CHAPTER 17

DAY 30

Tuesday

AN: We're getting close to the moment most of you have been waiting for—only two chapters away. (FYI: This book is 51 chapters long.) Don't forget to leave a review on the fanfiction website to show me you want me to keep posting daily. Love hearing from you guys.

FINN POV

I was sitting on the patio during our midmorning break, watching Stephanie tempt the doe and her fawn out of the woods with a piece of fruit. She'd been gradually coaxing them closer for a couple weeks. I smiled when the fawn stomped his front hooves impatiently but waited shyly behind his mother while she sniffed Stephanie's hand. When the doe took the pear into her mouth, the smile that overtook Stephanie was transformative.

I leaned back in the patio chair as I contemplated yesterday. Attending Miss. Odette's funeral had been hard. Hell, just getting out of the damn truck at the cemetery had taken more strength of mind than I thought I possessed. I was no stranger to cemeteries. I drove down to Alabama three times a year to visit Deborah and Katie's graves on their birthdays and at Christmas. A blanket of loneliness wrapped around me, and I closed my eyes, remembering what it felt like to be a part of a family. I would have done so many things differently if I'd known they would be ripped away from me. Thinking about what could have been was a fool's errand and never solved a damn thing.

Our break was over, and we should get back to training, but I didn't want to ruin this moment for Stephanie. She seemed so happy. This was her fifth week of training, and I was no longer counting down the days until she left. In fact, the thought of her leaving made my chest feel hollow. She applied herself to every task I gave her. She shaved 2 minutes and 40 seconds from her run, added 16 push-ups and 21 sit-ups to her original test numbers, and gained 4 pounds. Even several yards away, I could see she was much healthier than when she arrived. The hollows of her cheeks had filled out, and muscles now defined her lean frame. I didn't expect to take pride in her accomplishments, but I wanted her to succeed above all else. The thought of her going back to being a bounty hunter and getting hurt didn't sit well with me. Logically, I knew injuries in that line of work were a given. Still, I wanted to provide her with every advantage to protect herself.

I whistled to get her attention. She jerked her head in my direction as the animals scattered back into the woods. "Coming," she yelled, tossing the rest of the fruit onto the ground and jogging toward the cabin.

We geared up and spent the first half hour reviewing form and techniques. I was pleased with her ability to defend and attack. She was doing so well that I turned up the pressure. Instead of complaining, she became more aggressive. Her confidence pleased me greatly. I had a feeling she would like what I had to teach her today. "Do you want to learn how to break someone's arm?" I asked as I wiped the sweat from my forehead.

"Oh, yeah." She nodded enthusiastically while trying to catch her breath.

"Get into the mount position, and I'll show you what's called an armbar." I laid down on my back, my arms locked on her chest, holding her away from me. "Circle your left arm outside my right arm and place both palms on my chest. Then lift your right knee, placing your foot on the mat by my hip, and rotate your hips 90 degrees to deflect my arm off your chest. In that same sweeping motion, continue your leg over my head and sit on my tricep before sliding to the ground. Now, lean back and force as much pressure as possible on my elbow." She did what I asked, albeit in slow motion while she got the mechanics right, but in the end, she had me at her mercy. With only a little more pressure, she could break my arm if she chose. We practiced it until she had the technique down and was much faster in her delivery.

"I like this move… a lot." She smiled evilly.

"If your attacker is trained, you won't be able to hold your position for long, so don't hesitate to break that arm if necessary." She nodded her understanding as I sat up beside her. "You want to learn another way to break an arm?"

"Do you have to ask?"

This time she lay on her back with me between her legs in the mount position, my hands stationed at her elbows. "Most attacks against women are sexually motivated. To remove your clothing, your attacker will bend his elbow like so. This weakens his hold on you." I bent my elbow as if I was going to grab her pants. She sucked in a breath and held herself rigid. I thought hard about whether I should continue.

"It's okay," she said, trying hard to visibly relax. "I won't freak out like the other day."

"With my arm bent, you now have an opening. Reach through the gap and grab the back of my elbow, then shrimp out while you pull me forward, face down onto the mat where your head was. Place your foot on my hip and your knee on the back of my arm. Press down with as much pressure as you can."

She became more comfortable as we practiced. I was about to call it quits when my hand slipped on the mat, causing my body to press into hers. Time slowed, and the air around us sizzled. I wanted to run my hands over her sweaty curves, to touch her in places that I shouldn't, in places that would change our dynamic. I expected her to panic because she was pinned underneath me, but her eyes held no trace of fear. They were hungry and laser-focused on mine. I made the mistake of looking at her mouth as she licked her lips. When she lifted her chin just a fraction of an inch, my control dissolved, and I lowered my mouth to hers, gently tasting. She touched my face as if afraid I'd pull away, then sighed as she deepened the kiss. Her surrender had me groaning, desperate for more. I let my desires take over for several seconds before cold reality slipped in. I knew better than this. It was a complete breach of our student-teacher relationship.

"Sorry," I said, jumping to my feet and leaving before I made everything ten times worse. I didn't stop until I got to the garage. I placed both hands on the workbench and blew out a frustrated breath. What the hell was I thinking? Instead of acting like a professional—like her teacher—I let my attraction to her get out of hand. Now, things were going to be weird between us. This was especially bad because we lived together and still had eight weeks of training. I wanted to kick myself.

I paced back and forth, running my hands through my hair. One little mistake didn't have to change everything. She was probably just as horrified as I was by what happened. I kicked a wrench across the garage. Who was I kidding, I looked for her first thing in the morning, and she was the last thing I thought about at night. Hell, she'd even starred in a few of my dreams. I shouldn't have gone to Miss. Odette's funeral with her or suggested we stop at a restaurant on the way home. I pounded my fist against the workbench. Dammit, she'd been victimized by a sociopath, and I was just on top of her, mauling her like a lovesick schoolboy. If I hadn't come to my senses, I might have taken her right there on the mats.