Page 36 of A Bullet Between Us

All I managed was a longing nod.

“Well, what are you waiting for? Get up.” His brows furrowed. “Or are you feeling uncomfortable?”

I wouldn’t describe it as uncomfortable, not in the sense he was thinking. Trying to concentrate back on the task ahead, I stood quickly.

“No, I’m ready.”

“Great, we’ll start with some heel palm and elbow strikes before we finish with groin kicks.”

Ilias tried to make himself look less overbearing as his smile stretched widely, but he looked more manic than ever.

“Novak, stop smiling like that.”

His possessed smile fell. “A bit much?”

“Just a tad,” I lied, holding a chuckle.

“Fine. Now let’s start with what you would do in certain scenarios, then go over the right things to do, or what would be best. Ready?”

Oh, hell. Here we go.

Ilias took a step forward, too quick for my mind to process. I stumbled backward until my back hit the wall. I was surrounded by his body. My heart hammered, and once his hands lifted, I tried to think fast. There was a small opening for me to slide under his arms, big enough for my body to slip by and flee. As the only option my thoughts gave me, my body obeyed my mind. In a fluid movement, my head lowered with my body, and my feet slid through the opening. I wanted to cheer the moment I succeeded, but it was short lived. His strong arm wrapped around my middle, easily lifting me an inch above with our momentums crashing. A surprised shriek ripped from my throat, and my hands gripped his arm.

It all happened so fast. Bo was barking, whining just inches away from us. My feet touched the ground on the same spot I once was and Ilias’s heavy hand rested with pressure above my chest keeping me from moving as he turned his attention to Bo.

Bo was clearly in distress as his head bounced with a bark, looking at Ilias then me. Bo’s head shook, his stride quickly forming a C around us.

Ilias closed his eyes briefly before his command echoed in Russian. “Boris, Lyezhat!”

Bo obeyed as he lowered to the ground, laying his head above his paws, but he continued to whine and my heart broke to see him so torn watching us. “Tiho.” Bo silenced.

Ilias drew a deep breath and his eyes were deep blue when they caught mine.

“You good?” he asked calmly.

“Is he okay?” I asked instead.

Ilias tilted his head and watched me. His eyes moved over my face and lowered before returning back to my gaze. Then his hand slowly slid up until his palm settled on the crook of my neck and his thumb feathered below my ear.

I froze, knowing the thin turtleneck I wore could easily stretch from his touch to find my hidden scar. Another part of me was captivated with his presence, body, and hard demeanor. I was drawn into the trap of him, his touch and closeness. My blood thumped and my breath rushed at the same pace of my quick beating heart.

Ilias tilted my head up, and his eyes slid over my parted lips before returning once again to mine.

“Answer me, Davina. Are you good?” His voice was deep.

“Yes.”

“Did I scare you?” He cleared his throat.

“No,” I whispered, and his thumb slipped over my cheek and to the corner of my mouth. With pressure, his thumb ran over my lips before pulling them down in the end.

“Now, to answer your question. Boris is okay,” he assured me, and with a quick look at Bo, he was now relaxed and calmly watching us. “But it seems he is not a fan of our approach to self-defense classes.”

“Should we stop?”

“Do you want to stop?” he asked.

I shook my head. “I want to learn.”