Mercy

Nikolai woke up several hours later in Roza’s room. He shifted and looked for her, but she was nowhere in sight. He glanced over at the bed and saw Maksim still sleeping on the bed. Shifting some more he sat up and stretched his body. The door opened and Roza walked in. She glanced his way the moment she stepped inside.

Their eyes met briefly and she walked further in after closing the door behind her.

“You’re awake.” She whispered to him before glancing at Maksim.

Nikolai nodded. He noticed that she had changed her clothes from this morning. She was now wearing a knee length cream colored skirt and a light burgundy blouse. Her hair was tied into a loose bun at her nape.

“Sorry that I ended up falling asleep in here.” Nikolai said.

She smiled. “It’s okay.”

They stared at each other deeply. Each time Nikolai made eye contact with Roza he seemed to fall more in love with her. Clearing his throat and breaking eye contact, Nikolai stood up. He grabbed a hold of the blanket that she must’ve placed on him when he fell asleep. He handed it to her. She accepted it and pulled it close to her chest. He should leave but his feet were glued to the ground.

“How did you learn to fight?” He asked after a moment of silence.

She shrugged and started folding the blanket in front of her. “My father thought it was important to learn the arts of fighting. On his free time, he often wandered onto the training grounds and watched my old pack warriors fight.”

Nikolai was surprised to hear how the old pack operated. To him, every person in his pack was trained to fight. It was the most logical thing to do to keep your pack strong and on top.

“You fight well. I think you should continue.” Nikolai encouraged and she looked at him taken aback.

She didn’t think he would approve of it. Most males prefer their mates to depend on them, at least that was what she gathered from her old pack. Feeling excited at the fact that he had offered, she nodded in agreement.

“That would be great. I enjoyed it when my father trained me.” She replied.

“You will start training with me first. I want to test your skills and abilities. After, if you would like, I will allow you to fight with the pack warriors to gain better experience.” He said.

She thought it was very kind of him to offer it to her and by the look on his face it had nothing to do with her being his mate, but more of offering it as guidance as well as a peace offering. She took it because she enjoyed fighting and Nikolai was one of the strongest, learning from him will help her become stronger.

It was late in the afternoon when she met Nikolai in the pack gym inside the pack house. It was cleared from anyone so that they can maintain privacy as Nikolai tested her ability. She opened the glass door and stepped inside the room. It was big with wood floorings and cemented walls. On the ground in the middle of the room were several mats that were laid out for them to practice on.

Nikolai stood in the middle of the room with nothing on but a pair of black sweats. Again, he was shirtless. His muscular form well defined in front of her. He looked up when he heard the door open. She walked over and stood before him.

“Are you ready?” He asked.

She nodded. They first began with testing her defense and practicing her offense. He offered her tips and modified her body movements here and there. When he finally had given her the information she needed and she was practiced well enough, he stood back a yard.

“Now, I am going to fight you. I want you to fight back. Don’t be afraid.” He said.

Roza was surprised at how quickly Nikolai moved. He appeared in front of her and flipped her onto her back with a thunk. His arms appeared in front of her and she took his hand that he offered.

“Keep your eyes on your opponent.” He scolded.

She put her fist up and watched his movements. He tried fazing her with a lower body kick, but when she saw his right fist coming out she used her forearm to block it, before she landed an open palm hit onto his chest. He stumbled backwards.

“Good.” Nikolai rubbed the place she hit him.

They zipped and took turns throwing punches and blocking them. Neither of them backed down and neither of them took their eyes off from each other. Roza was breathing hard and working just as hard to keep up with Nikolai. She didn’t want to lose, but she missed her footing and that was the opening that Nikolai took. He grabbed her arm and twisted her around so that her back was nestled perfectly with his front.

“Damn it.” She said angrily.

“You are one of the first people to keep me on my toes that long. Usually someone who fights against me is down within minutes. You lasted over ten minutes.” He said breathing just as hard as she was.

He flipped her away from him with a twist of his arm. She turned around to look at him, still irritated she lost. Her wolf was in accordance. She didn’t like losing either. A small competitive fire built inside of her.

“Again.” She said breathing hard.

“I think we need a break.” He offered as he can see she was upset.

“No.” She growled. “Again.”

“Roza.” Nikolai chastised.

“I want to go again, Nikolai.” She growled in irritation. Her chin jutted in defiance. Nikolai was already giving into Roza. He shook his head and ran his fingers through his damp hair.

“Fine, last time.” He put up a finger to tell her that he meant it.

She nodded and he watched as she lifted her t-shirt over her head. She was sweating like crazy and her t-shirt clung to her like a second skin, which only made her distracted. His eyebrow arched as his eyes roamed her body. When he looked back at her his eyes were dark with lust.

“You can’t be serious.” He almost groaned.

“What?” She glanced down her body. “It’s just a sports bra and shorts.”

“I can see every curve on your body, Roza. This isn’t-” Before he could finish his sentence she attacked him, flipping him onto the ground.

He snarled and flipped onto his hands and knees in a crouching position.

“Keep your eyes on your opponent.” She repeated what he told her earlier.

With that they both met each other in the middle of the mat. Punches and kicks were flying in the air. Both of them trying to get an opening at each other.

Breathe, Roza thought. Her lungs were burning. Her chest was squeezing and begging for air but she refused to give in.

Nikolai moved to grab a hold of her upper arm but instead got her shoulder. His hand accidentally hooked onto her bra strap and pulled it down as she moved her shoulder away from him.

It was the wrong move.

He saw her bare shoulder and then his eyes dipped to her chest, where half of her left breast was open for him to view.

“Fvck.” He growled and with that distraction, Roza flipped Nikolai onto his stomach and straddled him from behind. Her hands came up to his head to lock him in. He lost the fight. She was breathing hard when she spoke.

“I won.” She murmured.

“I got distracted.” He responded angrily. Nikolai did not like losing.

She released him and was about to step back when he flipped her over onto her back with him on top. He looked down at her and even when she was sweating she was beautiful. His eyes dipped lower to where her chest was rising rapidly as she was still catching her breath.

“You distracted me.” He said huskily.

“Nikolai.” Roza whispered as she watched him look down at her with hunger in his face. When his eyes met hers, he closed them briefly before opening them again.

“Roza...” He started as his right hand gently ran over her arm and up to her neck. He wanted to kiss her so bad. Goddess, just one kiss.

Her eyelids drooped as soon she saw he was lowering his lips to hers. She should tell him no and push him off, but it was as if she had no willpower. She couldn’t deny the fact that she wanted him. The feel of their skin touching was enough to drive them both crazy.

Nikolai lips brushed against Roza’s before he slowly pulled her lower lip into his. Oh it was a bad idea. A completely bad idea. Nikolai growled and deepened the kiss immediately. Her arms and legs came up and wrapped around his body. He moaned as his tongue dipped inside the warm cavern of her mouth. Tasting her was like drinking water after days of living in the desert.

It tasted so pure and so sweet. She moaned and tugged at his hair as she rubbed her lower body against him. A rumble stirred from his chest in response. He pulled back but carried her along with him. She straddled his hips as they sat on the mat. His hand moved to cup her butt and she clenched her core in response.

“Roza.” He groaned her name hoarsely and it broke whatever trance she was in.

She pushed herself off from him. Her hands came up to touch her lips. He looked at her and saw how torn she looked. He moved to grab a hold of her before she freaked out, but it was too late, she shook her head and walked out of the gym.

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair again. The taste of her was still on his lips and it drove him wild. Now, he was left with hot blood and a need for Roza.

It happened and he didn’t regret it, but he knew that Roza might not be fully there yet in forgiving him, but her response. It was so raw and true. He knew that she wanted him just as much as he wanted her. It was just a matter of dealing with the pain he caused her. What could he do make her forgive him?