Knightly Bonds 1: Their Majesties' Knight Read Free Page B

regained control. “That could be arranged then.” A smile stretched his lips. “How about right now?”
    “What do you have in mind?”
    Arin shrugged. “Nothing too dangerous. No weapons. Hand-to-hand combat.” He caught Lan’s gaze, then added, “With me.”
    Lan returned his stare. “I accept then.”
    Arin gave him a curt nod. “Fine. Come on then.”

    * * * *

    “You want to fight with him?” Garen sounded astounded at Lan’s words.
    Stripping off his richly embroidered tunic, Lan glanced at him. “I mentioned it as a test. As I recall, you wanted to do the same when I joined your father’s forces.”
    “That was something different,” Garen muttered. “But seriously, Lan, hand-to-hand combat? You are good. I’m not denying that—”
    Wearing only thin, dark blue pants, Lan faced Garen. “What?”
    His friend huffed. “You have not seen the king fight, Lan. He is good. Very few men have managed to beat him in that kind of a fight.”
    “And you think I don’t know that?”
    It was obvious from the way Arin moved, with the sinuous, lithe movement of a wild cat in the midst of a hunt, that he was well-versed in fight. It was even more noticeable in a man of his considerable bulk, but Lan was willing to swear there wasn’t an ounce of fat on that body, just muscles. His mind promptly conjured images he would rather not be having right now—he had always liked big men.
    “Why the fight then?”
    Lan shrugged. He was unwilling to explain his reasons to his friend. In truth, he was unsure of them himself.
    “I’ll leave you then,” Garen said, moving towards the door. “Are we still having dinner tonight?”
    “You are leaving?” Lan asked, confused. “Thought you were going to stay.”
    “No. The king ordered everyone away.”
    For some reason, that made Lan’s stomach tighten. He had not anticipated staying alone with Arin. But Garen was already leaving. Lan took a deep breath then entered the spacious room on the other side of the door. His brows rose in appreciation. This was a big room, with a ceiling shaped like a dome and slatted windows at the top. The floor was wooden, and an assortment of various weapons decorated the walls. Not just decorated, Lan thought as various scratches on walls and floors testified that at least some weapons were used.
    “You like it?” asked a voice from behind him. “This is the main training room for my knights.”
    Lan turned to face his opponent. His mouth went dry.
    Like him, Arin was only wearing dark pants, but his were red. He was naked to the waist, and Lan found himself staring at the muscled chest and faint line of red hair trailing down Arin’s chest to dip into his loose pants. He swallowed. Arin stopped, his grin widening. He crossed his arms over his chest, his muscles bulging as he did so.
    Lan forced himself back to reality and told his errant cock to do the same.
    Damn it. That man was fine.
    “Ready for this, Sir Lan?”
    “Yes.”
    “Good.” Without further warning, Arin attacked.
    Their bodies met with a thud. They both landed on the hard, wooden floor, Lan wincing a little at the impact. He pushed at Arin, trying to get free.
    No such luck. Garen had told the truth when he said his king was good at this. Lan was rolled over the floor until his head was spinning, and it was practically impossible to get rid of the insistent weight on his back.
    Warm breath tickled his ear. Lan froze. The touch was surprisingly gentle and intimate. Desire pooled between his legs, and he grunted. For all the world, they could have been locked in an intimate embrace.
    Lan let his forehead rest against the cool surface of the floor. The grip on his arms tightened.
    “Ready to give up?”
    Lan’s overactive imagination was all too ready to give the words a different spin. A shudder racked his long body.
    “No.”
    “Why not?”
    Deliberately or not, Arin dragged his hips over Lan’s back. Lan stiffened. His body was altogether too happy to