Master of Mine: Masters of Haven Book One

by Dark, Raven

  Archer bit the inside of his cheek. Having Ace on the other end of the call should have killed the images in his head. Instead, it only made him more possessive. Her family’s hold on her made him feel too much like she had a second master. He wanted to shatter their control over her once and for all, but he couldn’t. Not without her hating him. Only she could break their hold.

  “Can’t tomorrow night, buddy. Busy.”

  “Doing?”

  “A student, if you must know.”

  “You’re doing a student?” He could hear Ace grinning.

  Archer closed his eyes. Fuck, fuck, fuck. “I have a student tomorrow. Needs some extra classes.” Get a handle on it, dumbass.

  “Yeah right. Pussy again.”

  “Fuck you.”

  “See you.”

  “Later.”

  Archer hung up and threw himself across his bed on his back. Damn it all. How close had he come to breaking his promise to Gwen and telling all?

  Jesus H. Christ, how much longer could he do this?

  “Higher.”

  Gwen spun around and threw her leg up, as high as she could manage, threw it into the left cushion Archer held up, and let out a kiai.

  “Right.”

  She spun the other way, throwing her right leg into the opposite cushion with another shout.

  “Good, again.” No disapproval in his eyes this time. Victory raced through her. A month ago the single sharp command from Archer would have shaken her, but now it made her feel secure.

  At his command, she kicked her left leg out. Then the right. Her heel hit the cushions with a satisfying thwump. She wondered how Archer barely moved under the impact. All the strength she put into the kicks, and he didn’t flinch.

  After another set of kicks, he nodded. “Good, right punch.”

  She adjusted her stance without even thinking about it, drew one fist into her waist, stepped forward and punched out, hard, right into the pad that covered the middle of Archer’s chest. Shout.

  “Left punch.”

  She stepped forward another pace with the other foot and lanced out with the opposite fist.

  “Good. But your kiais still need work. You’re not gonna break me, Gwen. Come on. Louder.”

  She punched out again with a shout.

  The first sign of irritation flashed in his eyes. “Not good enough. Louder.”

  Punch, shout.

  “Louder. Scare me, Gwen.”

  She shouted.

  “Scream it!”

  Gwen launched forward, threw her fist into his chest and screamed. “Hi-yaahh!”

  “Better, again.”

  She screamed it again.

  “Again.”

  She spun around, kicked out, slammed her foot into the left cushion, then the right, with a strong powerful shout.

  Archer danced back continuously, letting her advance. “Much better little one, keep going. Don’t wait for me to tell you.”

  Punch, kick, shout. Kick, shout. Punch, punch, shout. Strength and determination filled her, exhilarating. For the first time, she thought she understood how Ace and Chad felt in class.

  Archer stepped back, stripping off the big red cushions and tossing aside the chest protector. He put up his massive hands in a fighting stance.

  “Grappling?”

  “Yep.”

  He seized her arm, and she slipped automatically into the role. Grabbing his forearm she spun so that her back was against his chest, and moved to throw him over her shoulder. Her awareness of the power in his enormous frame sank into her, and her energy depleted like air from a balloon. She caught her hesitation to late when Archer’s arm came around her neck from behind, pinning her to him.

  “Too slow, sweet thing.” His mouth brushed her ear, breath hot, voice a low growl.

  She froze, skin flushing. He didn’t sound angry, he sounded triumphant, and damned if his huge arm didn’t feel good.

  “Shit, I can’t get out of that, Sensei.”

  “Yes you can. What do you do?” He tightened his arm under her neck, his other arm hooking under hers, immobilizing her.

  A helpless feeling coursed through her, white hot thrilling. Oh lord, what the…

  “I forget what comes next.”

  “Get out of it any way you know how.” He pressed his mouth to her ear. “Think, Gwen. Relax your mind and think about it.”

  She drew a focusing breath. How to think with him holding her like this? She thought she felt something hard press into her back. Oh, fuck. He wasn’t….

  “You never showed me this move, Master. I don’t know how to break it.”

  “Then what do you do?”

  She groped for the answer. Use what I know. She bucked suddenly in his grip and tossed her head back, screaming as loud and as strong as she could. “Let go! Someone help me…let go!”

  Archer’s body tensed and he shifted the arm that pinned hers, putting his hand over her mouth. Exactly the reaction an attacker might have. With her arm free, she threw her foot into his and shoved her elbow into his solar plexus.

  He released her roughly, and she staggered, falling forward and rolling away from him, out of reach by the time she came up on her knees.

  His mouth turned up and his eyes gleamed.

  “Oh my god, I did it.”

  “Nice job.”

  Her cheeks heated at the praise. “I know I’m being a total girl right now, but wow. I did it.” She spun.

  He laughed, and for some reason the rich, pleasant sound filled her with wonder. Her normally harsh, sharp-tongued teacher sounded so… gentle.

  “It’s all right, be a girl. For a minute. Then get back to work. Knowing one evasive move won’t save you in a real attack.”

  “I know.” She lowered her head, embarrassment filling her.

  “Besides, you have a half hour of class left. Warm downs now.” He nodded to the mat.

  She glanced at the clock. She wasn’t ready to let go of the rush just yet. “Can you teach me another hold instead, Master Archer?”

  He shook his head, picking up the cushions and setting them aside on a bench. “Not today. You need to cool down after all that.”

  “Please, just one?” She put her hands together. “This is so much fun.”

  “You like being thrown around then?” His eyes sparkled.

  Her whole neck and face flamed. An image rose up in her mind, of him shoving her against a wall, tossing her onto a mat before he pounced, pinning her. Her pussy ached.

  “All right, get over here.”

  She almost skipped over to the mat.

  “Lie down here.”

  She licked her lips, shaking her head to clear the filthy line of thought, and obeyed. Archer straddled her in an instant, easily sitting right on her waist. Oh heck. His weight felt amazing, strong, relentless, trapping her to the mat. She swallowed, trying to keep her mind on task. It was a lesson, nothing more.

  “I’ll show you how to get out of pinning holds. We’ll start with this.” He took her hands, pinning them to the mat at either side of her head.

  Heart hammering, Gwen swallowed, staring up at him. His hands burned into her wrists as he pinned them in place.

  “In a real attack, never let them get you to the ground. It gives them too much power. But, if it happens, you want to know how to get out of it.”

  “How?” She yanked her arms in an effort to free them, but they didn’t budge. Incredible how disconcerting this felt, with his weight everywhere, his hard face above hers, like she was at his mercy.

  “First, I want you to thrust your hands upward above your head as fast as you can, and then out to the sides to put me off balance. Then I want you to throw your knees up, hard into my back, which will toss me off you.”

  Gwen shoved her arms upward, then out at her sides, knocking him off balance. She threw her legs up hard into his back, shoving him off her. She heard him hit the ground behind her.

  She grinned. “That’s awesome.”

&n
bsp; “Yes, but you have to learn to put more power in your legs when you push. I could have stayed on you, but rolled off to demonstrate.” Straddling her again, he took her hands, pinning them.

  For the next few minutes, they practiced the same throwing move until she got used to it. When he straddled her again, he situated himself on her waist, but this time he didn’t take her hands.

  “Now, let’s try something else.” Archer’s hand came up so fast she didn’t have time to react before his grip was at her throat.

  Gwen’s eyes widened. His hand felt powerful, dangerous. His fingers pressed like a steel collar around her neck. The no-nonsense, commanding look on his face only heightened that awareness. A thrill raced through her, hot and instantaneous.

  Never in her life had she felt so powerless, so helpless. Heady images raced through her mind. Archer’s hands tearing off her clothes, growling in her ear that he wanted her, would have her regardless of her wishes.

  Gwen swallowed against his hand, and the restriction of his grip only made her hotter. What the hell? She should have been terrified. Instead, her whole body hummed with a need for something frightening and forbidden.

  Her hand shot up, grasping at his arm. “Master Archer…”

  He took his hand away sharply and sat up. “Gwen, are you alright?” His hard features tightened with concern.

  “I…I’m fine, Master, but I, I can’t. I can’t do this.”

  His face paled and it sank in vaguely that he thought she was terrified of him. Archer sprang off her to his feet, backing up to give her room. Gwen’s weakened limbs slowly retained feeling and she got to her feet.

  “Master Archer, I’m not…it’s not… I’m sorry.”

  “Gwen, what’s wrong? If I frightened you…” He reached for her and she stepped away.

  Something painful crossed his features.

  “You didn’t. It’s not you, Sensei, I’m sorry. I… I have to go.” She spun and raced across the room, snatching her duffle and shoes from the bench.

  “Gwen, wait a minute.” His voice sounded like grinding steel and his bare feet slapped across the floor behind her. “Gwen!”

  She fled the room before he could stop her.

  9

  Understanding

  Archer didn’t see it coming. In the instant before the student hit him, his mind had been elsewhere, just like it had been most of the week. One of his best students, David’s fist connected with his jaw and he barely avoided ending up on the mat.

  “Oh, shit, Sensei, are you ok?” David’s face paled.

  Archer shook off the flash of pain. Silence lay over the classroom. He glanced around him. Every student had stopped in the middle of their exercises and all stood staring at him. One student over in the corner stopped at the wrong time and the bag he’d just kicked swung back on him, sending him to the mat.

  No wonder why. Most of these students had been with Archer the whole two years since he’d come back from Japan, many of them having been his students before he’d left. This had to be the only time they’d seen a student’s fist connect.

  Annoyance with his lack of attention rushed in and he bit back a curse. “It takes a little more than a punch to the face to hurt me, David. Keep going.” He took the defensive stance. When he saw David flinch, he bit his cheek.

  No one else in the classroom moved and he scowled at them. “Get back to work.”

  Everyone returned to their exercises with a muttered “yes, Sensei,” and he and his sparring partner resumed practicing.

  Damn that woman. In the few days since her sudden departure from class, he’d been able to think of little else.

  There was always a chance students might get scared with a certain move, but running off without so much as an explanation? That he wouldn’t tolerate.

  As he cleaned up the classroom an hour later, he shook his head. If it were any other student, he wouldn’t have worried about it this much. He’d have called the student to make sure they were alright, and that would be the end of it. But not with Gwen. With her, the need to know was almost all consuming.

  He’d called every night, and still no answer. She wasn’t busy. She was avoiding him. He’d thought of showing up at her work, but she was already being stalked; he didn’t want to scare her all over again.

  Archer glanced at the clock. Almost half past nine. Gwen should have showed up by now. He ran a hand through his hair. Skipping classes. How long could he let this go on?

  “Fuck this.” Hands fisted, he stalked across the room to the showers. If Gwen were his sub, he would never have stood for that kind of behavior. Communication was key.

  She isn’t your sub, idiot. Get over it. Still. He couldn’t let things go.

  He showered, yanked on clothes, scraped the ice and snow off his car and made his way across town to Gwen’s four-plex apartment.

  He had no right to be angry with her. He’d upset her and he knew she didn’t deal with the confrontation well. It wouldn’t be easy for her to admit he’d frightened her.

  A light glowed in the upper window. Hers? He switched the car off and went to the front door of the building. Found her name on the buzzer.

  He buzzed the apartment and waited. No answer. Shit. He buzzed again; still no answer. This late at night, buzzing too many times… Would she think he was her stalker?

  Never had he been this worried about what a woman would think. He did what he wanted, said what he pleased, and anyone who didn’t like it could suck it. What was she turning him into?

  Another buzz. Damn it, didn’t she have a security camera or a guard?

  There was a click on the other end, and then a pause. “Yes?” Gwen’s voice shook.

  Archer shut his eyes at the way her voice trembled with fear. It’s just the stalker. She isn’t terrified of me. “Gwen, its Archer.”

  “What… what do you want, Master Archer?”

  “We need to talk.” His breath fogged in front of him in the cold.

  For a moment he thought she was going to tell him to leave. If she did, he’d have to. She wasn’t his sub, she was his student, and he had no claims on her.

  There was a buzzing sound from the lock on the door. “Come up. Second floor, third door on the left.”

  Relief flooded him. He pulled open the door and made his way up to her apartment.

  He knocked on her door. Shuffling reached his ears and the door opened.

  As soon as he saw her, his annoyance melted. Gwen opened the door a little too slowly, keeping part of her body behind it. In faded jeans two sizes too large and an oversized black wool sweater that hid all those fabulous curves, she still managed to look hot. He hated the worn look of her heart-shaped face, the tiredness around those big green eyes. Her hair had been thrown up in a sloppy bun that made him think of sex hair.

  Her eyes lowered and she opened the door the rest of the way. “Come in.” She barely mumbled the words before she turned and shuffled down the hall without waiting for him to enter.

  Damn it. She couldn’t even look at him, or stand near him. Archer stepped into the hall and shut the door, looking around. It was a cozy apartment, with thick carpets, velvety black furniture, and thick silky curtains on the windows.

  He almost whistled at the walls. Portraits lined every one, vintage by the looks of them. None of the paintings were hers. He wasn’t an art expert, but he could tell. Her portraits at the club favored paler colors. These were ones she’d bought.

  Of course, she didn’t want her family knowing about her art, so she wouldn’t display it. That fact annoyed him much more than it should have.

  Dishes clinked in the kitchen. Archer smiled at her terrible manners. “Don’t have guests over much, do you?” He walked across to the small kitchen and leaned against the wall.

  Gwen jumped, nearly dropping the glass in her hand. “I…I’m sorry, no never, actually.” She twirled the glass in her hand, shifted from one foot to the other. She looked at the sink full of dishes. “Sorry about the
mess. I wasn’t… wasn’t expecting you.”

  “You don’t say.”

  She set the glass down, then picked it back up. He almost chuckled. She was so nervous it was painful to watch.

  When she picked the glass up but still didn’t get herself a drink, he crossed the room to her. “Gimme.” She blinked at him and he took the glass from her. “Sit down, I’ll get it.”

  She sidled out of his way toward the table, twisting her hands. “There’s beer in the fridge.” Again, barely a mumble, and she didn’t sit like he’d asked.

  “Thanks. You want one, too?” He took a beer for himself and held up another.

  “No. There’s juice. I don’t drink, except for the occasional wine.”

  He lifted a brow.

  Gwen twisted the hem of her sweater in her hands. “Ace left it here last time he visited.” A shadow of something unpleasant passed over her face and she looked at everything but him.

  He nodded and found the apple juice, pouring her a glass before waving her into the living room and following, drinks in hand.

  In the living room, he grinned at the couch, where clothes were strewn on the arms, a sweater pushed into a corner.

  Gwen gave him a mortified look and rushed to clean up. “Sorry. I live like a pig, I know.”

  “Don’t worry about it. Sit down, all right?” He took a seat in the middle of the couch. Gwen followed, but pushed herself tight into the corner at one end. As far from him as she could get. He handed her the drink, and she barely sipped at it before putting it down on a table littered with papers and takeout containers.

  He got the idea. Gwen not only never had visitors, but he was willing to bet she hardly ever left her apartment. Was the isolation due to the stalker, or was it something deeper? By her expression when she’d talked of her brothers visits, he had a feeling the stalker only made an existing issue worse.

  Damn, he could just imagine how hard it must have been for her to attend a karate class, especially with someone as combative as him. Protective respect for her pulled at him hard. She looked so fragile.