“Are you saying I wouldn’t make a good security specialist out in the field for some reason? Why?”
“Because you’re not very threatening. I thought maybe you weren’t intimidating enough for that kind of work,” he said, lifting a brow up.
I couldn’t help but bark out a laugh. “The kitten thing again? You really don’t think I’m intimidating enough to be someone’s bodyguard? Seriously?”
“Sorry. Like I said, I didn’t mean any offense.”
“Augie, I’m six foot five and can bench-press any one of my teammates. I was a navy SEAL for god’s sake, and I carry a weapon most of the time. If I’m not intimidating enough to protect a celebrity from a few rabid fans, you have pretty damned high expectations,” I said. “Or you’ve seen way too many movies.”
“Can we just get started?” he asked, turning his back to me to do some stretching.
“Sure. But just so we’re clear, no one has ever in my life made me feel so much like a child as you did right now. I’m not quite sure how I feel about it. Part of me wants to laugh, but the other part wants to apologize for some reason,” I admitted with a chuckle.
“No need to apologize to me. It’s not like I need your protection. Hopefully if and when the time comes, I can protect myself.”
I suddenly realized he was putting up a front. He was trying to act tough when in reality, he was scared.
“Augie, do you think someone is going to confront you? Do you know what this is about?”
The man turned back to look at me and I could see the truth in his stormy eyes. “Do you mind if we skip this part and go right to learning the moves?”
Oookay then. Less talk, more action. Action, I can do.
I stepped closer to him to begin the move I wanted to teach first. His eyes locked on mine as I moved into his personal space, and I realized it was probably a good thing he didn’t find me intimidating. That day’s session involved me throwing him around a bit, and I didn’t want it to freak him out.
After reaching one of my hands to his shoulder, I noticed his lips part. His eyes flared to life, and their color deepened. The skin of his shoulder was warm, and I felt my fingers tighten on it. A sudden flash image of throwing him down on his back on the mats raced through my mind and a sharp pang went from my belly to my groin in response.
“I’m going to throw you down on your back and lie on top of you,” I said in a voice too rough for a professional setting. “And you’re going to learn what to do to get out from under me or at least flip me over and get into the dominant position.”
I saw his Adam’s apple bob, and I wondered what he was thinking. Was he intimidated now? Surely it wasn’t attraction… was it?
“Okay,” Augie said in a noticeably squeaky voice. Shit. Maybe it was attraction. That would suck. It was bad enough for me to fantasize about my client but would be ten times worse if the client was actually interested in return. The last thing I needed was to get in trouble with Lanny again. “How? How can I defend myself against you?”
“I’m going to show you some moves, but remember one of the biggest rules: do whatever it takes to get away. Whatever it takes to catch them off guard. In general, you don’t want to ever end up on the ground, right?” I asked.
“Obviously.”
“What would you normally do to defend against me trying to put you down?”
I placed my hand on his shoulder while I spoke, facing him, and I moved my right foot around behind his right leg. After I began pressing his shoulder, he pushed back and fought to remain standing. Since I was larger and stronger, it was easy to overpower him and force him back over my leg and off balance. I reached out with my free arm to cradle him around the back as he fell.
“Dammit,” he breathed, still trying to scramble against me and right himself. Once I had him on the ground, I lay over him, gently but firmly pinning his wrists to the mat beside his head and his legs to the mat with my legs and feet.
“’S’okay,” I said softly. “Stop fighting it.” After he forced himself to stop struggling against me, I continued. I couldn’t deny enjoying the feeling of lying on top of him and looking down at him beneath me. Just the thought of getting him beneath me in bed made my cock fill.
When I spoke, my voice sounded foreign and rocky to my ears.
“The best thing to do when you feel like you’re going to go down is to go down, but do it under your own power so you control the outcome. Remember what I said about using the element of surprise. Instead of fighting, pull the attacker toward you, and then roll when you drop. He will go over your head and lose his grip on you while you get some much-needed distance and pop back up.”