A Deal for the Di Sione Ring (The Billionaire's Legacy 7)

“Sì.”

He lowered his head and brought his mouth to within a centimeter of hers.

Her heart stuttered. “What are you doing?”

“Push me away.”

Right. Dannazione, Mina—focus. She lifted her hand and pushed hard against his shoulder. It was like trying to move a brick wall.

“When you are this close,” he told her, “you lose power. You have no room to maneuver. You either have to make space so you can attack him, which you aren’t going to be able to do in this situation, or go for the vulnerable points.”

“Vulnerable points?”

“My groin,” he said pointedly. “Try bringing your knee up hard and fast.”

“No.”

“You’re a gladiator.”

She gritted her teeth and tried to lift her leg. She got exactly nowhere.

“Not enough room, right?”

She shook her head.

“What are my other vulnerable points?”

“Your face?”

“Be more specific.”

“Your eyes?”

“And what else?”

“Your nose?”

“Yes, but the throat is better. A quick, hard strike against the throat—the Adam’s apple of a man in particular—is perfect. It shocks me enough to let you go. Gouging at the eyes is also good. Your goal is to stun me long enough to get away.”

She nodded.

“Let’s try it from the beginning.”

“The beginning?”

“You need to put yourself back in the scenario. Imagine it’s happening, remember the sequence and go for one of my vulnerable points. I won’t know which way you’re going to go, which gives you the element of surprise that you would have in that situation.”

She pressed her lips together. “Okay.”

He slid an arm around her waist and tugged her close. “Ready?”

“Sì.”

He brought his mouth down to hers, and this time he kissed her. Unlike the first kiss he’d given her in front of the registrar, this one was unavoidable, dominant, meant to simulate the one Silvio had given her. She trusted Nate. She did. Her heart pounded, anyway, at how helpless she felt. How much stronger he was. When he took the kiss deeper, made a claim on her she wasn’t willing to submit to, she stiffened, gathered her strength and slammed her right hand hard in his throat.

Nate released her, his hands lifting to his throat. “Nice job,” he rasped, half coughing, half speaking. “I expected you to go for the eyes.”