He remained close after throwing the punch, trying to manage the distance between us and keep me on the defensive, which allowed me to catch my foot around his and sweep his legs out from under him.
What I wasn’t expecting, though, was for Jazz’s arm to wrench around mine as he went down, dragging me down as well.
He was good. Reactive, sure, but good. And a defensive, reactive style made sense for him—he’d just gotten out of jail not long ago. In the joint, he probably was looking to end fights as quickly as possible, not start them.
I wrestled out of his grip and popped back to my feet. Jazz did the same and shot me a victorious grin.
Sparring Jazz was fun. It’d been ages since I’d sparred with a new partner—I knew all the styles of the Liberty guys so well I could practically predict their movements without thinking. Being surprised by a sparring match was a thrill I hadn’t felt in a while. We traded shots for a few more minutes like that, dodging punches and low kicks, trying and failing to bring each other to the floor again.
“All right,” Siren said, “That’s all well and good, but what about those of us who aren’t the same size as the guys attacking us?” She gestured pointedly at herself and Heath.
“Fair question,” I said.
There was still a faint blush in Heath’s cheeks. He stood a little behind Siren, tapping the knuckle of his thumb against his lips like he was trying not to chew on his nail. He looked enraptured.
I’d heard how Heath had taken down one of Crave’s guys, earning a mean scar across the palm of his hand for his trouble; it was reflective of the unexpected steel thread of strength that ran through Heath. I wanted to give him a chance to show the other members what he’d learned with Jazz, help him feel a little more confident and comfortable—and, selfishly, another chance to get a little closer to him.
“Lots of ways to incapacitate an attacker bigger than you. Heath, help me out?”
Heath balked. “What?”
“You know a couple takedowns, right?” I motioned for him to step up. “Come on, let’s show one.”
Heath glanced around at the other Hell’s Ankhor members like someone might step in and save him. No one did, though, and so Heath straightened his shoulders a little and stepped onto the mats.
“You know how to break chokeholds, right?” I asked.
Heath looked a little wide-eyed, but nodded.
“All right,” I said, and motioned him over. “So, let’s say I’ve got you in a standard chokehold like this.”
I took Heath by the wrist and tugged him closer, and then wrapped my arm loosely around his neck, so his chin rested on the muscle of my forearm. I kept my other hand gently on Heath’s wrist, keeping his arm behind his back, and Heath’s hand flew instinctively to my forearm at his neck.
God, it was nice having him this close to me. His body was slim but shivering against mine, and this close I could smell the hint of warm sweat on his skin and the sharp tea tree oil of his shampoo.
“Uh—uh—” he stammered, as his fingers dug into my arm.
The other members watched with some interest. I knew Heath knew how to break this hold. I nudged his foot with mine to encourage it. “Come on,” I said, trying to calm him. “You won’t hurt me.”
Joker barked a laugh. “Like that’s even possible.”
I felt Heath swallow where my arm was pressed against his neck. He shifted his foot back to catch around mine. It was the correct move—he intended to knock me off balance to break the hold. But he didn’t put any power behind it, instead just knocking his toes against the back of my calf as he leaned against my arm around his neck.
“Close,” I said encouragingly.
Heath didn’t seem encouraged.
I released him, taking my arm off his neck. Unfortunately, I did it at the exact same time he went to try to break the hold again—and he lost his balance, his foot catching on my ankle as his bodyweight shifted forward. He stumbled forward and landed hard on his hands and knees with a thunk.
Joker cackled a laugh again. “Nice one, Kid!”
“Oh, can it, Joker,” Siren said irritably. She stepped onto the mat and offered a hand to help Heath up before I could. “You good, Kid?”