He Couldn't Be That Bad? // Sebastian Sallow and You (spicy)

12. Tournament Under The Stars, Pt 2 (lil spicy)

Sebastian has guided me into the back part of the keep that looks like it used to be a garden. The flowers that used to bloom here are overgrown, tangled amongst each other competing for space and sunlight in the wreckage of the estate.

The cheers and applause of the crowd are further away now, and I know we'll be able to speak freely.

"What happened out there?" Sebastian leans against a wall with his arms folded.

"I don't know." I put my hands on my hips incredulously. "Maybe if you hadn't distracted me I would have stood a chance."

"You're angry with me?" Sebastian muses, his gaze roaming my face. "I was trying to distract you from your nerves . I didn't realize it would work so spectacularly." Sebastian sweeps a hand through his chestnut hair, resting his hand behind his head. His voice is deep and sultry. "I'm sorry– I didn't realize I'd have such an effect on you."

"Don't give yourself too much credit." I chide. "I was thinking about other things too. More important things." I walk over to him, leaning my back against the wall and feeling the cool stones through my clothes. It's nice to be away from the crowd, and I'm thankful for the separation.

" More important ." He repeats to himself as if speculating what it could be.

My posture relaxes and I tilt my head up at him with a raised eyebrow. "Not so fun when people keep secrets, huh?"

"A necessary evil." Sebastian narrows his eyes but I can see his mouth curled into a speculative smile.

I pick at some leaves absentmindedly. "Was I really that nervous?"

Sebastian scoffs and puts his finger under my chin, guiding my face up. "Yes. You were a mess." He says softly, despite the sarcastic look on his face.

I pull my chin from his grip. "Bummer." I kick the dirt with the toe of my boot.

"Nevermind that, let's talk strategy now. Leander and Natsai. How do you want to handle this?" Sebastian seems to be running through some ideas in his mind.

"Well, I hate that we're going against them. Actually, I don't much care for Leander, but I don't want to fight Nattie." I clench my jaw and tear a petal from a flower.

"You need to stop looking at this like it's a fight. You're not in the forest or a tomb, and you're not in a poaching camp. It's a duel . Friendly competition." Seeing I'm unconvinced, he adds. "You dueled me once, remember?" Sebastian nudges my shoulder with his own. "And you royally kicked my arse. So don't feel so bad about it now."

I take a deep breath and close my eyes, picturing the strategy in my mind. "Leander is going to be all offense. So if we focus our attacks on him at the start, we can knock him out fairly quickly. Then I think facing Natsai is going to be a lot more tricky. But , I don't want to hurt her. So if we just work on incapacitating her, and getting her to yield, I'd be happier for it."

"Hmm." Sebastian considers this and he shifts beside me. "So anything goes for Leander?"

Cracking my eyes open I see he's leaning a shoulder against the wall, very close to me, and he's got a mischievous look on his face.

"No." I affirm slowly, but I don't back down from his eyes. "Just because he's a prick, doesn't mean I want him hurt either."

"I don't understand, he deserves it." Sebastian tucks a strand of hair behind my ear and his fingers linger on my skin.

"Trying to distract me again?" I slide forward so our bodies are lined up and pull him even closer to me. I can't even help it, my resolve is quickly slipping away.