“General Fletcher?” When he didn’t respond, I eased closer. “Are you okay? Did I hurt you?” The floor was padded, so he couldn’t be that hurt, right? It wasn’t like Valoffs had glass spines. I glanced at the group of spectators. Eli and Chira had been joined by the rest of the crew, and everyone had given up the pretense of working out. None of the Valoffs looked concerned.

Torran still didn’t move.

I crept closer with a concerned frown. “Torran?”

I caught the flash of his eyes and the curve of a satisfied smile before his hand clamped around my ankle. He yanked, but I transferred my weight to my other leg and hopped closer. It was ridiculous because I couldn’t do anything, but I was still standing. I counted that as a victory.

Torran’s smile grew, then an invisible force swept my other leg out from under me. I hit the mat on my back with a surprised grunt. By the time I caught my breath, Torran had pinned me under his body, his face perilously close to mine.

The hold was solid, and I could feel him, lean and firm, against me. I was effectively trapped, but rather than fear, desire simmered through my blood.

I glanced up at him and my breath caught. He was handsome at a distance, but up close, he was devastating. The colors in his dark eyes seemed to shift with the light. My gaze fell to his lips. Firm, smooth. I could almost feel them against mine.

It took a supreme effort of will to drag my mind away from his mouth, but I managed it. “I would call using your ability cheating, but since I started it, I’m willing to call it a draw—if you help me up.”

A grin hovered around his lips. “Perhaps I am comfortable here,” he said softly.

I arched, just a bit, testing his hold. I could barely move, but his expression shuttered, and he lifted himself off me. Once he was standing, I lifted an arm and he hauled me to my feet with easy strength. He didn’t step back, so we ended up nearly chest to chest. I tipped my head back to find him staring down at me, something dangerously like heat in his eyes.

“You call me by my given name only when you’re worried,” he murmured, his voice pitched low. “Why is that?”

The question brought me back to myself, and right now I very much needed the reminder of why I maintained distance between us. I stepped back and smiled at him, though judging by his frown, it wasn’t too convincing. “We are business partners. Using your title is polite.”

He made a noncommittal sound, but his searing gaze remained riveted on my face. I feared he saw far too much, so to distract him, I asked, “Will you show me how to break telelocks now?”