Total pages in book: 94
Estimated words: 91299 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 456(@200wpm)___ 365(@250wpm)___ 304(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91299 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 456(@200wpm)___ 365(@250wpm)___ 304(@300wpm)
“Dammit. Stop making people dizzy with that smile…and what the hell is ‘Barritus’?”
I laugh, feeling lighter than I have in days. She likes my crazy—or she did.
“War cry of the Roman soldier.”
“Of course it is.” She smiles and…I think…I think I’d do anything to keep that smile there.
I shake myself. You’re done with her, dude. DONE.
I wave the foil around. “Did you know the legions usually marched in silence to maintain order in their ranks? But once they encountered the enemy, they would erupt with that war cry and freak everyone out. They’d use their shields to roughen the sound, making it rumble and reverberate across the battlefield.” I tap my head. “The Romans were masters at battle.”
“Is that what you call out when you take the football field?”
“Nope, but I should.”
She toys with the ball on the end of her sword, her words nonchalant. “I watched the big game. I saw you make a few big plays.”
My breath hitches. “Yeah?”
“Dammit. Stop grinning. You were amazing and you know it. I had my whole family around the TV watching!”
Awe fills my mind. She watched. She…watched me. Something stirs deep within, soft and warm, shifting, aching to get out, desperate to walk up to her and just wrap my arms—
Chaz approaches our mat and grimaces as he takes in my tall body and her petite one. “You two really don’t go together.”
“I know, but he insisted,” she says dryly. “I suspect he wants to pulverize me.”
Chaz gives me a long, lingering glance, brushing over my frame. He comes back to my face, blinks, and then blushes.
I just smile. I’m used to men checking me out since coming to Waylon. I don’t lean that way, but I don’t have a problem with people who do.
We have a player on the team, Kent, a linebacker who told us he was gay our freshman year at training camp. For the most part—except for assholes like Archer—everyone supports him.
That wouldn’t have been the case with my aunt and uncle. They attend a small judgmental church in Alma. At fourteen, I announced I was done. I didn’t feel at home sitting in that pew every Sunday, especially with the folks who knew my parents, people who had gone to high school with them.
I heard the whispers.
What a terrible tragedy.
He’s never going to amount to anything.
My hands tighten around my foil, and I shake myself and tune back in to the conversation I’m missing. Focus. Save your randoms for later.
“…his size will put you at a severe disadvantage,” Chaz is saying to her.
“That’s what I keep telling him, but it fits better than you’d think,” she replies.
Nah, oh nah. She did not just…
Her amber eyes glint at me. She did. I put my fist up to hold back a laugh.
Chaz stares at her without comprehending.
I clear my throat. “I’m sure she’ll hold her own against me. Don’t let this body of mine fool you, sir. I’m a pushover.”
He sighs and walks away with an if you say so look on his face.
“Where did you go just now, while he was talking?” she asks.
“Random thoughts.” I shake my flimsy sword. “So why are you taking fencing?”
She moves into the beginning stance Chaz demonstrated for us. “I figured it would be a good skill to have when the zombies finally rise up and try to kill us all.”
“I spent a summer cutting down trees on my uncle’s farm with a chainsaw for the same reason. To be honest, I don’t think that would be my weapon of choice on that fateful day. Too heavy.”
Chaz holds up his sword in the center of the room. “The foils we’ll be using today are very flimsy, but after you learn the basics, we will move on to something stiffer.”
Stiffer?
I glance at Charisma, but her face is carefully blank.
“First we will work on proper positioning to line up your partner for a firm thrust.” Chaz does a little move with his feet, looking amazingly light as he jumps around. “Like so. If you are positioned properly, you can easily thrust in, out, in, out, and not run out of energy. Stamina is very important.”
“Do you think he hears himself, or is he completely oblivious to the sexual innuendoes?” I’ve walked closer to her and whisper in her ear.
“He has to know.” A blush rises on her cheeks, and I’m fascinated by it. Is she thinking about us? About me inside her?
“Maybe. Some people are oblivious even when shit is right in front of them.”
Her eyes study me. “Sometimes obliviousness is a defense mechanism.”
“Sometimes you need to remember that not everyone has ulterior motives.” I pause and step back. She smells too fucking good, and I’m saying things I shouldn’t be. “What is your parents’ relationship like?”
Her mouth opens. “You’re doing twenty questions in the middle of class?”