Unexpected Packages Page 10

  His brow furrowed. “Didn’t my daughter already announce that we were girlfriend and boyfriend?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then it’s a done deal.” He popped a kiss on my lips before stepping back. “I need to get back out there. Don’t let my behavior confuse you. This,” he pointed between himself and me, “is happening.”

  I watched him leave and wilted against the wall after the door swung closed. Yeah, this was happening alright.

  I washed my hands, thinking over what Alex had said about his boss, and realized that it was more important than ever now to let Ralph know that nothing was going to happen between us. After trying to get the coffee stain out of my shirt with a paper towel, I gave up and pulled open the door to come up short.

  “Ralph! What are you doing?”

  “I wanted to make sure you were alright.” He eyed the wet marks on my shirt where I’d been trying to clean it.

  “I’m fine.” I stepped into the hall.

  “What was Alex doing in the bathroom with you?”

  Oh, snap! He must have seen him come out. I rubbed my wrist where the coffee had pinkened the skin. “He was making sure I didn’t have a burn on my wrist.” I held it up for him to see.

  “Ah, okay. Yeah, I guess he wouldn’t want a lawsuit on his first day of training.” We started heading back to the classroom. “I’d be careful of him, Alexandra.”

  “Why? Alex is—”

  He turned quickly to me. “Alex Miller is a deadly man. He has killed a lot of people. It might have been his job, but anyone who can kill that number of people has to be affected by it. I can’t imagine he would be very good for a woman like you.”

  A woman like me? What kind of a woman did he think I was?

  “Well, thank you, Ralph, for worrying about me, but I can take care of myself.” I walked away, not wanting to hear anything else.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Alex

  I hated keeping my distance from Lexi, but it was a necessary evil. At least for the time being. This account meant everything to Jake, and I respected him just as much not to screw it up. At least not on purpose.

  As I stepped away from Lexi, it took everything in me not to pin her body back to the wall and kiss her until she couldn’t breathe. The dazed look in her eyes only intensified the feeling because I was pretty sure that if I did, she’d have welcomed it with open arms.

  I stepped out of the bathroom and almost ran directly into Ralph. Fuck— He glanced pointedly at me and then the sign for the ladies’ room as he lifted a brow in question.

  “I was checking on her wrist to make sure it wasn’t something that needed further medical treatment.”

  “Ah, okay.”

  I doubted he believed me, but I walked away without saying anything further and wished that we didn’t have to sit in the classroom for another two hours. I’d much prefer to be doing hands-on activities than lecturing and having them watch presentations, but sadly that is what we needed to do.

  The morning went by swiftly, and I managed to keep myself under control when it came to Lexi. At least now she wasn’t shooting daggers at me or looking upset. She understood why I was treating her like every other Joe in the class.

  We had lunch catered, and as much as I wish I could have sat beside Lexi, enjoying the sandwiches and salads, I filled my plate and returned to the classroom to eat in front of my computer. There were a few videos that I needed to watch, and at least they would keep my mind occupied for a little while.

  Thirty minutes later, people began to slowly gather in the room again, the atmosphere casual and filled with laughter as they shared stories, and when Lexi stepped through the door, she darted a look my way and then turned to speak to another man who was with her and her boss. I finished my video and cleaned up my trash as Trevor joined me up front.

  “We gonna watch those other two videos and let their food settle before we work on the self-defense?”

  “Yeah, that’s the idea.”

  We called the class back to their seats and put on another safety video for them to watch. After that, we showed them another video of the self-defense moves that we would be teaching them. As the video played, I studied Lexi, wondering if she would be turned off by the hands-on contact. Strangely enough, there was a little smirk on her face as she watched the demonstration. Now that was interesting.

  When we were done, we corralled everyone into the gym where mats had been put out along the floor space. We had everyone remove their shoes to avoid an injury from the soles, and then we partnered them up. Since we had nineteen, one person was alone. I purposely made that Ralph. I partnered Lexi up with a man slightly bigger than her, which was only realistic in the world. Ralph would work with either Trevor or myself, and I looked forward to getting a little physical with the man.

  “One of the most important things that you need to remember is that if someone takes you, you need to fight. If you don’t fight, you won’t win,” Trevor told the group.

  “So fight with everything that you have,” I added. “Trevor is right, if someone gets ahold of you, you have to try and get loose. If you can’t do that right away, then you need to reserve your strength and keep your wits about you. You’ll be scared, and tired, and probably hungry too, but you need to keep your wits about you and look for an out.”

  “And remember if they have a knife,” Trevor began, “expect to get cut. If you are fighting someone with a knife, you’re going to get hurt. But try to contain those injuries to your arms and not your torso.”

  “Most times, they will come at you from the back.” I walked behind Trevor and put my arm around his neck in a light choke hold. “The surprise of having someone grab you that way will put fear straight down your spine, and you’ll most likely experience the pucker factor.”

  There were a few chuckles around the room before I continued. “It’s important to act quickly. They won’t expect you to do more than grab their arm and try to pull it away. Instead, grab their arm and direct it.”

  Trevor and I demonstrated in real-time what the move looked like, and then we did it again in slow motion. While doing it slowly, we explained each step from where he would grab my wrist and hand, then how he could tuck his chin into my elbow, and while ducking down, he pulled the arm off his neck and had ahold of my wrist instead. With applied pressure, he bent my wrist back, and to my knees I went.

  “It doesn’t take a lot of pressure,” Trevor said. “It’s amazing how little it will take to have your assailant on his knees in front of you. Do a knee strike to their face, shove them away, and run like hell.”

  We asked the partners to set themselves up in the position and then explained step-by-step how to get out of the hold. I’d partnered with Ralph for this one, and his thick arm around my neck was probably tighter than it needed to be, but whatever. Once it was explained, it took me all of two seconds to have Ralph on his knees and wincing at my hold on his wrist. His eyes snapped to mine, and was that a challenge? Well, yes, that sure looked like it. He had no clue that I’d already claimed the prize.

  Trevor came up behind Ralph and took hold of his throat, and I knew that he wasn’t doing it anywhere as tightly as Ralph had done to me. I dismissed them and began to move around the nine other groups, helping them and giving them pointers. I paused beside Lexi and her partner Matt. She had her arm around his throat, but he was careful not to hurt her.

  “Lexi, let me do it to him.” She stepped aside, and I put him in a hold. He didn’t have any qualms about strong-arming me. I stood up and turned to Lex. “Let me see you do it now.” I put my arm around her throat, and before I even had it clamped down, she was moving, and I was not only on my knees but ready to beg for release. I stared up at her in surprise as Matt chuckled.

  She helped me to my feet with a grin. “Was that okay?”

  I laughed and twisted my wrist for a moment, turning to Matt. “Man, I don’t think you have to go easy on her.”

  “Yeah, I think I got
that.”

  I grinned at Lexi. “Okay, you two do that a few more times.”

  I stepped away to help others but kept my eye on them as I did. Either Lexi was a natural at this, or she’d had prior training. Now that I looked at her closely, she did stand with a more guarded position. Her feet were always slightly parted, one in front of the other as if she were prepared to blade herself sideways to make herself a small target. Her shoulders were up and back, and her hands were at her sides, not hanging in front of her or crossed over her chest.

  We went through six more tactical moves to help them with simple self-defense. This class wasn’t to certify them in anything, but to give them a basic knowledge of what they could do to keep themselves safe. Luckily, we made it through the afternoon with no injuries, and everyone seemed to be having a good time.

  At the end of the afternoon, we brought them up one by one and tested each of them with the seven things we’d taught them. None of them were in any particular order, and sometimes, we’d barely break between holds to keep them on their toes. Some of the more athletic members really went for that, and it almost became a sparring match.

  That’s when I called Lexi up to me. There was a sparkle in her eye, and after watching her the last two hours, I had no doubt she had extensive training.

  “Bring it on,” she said softly to me as she paused in front of me. We stared at each other for a moment, and then I lunged toward her, grabbing her arm. She did exactly what I thought she would do, and with a couple of moves, had me on the floor, facedown, with a knee in the back. Everyone began to clap as she helped me up.

  “What level?” I asked her.

  “Second,” she said just as I twisted her around and had my arm around her throat. At this point, everyone was watching us, and while she struggled slightly with my height, she used her smaller frame to her advantage and brought me down to her level as she hunched her back and then tossed me right over her shoulder. Another second later, I was again face-first into the mat.

  “Style?” I asked her as she helped me to my feet.

  “Tae Kwon Do,” she commented as I went for her waist. One arm wrapped tightly around it as I covered her mouth with my other and lifted her off her feet. I knew what was coming, and I shifted my face before I could get the headbutt that she automatically wanted to send my way. She again rounded her back, her feet coming in front of her, to throw me off-balance, and it worked. We were on the ground, and while she wasn’t free, she wasn’t giving up. I had her under me, and she paused, staring up at me.

  “Don’t tell me you’re giving up,” I said.

  “Never,” she replied right before she did a hip tilt and threw me off. She was on her feet and dashing into the group a moment later as I rolled to my feet.

  Everyone looked quite impressed, including her boss. I watched his gaze slip up her body and back down as he shook his head and laughed.

  “Obviously, most of you aren’t trained as a second-degree black belt, like Ms. Miller is,” I said to the group. “But you have the basic knowledge of what to do. I suggest that you continue to practice that. The more you practice, the more ingrained it becomes into your head, and the easier it is to do without thinking.”

  Trevor spoke next. “Right now, you all know the basics, but Alex is right, if you keep practicing, it will soon become second nature, and you won’t have to stop and think about it. Ms. Miller, how many years did you train?”

  “Six,” she said.

  “And how long did it take for you to become comfortable enough to do things without having to think about them?”

  “Well, I guess it would take weeks. We’d learn new techniques and practice them for hours. Some come easier than others, but you’re right that the more you do it, the easier your muscles remember what to do.”

  “How long has it been since you trained?” Trevor asked her.

  “Five years,” she said, and her gaze flitted to mine and away.

  Trevor didn’t catch it, but I saw the change in her demeanor. What had happened to cause her to stop? It was evident that she was good, and I had a feeling that she enjoyed it. File that little tidbit under a topic for another day.

  We finished the day up with a little more discussion about safety and then told them that we looked forward to tomorrow when we’d go over some other safety procedures, including emergency medicine and firearms.

  I didn’t miss the spark that came into her eyes when I said that, and I was looking forward to seeing what she was capable of doing tomorrow.

  As the class gathered their things, Ralph came over to me. “You were kind of rough with Alexandra.”

  I stared at him. “No rougher than she was with me, sir.”

  “That might be true, but she’s not the one going overseas.”

  I faced him. “You’re right, she’s not, but you brought her to this class to show her what we were teaching. It was obvious that she knew what she was doing, and she is quite capable of taking care of herself. I don’t think she needs you to protect her.”

  His lips pursed. “She doesn’t need you either. Don’t think I haven’t noticed the way you look at her.”

  I laughed. “There wasn’t a man in here that wasn’t watching her.”

  “You are not the right kind of man for her.”

  “And you are?” I snapped back.

  “She deserves better than a violent man. Remember who is paying your salary for this.” He turned and walked away.

  What an ass, I thought to myself as he joined her and put his hand on her lower back to guide her from the room.

  “Dude, if he says something to Jake, you’re gonna get an earful,” Trevor said quietly beside me.

  “Whatever,” I replied dismissively.

  “Jake told you to stay away from her.”

  I turned to Trevor. “Too late, man. I already have it bad for that woman, and I know she feels the same. We spent the weekend together, and I woke up in her bed this morning.”

  “Oh, shit!” He started laughing and clapped me on the shoulder. “Have fun explaining that one to Screamer.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Lexi

  I learned quite a bit today. Not all of it from the lessons that Alex and Trevor were teaching, but some of it was. What I truly learned was that I missed my martial arts training. When I had been active in my training, I’d envisioned myself becoming a Master when I hit my fourth degree. I loved the focus, the energy that it brought out in me, and it had made me feel so confident.

  Of course, all of that changed when Will died. I’d quit martial arts when I’d moved here. Even before I’d moved, I’d lost most of my motivation and had attended classes out of routine. Staying on a routine had helped me make it through the days, weeks, and months until I couldn’t take the routine anymore.

  Before my brother and Will had died, I hadn’t been much of a routine person. I liked to live by the seat of my pants. I wanted to have fun. I hung out with my friends, dinner, and dancing at least once, if not twice a week, that would turn into early morning breakfasts. I worked out, played hard, laughed often, and loved. I had loved.

  In the last five years, I’d become a mere shell of myself. I worked, and while I did go out on Tuesday nights with Clare, I was home usually by ten. Hell, before Will died, I wouldn’t have even left my house before ten, and I’d still make it to work the next day on time.

  Of course, I did learn a few other things from the training today, but as I had listened and performed the maneuvers, I’d been rehashing my old life. Poor Matt was getting the brunt of my frustration as I drew conclusions about myself. One of those conclusions was that I was ready to live my life again. I wanted to get back out there and experience more. I wanted more friends, more fun, and I was pretty sure that I wanted to get back into martial arts.

  I hadn’t missed the look of respect in Alex’s eyes as I’d tossed him around, or the one of pride. That had reminded me so much of Will.

  Will hadn’t trained with me,
but his sister, Loretta, did. I’d known him growing up as my brother’s best friend. He’d teased me endlessly, and it wasn’t until I saw him years later that he saw me as more than the pesky little sister. Loretta had been my partner during my first-degree black belt test, and after the test, Will had congratulated me and then asked me out in the same breath. After that, anytime he watched me train, I saw the pride in his eyes. He loved watching me, whether it was sparring, breaking boards, or doing forms.

  In fact, he enjoyed watching me so much that he often wanted me to send him videos of my training while he was overseas. He told me that the guys in his unit loved watching me too, which was both a little odd and rather exciting, also.

  “So, you’ve had quite a bit of fighting experience,” Ralph said after we were on the road.

  “Not fighting, training. Martial arts isn’t about fighting; it’s about defusing a situation and protecting oneself. You are better to deescalate a situation and walk away, than to fight.”

  He shrugged. “It’s still impressive that you can do that. I can’t imagine my ex-wife ever doing anything like that. She’d prefer to sweat in a sauna, not while doing exercise.”

  I laughed softly. “I did enjoy it.” I glanced out the window as I spoke and noticed a martial arts studio. It was a different style than what I had previously trained for, but as we drove, I noticed a few other places too. How had I lived here for five years and never saw all the martial arts locations? Amazing how your mind can shut something down so quickly.

  “Can I interest you in dinner tonight?”

  “Um,” I glanced toward him, “I actually need to head back to the office and get some work done. Can you drop me off there? I didn’t expect to be out of the office and want to check messages and emails.”

  “Not a bad idea,” he commented and raised a brow toward me. “I could have dinner brought in for us.”

  I wanted to say no, but if the two of us were going to be working in the office this evening, then we might as well share dinner. Maybe during our meal, I could explain to Ralph that things weren’t going to work out between us. “Okay, that sounds good.”