Warriors of Poseidon 04 - Atlantis Unmasked

sound he almost missed—and tightened her grip on the practice sword. A rosy red flush tinted her cheeks, catching him off guard. So the warrior woman was a little shy. The contradiction entranced him, and he wondered if she‟d blush for him in his bed.
     
    But she entered the ring, so the time had come to focus. Grace would give him no quarter and he knew her to be a very talented fighter. Although he didn‟t let it show on the surface, he was a little tired from three hours of sparring. With skill and luck, she could land a very hard blow to his head and to his ego.
     
    But he had other plans for Grace, and though they did not— could not—include tasting her lovely body just yet, he had plans to do exactly that in the very near future. He and Atlantis Unmasked - Warriors of Poseidon 04
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    Alaric just had to talk first. About purification and vows and whether five years was long enough to heal a warrior who‟d been so defiled he‟d prayed for death.
     
    It was time. It was long past time. Please, Poseidon, let it be time. Because for the first time in his existence, he may have found a woman he could not live without.
     
    “Are we going to dance around all night, or are we going to do this thing?” Grace asked, slowly circling toward him, sword at the ready. “Is the big, strong Atlantean afraid I‟m going to kick his ass?”
     
    He laughed; he couldn‟t help it. “I‟ve faced far larger and more powerful foes that you, but I‟ve got to admit none of them had quite your gift for sweet words.”
     
    “Try to keep up, old man. I know we‟re not in your century or anything, but we call this trash talk.” She grinned, her eyes sparkling. Whatever else may lie between the two of them, Grace really did love the challenge of battle.
     
    He blinked as her words sank in. “Did you just call me old man ?” He didn‟t need to fake the outrage. “Old man? I‟ll show you an old man.”
     
    With that, he quit circling and closed on her, raising his sword and feinting left. She blocked him easily and parried right.
     
    “Too easy, old man . You have a tendency to feint left, or didn‟t anybody tell you that over the past few centuries? Maybe you need just a little more practice before you take me on.” Then, seamlessly executing a pirouette worthy of a ballerina, she whirled round and shot a high kick directly for the left side of his head.
     
    He ducked and sprang at her, catching her around the waist in mid-leap. Before she could react, he pressed a kiss to her neck, breathing deep to take her unique scent into his lungs. She smelled of wildflowers and sea grasses. No delicate rose, she. He kissed Atlantis Unmasked - Warriors of Poseidon 04
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    her again, smiling at the rapid pulse beating under his lips, and then he jumped back.
    “This old man has tricks you never dreamed of, woman. Watch yourself, because I claim forfeit for every time I manage to get my hands on you.”
     
    She spun around, crouching down into a battle-ready pose, sword held out in front of her. Her color was high, but he didn‟t know if it were from battle or from his touch.
    Probably both. This was Grace, after all.
     
    “And what about every time I get my hands on you?” she challenged him.
     
    He smiled and let every single heated thought he‟d ever had about her show in his eyes. From the sound of her startled gasp, he figured she‟d picked up on his message just fine.
     
    “I thought maybe we could play tennis,” he replied, mocking her earlier words. Then he raised his sword to go after her in earnest. He would give no quarter and make no concession for her sex or for her humanity. Right now, right here, she was his, and he was going to take her in the only way not forbidden to him.
     
    “En garde, my lovely Grace,” he said. Then he charged.
     
    Grace barely had time to take a breath before he was on her. Wooden swords smashing against each other, she and Alexios battled their way around the ring. With that unbelievably muscled body, deep blue eyes, and the golden hair brushing against his shoulders at every step, he looked like a pillaging Viking come to abduct the village maiden.
     
    Lucky village maiden.
     
    Wait. No. Focus. Resist the Viking, er, Atlantean. Show some pride, girl.
     
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    At least part of the time, she felt like she almost had him on the defensive, but whenever it happened she‟d catch him