. She breathed in the salty air, trying to find the peace she usually felt when she was at sea. Atlas, who lay next to her, snuggled in close as though sensing her disquiet.
She ran her hand lovingly over the Mazu’s deck. She was more than just a ship. Like Ari, it was an extension of her brother. The Mazu followed his bidding. She’d seen it do remarkable things, like sail swiftly through calm seas when there wasn’t a breath of air. Move walls and create rooms. Fire cannons when there was no one manning them.
It had completely terrified some of her father’s original crew, and they’d left. But a loyal few had stayed. They were under-crewed by normal standards. But with Seb’s ability to control the Mazu they didn’t need as many crew as a normal sailing ship.
“Bit cold out here, isn’t it?”
She sighed as Nicolas sat beside her, letting his legs dangle over the edge.
“Is this how it’s going to be the whole trip?” she asked.
“What do you mean?”
She turned to look at him, then wished she hadn’t. He was far too handsome for her peace of mind. He kept his dark hair short. His deep brown eyes were sharp and piercing and surrounded by the thickest eyelashes she’d ever seen. It was only his five o’clock shadow that stopped him from being too beautiful. “Are you going to keep invading my space?”
“Invading your space? And here I thought we were friends
.”
“We’re not,” she replied bluntly.
“That hurts.” He placed his hand on his chest and winked at her.
“It’s a long way to Costa Rica, and there are some wide expanses of ocean. If someone fell overboard we might never find them,” she told him sweetly.
He let out a bark of laughter. “You threatening to push me overboard, sweetheart?”
“Maybe,” she muttered, trying not to let that sweetheart affect her. “It would make my life easier.”
“Believe it or not, I’m not here to make your life harder. I hired your brother and his crew to take me to Costa Rica. That’s all. Nothing to do with you.”
She gave him a sideways look. “Then how come we’re less than twelve hours into the trip and you’re already annoying me?”
“Ouch. And I just came up here for some air. Guess I’ll go.” He stood. “By the way, I’ll see you on the lower deck at six a.m. sharp.”
What?
“Why would I meet you there at six?” Why would she even be up by that time?
“For your training.” He turned and walked away.
“Training? What training?”
He turned back, giving her an innocent look that she wasn’t buying at all. “Didn’t Seb tell you? He’s given me the go-ahead to teach you some hand-to-hand lessons. Don’t be late. I hate lateness.”
She just stared at him in shock until Atlas bumped against her with a low whimper.
“It’s okay, boy. Just trying to figure out whether I hate that guy or not.”
Somehow, he’d gotten Seb to agree to give her some lessons in hand-to-hand fighting. It wasn’t quite the blade fighting lessons she really desired, but it was a step in the right direction. Only problem was, it was Nicolas giving her the lessons. Which meant getting close to him, touching him.
Definitely not the direction she wanted to move in.
At all.
Really.
Chapter Four
Something cold and wet landed on her face, and she sat up with a scream of shock. She wiped her hands across her face frantically.
“Don’t panic, it’s water.”
She pushed back her wet hair, blinking up at Nicolas who loomed over her, an empty bucket in one hand.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” she gasped. “Why are you in my quarters?”
“You’re late,” he told her. “It’s six-fifteen.”
Late? Late for what? Oh, right, those damn self-defense lessons.
“I’m not doing them.” She’d come to that decision late last night. Taking self-defense lessons would mean spending time with him. Not just that, but it would mean having to touch him.
Not happening.
“Oh, you’re doing them,” he said ominously. “You have five minutes to get your butt up and outside. And make sure you cover yourself up first.” He turned and stormed out of her quarters.
Cover herself up? What was he talking about? She was covered up. She glanced down at herself, noting her white shirt was now wet and her nipples, which could easily be seen through the wet material, her hard.
Shit!
Arousal thundered through him, hard and fierce.
Get yourself under control. He took a deep breath. If he didn’t calm himself down, he was going to do something stupid. Like, grab her, pull her into his bed and keep her there for the next month.
Fuck.
“You asshole!”
He turned to watch her storm towards him, her eyes spitting fire, her face filled with righteous anger. God, she was gorgeous. Even dressed in clothes that hid every curve, her dark hair pulled back and tied into a low ponytail, she was beautiful to him. He couldn’t understand how she so easily fooled others into thinking she was a boy. To him, she looked all female. That smooth, tanned skin, her small hands and delicate wrists, the feminine shape of her eyes and brows, those full, plump lips.
All woman.
He raised one eyebrow. “You’re the one wasting my time. I have better things to do than wait around for a spoiled brat who can’t even meet her commitments.”
Those eyes widened, and she gaped at him for a moment. He resisted the urge to grin. He knew he should probably try to calm her down rather than rile her up further, but he did so love to watch her while she was in the middle of a temper tantrum.
Atlas, who stood beside her, growled up at him. He gave the dog a firm look. Seemed her dog needed to learn who was in charge here as well.
“I didn’t have a commitment. You told me to be here, I never agreed, and you had no right to go into my quarters without permission and tip water on me.”
“So I can tip water on you if I have your permission?”
“Yes…no…urgh. Stop being a prick. You’re not listening.”
“Oh, I can hear you just fine.” He winced and rubbed at his ear. “There’s nothing wrong with your voice. It’s your fighting skills that are lacking.”
“Lacking! Lacking!” She reached for a chakram, and he tensed, stilling. So perhaps it hadn’t been the wisest choice of action to stir her temper.
“Calm down, Kaley,” he warned her in a low voice.
“Or what?” she held the chakram out to her side.
“Or I’ll show you how poorly trained you really are. And you don’t want me to do that.” He stared at her sternly.
Beside her, Atlas growled, and it seemed to break through her temper. She stared down at Atlas then slowly replaced the chakram. Okay, time to be sensible about all of this.
“Look, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have thrown the water on you, all right? I let my temper get the better of me.”
She looked away. “Yeah, I guess I should have made an effort to tell you I don’t wasn’t coming.”
“Why don’t you want the lessons, Kaley? It is because of me?”
“Of course not.”
He sighed, easily able to tell that she was lying. “Why don’t we start over?”
“Huh?”
“Let’s pretend we’ve never met each other. We’re just two strangers meeting for the first time. If it makes you feel any better, you can pretend that you’re paying me to teach you.”
Her gaze narrowed. “If I was going to pay you then I’d pay you to teach me how to use those blades you usually carry on your back.”
Even though he was more dangerous in his other form, his choice of weapon was his blades.
This planet had its fair share of monsters, but a human that could shift into a monster was something else altogether. And his people weren’t ready to be exposed to the backlash that would come about if humans learned of their existence.
He stared at her for a long moment. “Fair enough. But you still need to know some basic fighting moves. Because there will be times you can’t use your weapons. If your opponent sneaks up behind you and attacks, what do you do? What if he knocks the blade from your hand? What then?”
“Fine. I get it. Teach me these moves then we can get to the good stuff.”
Kaley lay on her back, sweat coating her body as she tried to catch her breath.
Fuck. This was humiliating.
And to think she’d thought learning some fighting moves wouldn’t take more than a few hours. They’d been going at this three hours now, and she still couldn’t put him down.
This was hopeless.
“That was better,” he commented as he leaned over, blocking out the sun. Which was a blessing since she was already so hot she thought she might self-combust. He held out his hand, and she considered knocking it away. He’d severely dented her pride. And her confidence. But she didn’t need to act like a churlish brat just because she wasn’t as good as she thought she’d be.
So Kaley took his hand and felt that familiar thrill race through her. It seemed to happen whenever they touched skin-to-skin. It was disconcerting, to say the least. The first time it happened this morning, she’d stumbled back away from him and fallen on her butt.
Of course, Cristos happened to be
walking past at the time. Smug bastard. But Nicolas had given him a look that had him nearly running off. Probably to complain to Seb. She didn’t know what Seb saw in that idiot.
Nicolas helped her up then quickly let her go. She swayed slightly, more at the loss of his touch than anything else. But his gaze narrowed as he studied her.
“That’s enough for the morning.”
It was on the tip of her tongue to protest, but truthfully, she was done in. If she could still move tonight, it would be a miracle. She was exhausted. Muscles she didn’t know she had ached. And she’d thought she was in pretty good shape.
“We’ll continue tomorrow. You’re in worse physical condition than I’d hoped so it will take longer than I thought.”
Worse physical condition?
Even though she’d been having similar thoughts, outraged anger filled her. She set her hands on her hips. “Maybe it’s just that my teacher isn’t as good as he thought he was.”
He snorted. “Baby, I’m good. Better than good. I’m great. You, on the other hand, need work. I’m going to set up a fitness workout for you. You need to increase your stamina and strength. I can see why Seb said he didn’t have the time to train you. I’m not sure that six weeks is going to be long enough.”
Asshole. As he turned and walked off, she cautioned herself against anything rash.
Patience. Patience.
Ahh, screw that. He deserved this.
She let a sliver of her power break free, calling on the ocean’s power.
Now!
A wave splashed up into Nicolas’s face.
Got you.
He turned, spluttering and she quickly wiped the smug smile off her face, pretending to be just as surprised.
“Wow, that was some freak wave, huh?”
“The water is calm!” He gestured towards the water with his hand. It was calm. Sometime in the night they’d broken free of the storm and were now sailing into clear waters with just a light breeze.
She shrugged. “Can’t explain it, sorry.”
He stared at her suspiciously, but there was no way he could know it was her.
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