Her mouth straightened as she focused. I changed direction again, presenting her with my right side. One, two, three strides—
“Now,” she said.
“Very good. Iwasgoin’ to come at you.”
“When I got attacked by the feral—I threw him. Over my hip. I have no idea how I did it. Can you show me how to do a throw?”
I considered the ground. “Believe me, grass is not as squishy as it looks. No bouncing like a roo. Gettin’ tossed here would hurt. But I can show you the basics of the move.” I gestured for her to come closer.
From the moment she stepped into my bubble, I was in trouble. Her scent flooded me, setting my entire world on fire.
“What do I do?” she asked, scanning my face. If she was as affected by me as I was by her, she hid it well.
I swallowed. “Come at me like you mean it.”
Her brows rose, and then fell. I saw her brain working it out.
“Don’t overthink it, Angel. Let it flow.”
She nodded, but her face still contorted as she planned every move. Her eventual leap at me was completely telegraphed, slow and clumsy, with arms uplifted to strike. I grabbed one wrist and twisted her, ending up with it behind her back and my other hand at her throat.
Her body was pressed up against mine, and her head tucked neatly beneath my chin. I breathed her in. Strewth.
“This isn’t a throw,” she pointed out.
No.No, it wasn’t. And because her back was to me, she couldn’t see how my beast was clawing at me for control. My head dropped until it was inches from the junction of her neck and shoulder, and my canines lengthened...
“I want a piece of her when you’re done.”
The hated voice penetrated my daze like nothin’ else could have. Anna stiffened, and I let her go.
She marched to her tee shirt and pulled it on while I glared at Aaron.
“You aren’t invited to this piss-up, mate,” I growled. For once, the beta was on his own—no sign of his alpha bogan.
“I’m inviting myself,” Aaron said, stripping off his shirt. He leered at Anna. “How about you and I swap body fluids?”
I stepped forward. “You have all the class of a bush pig,” I snarled.
Anna looked from Aaron, to me. “Matt—”
Aaron spoke right over her, his eyes fixed on me. “Is that a challenge?”
My lips pulled back from my canines. “You bet.”
Mari scrambled to her feet, and Anna stepped between us. “Guys, this is stupid.”
I didn’t take my eyes off Aaron. “No. It makes perfect sense.” I wanted this. My beast wanted this. No one said those things to my Anna and got away with it.
I ignored the way my beast inserted a “my” before her name in that statement.
“Don’t do this, Matt,” Anna said. There were undertones to her voice that had me looking at her.
“Oh, yes, Pup. Listen to her,” Aaron taunted. “Because I’m going to give you a proper ass whipping. And then I’m spreading those lily-white thighs and showing her what a real man feels like.”
Anna went completely rigid. And then, she stepped back. “Go for it,” she told me.
The rage rode my beast hard as the beta and I circled each other, but I squelched it. The rugby players caught on to what was going on, and in seconds we were surrounded by them. Eager gazes blazed out at us.
