Chapter 65

Luca’s POV

Mara stood in front of me in a pair of black yoga pants and one of my black t-shirts. I tilted my head to the side and smiled at her. “You know..”, I trailed off, as I walked around her, checking her out really, but the point of circling her was to intimidate her. Though she wasn’t, she held her head high, as her eyes followed me.

“You could’ve just worn the sports bra. It’s just you and I in here”, I teased, drawing close to her back. I didn’t let my body touch hers, only letting her feel my presence behind her. She laughed, “Yeah, I figured that might be a little distracting for you. I don’t need you going easy on me”, she said cockily, her shoulders were pulled back. I couldn’t help the smile that broke out across my face. She’s right. I’d be very distracted by her if she stood in front of me in nothing but a sports bra.

“Tocco (Touche)”, I breathed against her neck. “Can we get started now?”, she muttered softly, trying to keep her breathing under control. “Sure, first, you will show me what you know”, I answered, scooping my arms under hers and bringing my hands to her neck, putting her in a head lock. “Get out of it”, I commanded.

Mara was motionless for a moment. She took a deep breath and when she released it, she twisted her body around, throwing her legs into mine, successfully knocking them out from under me. As I was falling to the ground, I tried to take Mara with me but she managed to use her arms during my disadvantage to unlock my hands from her neck. Making me land on my ass and leaving Mara up right on her feet.

I looked up at her with pure excitement and surprise. “Fuck, that’s what I am talking about”, I hyped, as I jumped up and got into position. “Again”, I said, coming at her, reaching to grab her. Mara was swift with her blocks, never once actually trying to take me down. Which confused me some. She’s just being defensive right now.

I eventually had her backed up against the wall. No longer giving her a defense. I grabbed her wrists and pinned them to the wall. “This is a perfect scenario. Don’t let me kiss you, Marabella”, I demanded gruffily, as I began to lean in towards her. She turned her head to the side, freezing again momentarily, before full-on dead manning me.

She let her body fall to the ground, catching me by surprise. I still held her wrist, but when her bright hazel eyes looked up at me and I saw the spark in them, I knew I was a goner. She used her feet to propel herself forward, between my legs. Before I had time to react, she was turned around and on her feet, making my hands follow her. I quickly released her wrists, before I fell face first into the wall.

“You’re pretty good at this, bambina. But, why haven’t you tried to hit me yet?”, I asked. “Because I don’t want to hurt you”, she whispered. I laughed, “Bambina, you are not going to hurt me”, I assured her. She frowned, obviously that was the wrong thing to say. “Luca, you get hurt enough. You don’t need any added injuries on my part”, she pouted, turning to walk away from me.

I don’t think so. I grabbed her elbow, stopping her. “I would rather have injuries inflicted by you, piccola”, I uttered. “Maybe, but you’ll still have injuries other ways. So, I don’t want to be a contributing factor”, she muttered. “I want you to be”, I said sincerely. She looked at me perplexed by my statement. “Why?”, she asked in a whisper.

I smiled as I tucked her bangs that had fallen from her bun, behind her ear. “Other than the fact that it will show me that you can truly defend yourself against someone my size?”, I asked, quirking an eyebrow at her. “Because, I will proudly show off the bruises you leave on me. Shows the rest how strong you are”, I explained.

Marabella frowned. “But, I don’t want to hurt you, or even attempt to hurt you. You saved me, that is not how I want to repay you”, she mumbled, looking down at my chest. That is sweet, her heart won’t let her attempt to hurt me. That is also good. Maybe it means she won’t break my heart either. I cupped her face and kissed her hard.

Mara wrapped her arms around my torso, melting into my touch. I cherish this, the way she melts around me. She shows the world such a hard exterior, but lets it all down for me. And has since day one. I scooped her up bridal style, catching her by surprise and making her shriek. “Luca”, she squealed. “It’s time for lunch. You need to eat after a work out like that”, I said, kissing her forehead.