Her Chosen Mate

Part 4

She blinked her eyes open and stared at Aiden in shock and awe, her snout barely inches from his face.

"Better?" he asked simply. She yipped and sat back on her hind legs, relaxing as the pain vanished entirely. It was so much better. Instead of the prolonged ache, it really had felt like ripping off a bandaid. A really big, stubborn bandaid.

Eventually, Aria could handle herself enough to spar with Aiden, even if he was holding back.

Actually, he was toying with her more than sparring. He'd duck out of reach at the last second, even though she'd seen him  calculate every step before she'd even made it.

But she appreciated it anyway, because she'd noticed how much she'd improved in just a few short weeks after training with him.

During their next training session, Aiden had told her to attack him with everything she had. Already in wolf form, Aria just cocked her head in confusion.

"I want you to come at me like you want to kill me," he emphasized, pulling off his T-shirt so that he could shift as well. She shook her head, adamant that he would either get hurt or Aiden would thoroughly embarrass her. "Come on," he insisted, slowly shifting. "Trust me."

She did, she realized. Aria trusted Aiden with her life, and not just because he'd fended off those bullies a while ago. She felt the stirrings of something more, something a little bigger than a crush, in the pit of her stomach. And she really had no idea how to feel about any of it, so she dipped her head in affirmation, waiting for him to finish shifting before lunging at him.

Just as she'd expected, he dodged like he knew her every thought. He danced at the edge of her reach, always just a little too far for her claws or her teeth to make contact. Secretly, she'd been holding back, her wolf unwilling to lash out the way Aria knew Aiden wanted her to.

He charged at her suddenly, and she crouched low to the ground, waiting to see where he'd land. As she expected, his massive paws hit the ground inches from her left side, and she rolled away seconds before his teeth could graze her flank.

She'd managed to dodge a few more of his attacks, although she'd been a little unlucky and he'd had to pull back so that he didn't hurt her. And all too soon, he was shifting back and getting dressed.

He bade her farewell and told her he'd meet her again the next day, and disappeared into the surrounding forest.

She wondered where he went after every single one of their training sessions. Without fail, once the two hours were up, he'd leave and only come back after nightfall.

She shrugged it off, shifting so she could shower and get back to her book. She was just happy with her improvement.

And, if she was being honest, she was happy with the comfortable state of their relationship.