The Willow Read Online Free PDF

Guardian power.” He pushed off the floor. “It gives you strength and resilience.” He began to circle around me slowly. Almost as if he was stalking his prey.
     
    “What are you doing?” I demanded.
     
    “Preparing to fight.”
     
    He’s kidding right? From our talk, I got the gist of what my training would involve. It just never occurred to me that I’d actually have to fight him. Watching him pursue me, I began to appreciate the size of him. I’m half his size for heaven’s sake and he’s pure muscle.
     
    He caught my fear instantly. “What are you afraid of?”
     
    “You! I can’t do this. You’re all nuts!” I felt two feet tall—I didn’t care. I didn’t need pride. I was terrified of him.
     
    “Alright, I won’t hit, only push.”
     
    “No way.”
     
    His brows drew together. “This isn’t a choice. I’m being nice by not hitting you, now come on.”
     
    There was no way out of this. Better to just face the music and get this the hell over with. Resigned, I drew in a deep breath, blew it out quickly, and landed a hard blow to his jaw. Shock, stunned, astonished—nothing could properly describe how I felt seeing him soar through the air. I’m friggin’ Wonder Woman!
     
    But the moment he landed that revelation quickly vanished from my mind as he began to run toward me. Fear made me dizzy. My instinct was to run, but I doubted I’d outrun him. So, I took the chicken’s way out and closed my eyes tight waiting for the hit. Waited…waited…waited.
     
    It never came.
     
    I cracked open an eye to see him an inch from my face smiling. “Plan to fight with your eyes closed, do you?”
     
    I nodded with total certainty. “I ain’t fighting.”
     
    He chuckled.
     
    What did he find so friggin’ funny? I wasn’t joking. They were out of their goddamn minds if they thought I’d agree to a fist fight with him.
     
    “Come again.” Then, he winked. “Level me.”
     
    The challenging look in his eyes was all I needed to respond. I swung my arm back and flung it straight into his stomach. He grunted and bent down slightly from the hit and I smiled. Actually, this might not be so bad after all.
     
    I brought my arm down low and swung it up hitting him square in the jaw, sending him flying backward. Then, I ran and threw my body at him, which sent us sliding across the room. I laughed loudly as we hit the wall, shocked by my strength. They weren’t kidding about the Guardian power. Pretty powerful stuff. I was knocking him around like a rag doll. Him—Mr. Muscles.
     
    “That was fun!” I jumped up and headed back toward the center of the room feeling almighty. As I glanced over my shoulder and saw him charging toward me, that superiority vanished.
     
    The moment he hit, I flew across the room.
     
    Before I could even get up, he hurled his body at me. I rolled away quickly and for a second I actually thought I dodged him. Doubtful! He grabbed my arm and threw me across the room. “Oof.” I landed against the wall with a loud thud.
     
    Apparently, Guardians are more resilient. This wasn’t completely painless, but it definitely didn’t hurt as much as it should have. And the strangest part, I wasn’t scared. I liked fighting, and the most startling discovery was that I felt comfortable doing it. I jumped to my feet and twirled away just as he lunged forward.
     
    Not like I made it far.
     
    He stopped my spin with a grab of his hand and pulled me tight against his body. “Hey—wh—” I stammered before I met his gaze. Either fighting excites him or I wasn’t the only one with an attraction here.
     
    As much as I wanted to stay wrapped in his arms—I wanted to land a hit on him more. Damn Pride. Using his hesitation as an advantage, I kicked out and nailed his shin hard.
     
    He stumbled back then grinned. “That’s it.”
     
    Ooohhh …this smile was new. It bordered right on devilish, which warmed and liquefied every part of my body.
     
    “Nice hit,” a