An Act of Obsession (Acts of Honor Book 3) Read Online Free

his, “if you want I can show you how to make sure no one ever fucks with you again. That’s more extensive, which means more lesson time.” He shrugs. “Your call.”
    Thinking for even a second that I could possibly put a stop to Daniel for good has hope wedging its way into the cracks of my soul. Unfortunately, I’m not able to afford much at the moment. “How many lessons would it be if I choose the second option?”
    He shrugs. “However long it takes or when you want to stop.”
    I shift on my feet, biting my thumbnail. “Um, we haven’t talked about price yet. How much per lesson?”
    “We’ll worry about that later,” he says, turning around.
    “Wait.” I grab onto his arm, not missing how hard he feels under my fingertips. When he stares down at my hand, I quickly release him. “Sorry. It’s just…I need to know because I can only afford so much.”
    “I don’t have a set price because we don’t usually offer this. Like I said, we’ll worry about it later. Let’s see how the lessons go first. We’ll make sure it’s within your budget.”
    I frown, wondering why he would do that when he doesn’t even know me. But I don’t bother asking and be grateful he’s willing to teach me. “Okay, thank you.”
    “Let’s warm up,” he says, leading me over to an open area of mats.
    He takes me through an endurance circuit, reminding me how long it’s been since I’ve exercised. He does it all with me, barely breaking a sweat. While we stretch, we discuss how to avoid being caught off guard and to always be careful of your surroundings. As he talks about following my instincts when something doesn’t feel right, I think back to that night when I entered my dorm.
    Those alarm bells are always something I wish I had listened to.
    After we’re done, he takes me over to the punching bag, or what he calls a heavy bag. “Have you ever hit anyone before?”
    I shrug. “Yeah, I guess. My sister and I got into some pretty good scraps growing up. Most of it was hair pulling, but a few times we came to blows.”
    A feeling of nostalgia flows through me as I think about Tess and the few catfights we got into. It vanishes quickly though when I see Kolan trying to bite back a smile, rubbing that strong jaw of his.
    “I meant have you ever thrown a punch?”
    My blood heats with embarrassment as I realize how stupid I just sounded. “Of course you did,” I mumble.
    He chuckles, the simple act sounds rusty, as if he doesn’t do it often. It should make me feel worse but oddly, it doesn’t. Instead, it has my tummy doing somersaults.
    “Before we do anything, we need to make sure you can throw a proper punch.”
    He positions himself behind me and grips my shoulders to turn me, his very clean male scent penetrating my senses. Sliding a hand down my arm, he encircles my wrist, sending goose bumps to break out across my skin. I pray with everything I am that he doesn’t notice the reaction.
    Get a grip, Sophie.
    “Make a fist,” he orders.
    Swallowing thickly, I close my hand.
    “Like this.” He opens my hand up and makes me curl my fingertips in higher, then positions my thumb a certain way. “This is the best grip. When you throw a punch you hit straight on and make sure your knuckles are flush against your target for the most powerful contact.” He helps me through the motions, my hand barely touching the bag. “We’re not hitting hard because I have no protection on your hands. We’re doing this for technique first,” he explains, as if hearing my thought.
    I nod in understanding.
    He guides me through it a few more times then backs up and lets me try some on my own.
    “Good. Those are good. Okay, come here.” When I do as he says, he slips a pair of fingerless gloves on my hands. “We’re going to work on power now. Do what I just showed you but with as much strength as you can.”
    I face the bag again and hit what feels like cement. An oomph sound comes from me and the bag doesn’t