The Rejected True Heiress (Liora and Callum) novel Chapter 483

Liora’s POV 1 

The training center was empty by the time I got there, given the fact that it was well past midnight. The tournament was tomorrow, and I knew I should have been resting if I was going to make it through the initial rounds with enough energy left to fight Bianca, but I couldn’t sleep. 

Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Bianca’s face when I had her pinned to the mat. The flash of panic in her eyes before the professor stopped the fight. 

I’d been so close to winning. 

And if I could win a spar, then maybe I could win the tournament. But I needed to prepare a little more first. 

Dropping my bag by the door, I walked over to the mats and started going through my drills. I started with my footwork: quick steps, lateral movement, and focusing on keeping my weight centered, which had always been something I’d struggled with. 

Then, I moved onto blocking. High, low, diagonal. My arms burned after the first twenty reps, but I savored the ache and used it as fuel to keep going. 

I was halfway through a combination, moving back and forth across the mat with deep lunges and hard, short jabs, when the door opened. I scented him before I saw him. The familiar smell of a wolf who should have been mine-who was mine, briefly, before everything fell apart. 

My heart immediately began to pound, and it had nothing to do with the exertion of my training. 

I froze, my fist still raised mid-punch. Callum stood in the doorway with his gym bag slung over one shoulder. He was wearing sweatpants and a t-shirt, his hair messy like he’d just rolled out of bed. Or perhaps like he’d been running his hand through it, as he was wont to do when he was stressed. 

We stared at each other for a long moment. Neither of us moved. 

“I didn’t know you were in here,” he said, clearing his throat. 

“Yeah.” I immediately cringed at how small my voice came out. Straightening, I lowered my fist and wiped the sweat from my forehead with the back of my hand. “I couldn’t sleep.” 

He nodded but didn’t say anything else. Just stood there in the doorway like he wasn’t sure whether to stay or go. 

Deciding not to waste time waiting for his decision, I turned back to the mat and started my combination again. Jab, cross, hook. Jab, cross, hook. Maybe if I kept moving, he’d just leave and we could avoid another awkward silence. 

But he didn’t leave. I could feel him watching me, could sense his eyes tracking my movements. It made my skin prickle. 

“Your form is off,” he said after a minute. 

I stopped once more and turned to look at him, planting my hands on my hips. 

“Your left hook,” he said, nodding to my left hand. “You’re dropping your elbow too much. It leaves your ribs exposed.” 

My jaw clenched as indignation flared through me. “Thanks for the pointer, but I’m fine.” 

“I’m just trying to help. Bianca’s wolf is strong,” he said. “If you give her an opening like that, she’ll take it, and 

you’ll have the wind knocked out of you before you can blink.” 

“I said I’m fine.” 

“Liora–” 

“What do you want from me, Callum?” I dropped my hands to my sides. “You walk in here, tell me my form is off, give me pointers like we’re still…” I shut my eyes for a moment, exhaled, then opened them again. “Look. You’re the one who walked away from me. So you don’t get to turn around and act like you suddenly care when you stood there the other day and let her parade me through the quad like some kind of circus act.” 

Callum’s jaw feathered. “You’re the one who suggested we fake a breakup.” 

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify