The Last Dragon Shifter

Chapter Twenty

"What?" Naomi asked, dumbfounded.

"Yeah. I should have come up with this a long time ago." Quinn grabbed some protective gear and tossed a pair of arm shields at her.

"That okay with you, teach?" Quinn asked.

Coach Scott simply nodded. He looked almost as scared as his students.

Naomi was nervous herself. She'd seen Quinn take on other students. He was quick, strong, and he held back a lot of what he could do. Naomi had a pretty good feeling he wouldn't go as easy on her as he did on the other students.

She got into a defensive position as Quinn faced off against her.

"Ready?" he asked.

Naomi nodded, saving her energy for physicality over words.

They circled each other, waiting for the definitive moment. Who would strike first? When would it come, and how fast would the opponent react?

He got her in a second.

Out of nowhere, a gust of wind swept Naomi off her feet. As an air mage, Quinn used his control over the wind in surprising ways.

As she calculated her next move, Naomi's heart sang. She was having a real fight where she could seriously take someone on.

She chose to use her wings to fly over Quinn in a soaring backflip while blowing a burst of fire in his direction. He easily diverted it with his wind, and used his element against her, controlling the direction of the air she tried to fly through.

Forced into limited choices, Naomi landed back on her feet, using her tail to lash out at Quinn's feet. Finally, she caught him off guard. She reached out to hold her claws against his chest, forcing his hand to end the battle. But he managed to surprise her again. Twisting her hand behind her back, he regained dominance, hovering above her. Her claws were trapped, wings pinned down. Naomi's way out would be to blow out a scorching flame right in Quinn's direction, toward his face. He would have to be quick enough to block it or release her.

But it was such a handsome face—and also a dirty way to win. Yet he knew her thoughts.

"Go ahead. I can block it."

"I know you can."

"So?"

"So we've reached an impasse."

"No way. If you don't make a move, then I win."

In that instant, Naomi thought of one last attack.

She elongated her tail and wrapped it around Quinn's leg. Before he could react, she had him flying across the floor—and eventually hitting the wall.

Surprised by her force, Naomi rushed to get up and check on him. By the time she did, he was standing. Quinn held up one hand in defeat and the other holding onto his leg.

"Okay, I think you got me. I surrender."

Naomi hurried over to him, inspecting him from head to toe.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to throw you so hard. I—"

Quinn laughed. The maniac was laughing.

"You're enjoying this? Being smacked against a wall?"

"Yes, because this is one of the best fights I've had in a long time."

Quinn held out his hand and Naomi returned the handshake.

While the class seemed unsure, Quinn wrapped his arm around Naomi's shoulders and insisted that she bow. At his teasing energy, some of the students laughed and clapped along.