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

it, just don’t make contact. I’m not protected.”
    I raise my eyebrows at the idea, deciding to mess with him since he seems to enjoy giving me a hard time. His scowl makes me giggle, something that I haven’t done in a long time.
    I begin going through the moves, my fists curling into his shirt to bring him closer. That’s when there’s a shift. My pulse begins to race as I feel his hard body against mine. His dark eyes hold me captive, making me feel things I shouldn’t—dangerous things.
    Clearing his throat, he steps back, breaking the heated moment. “Let’s work on something else.”
    With an awkward nod, I regain my wits and focus on his instructions as he goes through the different ways for me to break out of someone’s hold. This time, he seems more careful with how close he gets to me.
    “Any questions on those?” he asks when he’s done.
    I shake my head. “No, but I have a question about something else.”
    “What’s that?”
    “Well, what if they have me pinned on the ground? How do I get out of that?” I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.
    “The objective is to not let them gain that control over you.”
    “But what if they do? What if they come at you from behind and knock you down?”
    My eyes drop to the ground as silence stretches between us, the intensity of his stare seeing more than I want him to.
    “There are ways. We can work on that next time.”
    I nod. “When do you want me to come back?”
    “Tomorrow evening? Same time?”
    “That works for me. Are you sure I can’t pay you something?”
    “No,” he says, seeming a little annoyed I asked.
    I clear my throat. “All right. Well…thanks for everything.”
    “You’re welcome.” He steps on the ropes again, making an opening for me.
    Climbing through, I feel him watch me while I go grab my water bottle and bag. Just as I head for the door, he calls out to me. I turn around to see him jump from the ring and make his way over. My tummy dances at his purposeful strides, head craning back as I keep eye contact with him.
    He stops in front of me, leaving a very small space between us. “You got a phone?”
    I stare up at him, dumbfounded. It’s as if I’m brain-dead and I’ve been robbed of all coherent thoughts.
    His smirk snaps me back into myself.
    “Wh—what?”
    “A phone. You got a cell phone?”
    “Yeah,” I answer slowly.
    He puts out his hand. “Can I see it?”
    Confused, I reach into my bag and pull it out for him. He takes it, punching in some numbers before handing it back to me. Looking down, I see he entered his contact info.
    “That’s my number. If for some reason you can’t make a lesson or…if you ever need anything, you can call me.”
    Warmth invades my chest at the kind gesture. “Thank you.”
    With a final nod, he walks away, leaving me no other choice but to make my own exit.
    On the short walk home, my mind is filled with thoughts of the mysterious, dark warrior, who seems intimidating and hard around the edges yet is kind enough to help out a girl who has no one.

CHAPTER FOUR
    Sophie
    The moment my life was forever changed
    I had been rushing down the hall, headed to my next class, when I heard the slam of lockers and taunting laughter.
    “Stop it, leave me alone, asshole.”
    Rounding the corner, I saw Johnny Tillman and his crew picking on Daniel Wheeler, the new kid who seemed to get bullied by everyone. His books were scattered on the ground where they’d been knocked from his hands. Johnny had him up against the lockers, lifted off his feet. Daniel wasn’t small by any stretch but Johnny and his football teammates were much bigger.
    “I mean it. Put me down!” Daniel ordered, trying to get out of the hold Johnny had on him.
    “What are you gonna do, huh? You gonna be a pussy and cry like last time?” Johnny taunted, slapping Daniel in the face while all his buddies laughed.
    I despised bullies.
    With anger pumping through my body, I marched down the hall toward them.