Butterfly Swords Read Online Free PDF

rules changed, he expected her to go on the defensive and hold out for the forfeit, but that wasn’t her way. She kept at him, carving up the space around him until they were breathing hard. Precise angles, perfect placement. There was considerable training there. Discipline. But he could read by the clean control of her patterns that she had never been forced to use these skills where there were no rules.
    He brought the hilt down against her wrist and followed it up with a wide arc of his blade that sent her stumbling backwards. Brute force over grace. This was his fight now.
    She dodged away to search for an opening. He left none. The next chain of attacks crowded her against a tree. The force of each block resonated through her. He lifted his arms and brought his sword down, forcing her to cross blades with him. Metal grated in a harsh shriek of sound. It was a blow that could cleave through armour if he hadn’t held back.
    Their blades locked and she braced against his strength, her arms straining under the pressure. Her chest heaved with each breath, lips parting, and her skin glowed with the exertion. Beyond lovely.
    He looked down upon her as she struggled. ‘You’re good—for a girl.’
    ‘How very clever,’ she snapped.
    She kicked at his knee and attempted to slip away. He allowed her to advance. Unable to resist the slightest opening, she cut at his shoulder. At the last moment he stepped aside and grabbed her wrist, pinning her arms against one another. With a gasp, she dropped her swords.
    He grinned. ‘Surrender.’
    Her eyes narrowed defiantly.
    ‘I don’t even need my sword any more.’ He stabbed the point of his weapon into the ground and left it standing. ‘You know, it would serve you to be more cautious, being half my size.’
    ‘I am not—’ she twisted in his grasp like a rabbit in a snare ‘—half your size. Let go.’
    He relaxed his hold and she stepped back, massaging her wrists. The exhilaration of the fight throbbed in his veins.
    ‘We agreed to some terms, I recall,’ he said.
    Her lips pressed together in what was suspiciously close to a pout. ‘I honour my bets.’
    He moved in to claim his prize and she went completely still. Changan or no Changan, he would still be risking life and limb to get her back to civilisation. He at least deserved one kiss for it. Her mouth parted in silent invitation and her hands curled uncertainly by her sides. He revelled in the soft catch in her breath as he leaned closer. Then he stopped just shy of her. Her eyes clouded with the unspoken question.
    His mouth curved into a smile. ‘The deal was you were supposed to give me a kiss.’
     

    Every muscle within her pulled tight, poised on a knife’s edge of anticipation as she stared at his mouth. He had planned this. His eyes flickered with amusement, reflecting sunlight and shade. The rough beard on his chin gave him a wild, dangerous look. Stiffly, she lifted herself onto her toes, bracing a hand against his shoulders. He was steel beneath her grasp.
    Did he have to watch her so intently?
    She closed her eyes. It was the only way she would have the courage to do this. Still he waited. It would be a brief meeting of lips. Nothing to be afraid of. If only her heart would remember to keep beating. Holding her breath, she let her lips brush over his. It was the first time she’d ever kissed a man and her mind raced with it. She hardly had a sense of his mouth at all, though the shock of the single touch rushed like liquid fire to her toes.
    Her part of the bargain was fulfilled. It could be done and over right then. Recklessly, after a moment’s hesitation, she touched her lips once again to him. This time she lingered, exploring the feel of him little by little. His mouth was warm and smooth and wonderful, all of it new and unexpected. He still hadn’t moved, even though her knees threatened to crumble and her heart beat like a thunder drum. Finally he responded with the barest hint of