Briggs saw her seeing it.
That seemed to trouble him more.
Jake pointed one glove toward Emma.
“You think you figured me out?”
“No.”
“Then quit staring at my feet.”
“I’m not only watching your feet.”
The room became silent again.
Jake stepped closer.
They stood an arm’s length apart.
“You want to know what I see?”
Emma waited.
“I see somebody who got tired of being overlooked.”
Emma’s expression did not change.
Jake kept going.
“You heard people talk about this gym.”
He glanced at the soldiers.
“You heard my name.”
Nobody responded.
“You decided walking onto my mat would make people respect you.”
Emma looked at him steadily.
“No.”
Jake leaned forward.
“Then why are you here?”
“Because you asked me three times.”
Jake blinked.
The answer was too simple.
That made it worse.
Emma continued.
“You asked in the hallway.”
Jake’s mouth tightened.
“You asked in the dining facility.”
A few soldiers exchanged looks.
“You asked again this morning in front of my section.”
Jake lowered his chin.
“That was a joke.”
Emma nodded once.
“You kept repeating it.”
Jake spread his hands.
“Because you kept pretending you could handle yourself.”
“I never said that.”
“You didn’t have to.”
Emma looked toward Briggs.
Briggs kept his eyes on the floor.
Jake followed her glance this time.
“What?”
Briggs looked up.
“Nothing.”
Jake laughed.
“See?”
Emma returned her attention to Jake.
“I see.”
Jake stepped backward.
For the first time, his retreat was not part of a circle.
Nobody laughed.
He realized it.
His face hardened.
“All right.”
He lifted his fists again.
“You came here.”
Emma raised her wrapped hands.
“So did you.”
“Don’t blame me for what happens next.”
“I wasn’t planning to.”
Briggs shifted.
His fingers touched the whistle.
Emma saw it.
Jake saw it too.
“You planning to stop this, Sergeant First Class?”
Briggs looked at him.
“If I need to.”
Jake smiled.
“You won’t.”
Briggs did not answer.
Jake looked toward Emma.
“Ready?”
Emma settled into a relaxed stance.
“No.”
Jake laughed.
The spectators laughed with him.
Then Emma added something.
“But you can start whenever Briggs says.”
The laughter stopped.
Briggs looked at her.
Jake looked at Briggs.
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Then Briggs swallowed.
He raised the whistle.
The movement seemed reluctant.
Jake spread his arms.
“What are you waiting for?”
Briggs’s eyes stayed on Emma.
“Both of you understand this stays controlled?”
Emma nodded.
Jake answered immediately.
“Obviously.”
Briggs looked at Jake longer than necessary.
“You understand me?”
Jake’s smile vanished.
“I said yes.”
Briggs lowered the whistle slightly.
Then he looked toward Emma.
“Sergeant Carter?”
“I understand.”
Briggs inhaled.
His whistle sounded.
Jake moved first.
His left heel rose before the rest of his body followed.
Emma saw it.
His right shoulder tightened.
Emma saw that too.
He stepped forward aggressively.
Emma slipped sideways.
Jake’s glove passed through empty space.
A surprised sound moved through the spectators.
Jake pivoted.
Emma was already facing him.
She had not struck him.
She had barely moved.
Jake smiled.
“Cute.”
Emma said nothing.
Jake advanced again.
His breathing grew sharper.
His shoulder tightened.
Emma shifted before he finished committing.
Again, his glove missed.
This time a soldier whispered, “Whoa.”
Jake heard him.
Emma saw the effect immediately.
His jaw flexed.
His next movement came faster.
He tried to hide the shoulder tell.
His heel still betrayed him.
Emma moved back.
Jake followed.
He expected her to keep retreating.
She stopped suddenly.
Jake checked his momentum.
Emma stepped around him.
He turned too late.
She could have touched his back.
She did not.
The restraint irritated him more than contact would have.
Jake spun.
“Fight.”
Emma raised her eyebrows.
“I am.”
“No, you’re running.”
“Then catch me.”
A few soldiers reacted before they could stop themselves.
Jake’s face changed.
The humor disappeared completely.
Briggs lifted the whistle closer to his mouth.
Emma saw that too.
Jake stepped in.
He feinted with his left.
Emma did not react.
He shifted.
She moved only when his hips committed.
He stopped.
For the first time, uncertainty appeared.
Emma did not capitalize on it.
She remained calm.
Jake stared at her.
“Who taught you that?”
Emma did not answer.
Jake advanced again.
Emma angled away.
His glove brushed her shoulder.
A cheer came from the benches.
Jake smiled instantly.
“There we go.”
Emma glanced at the place he touched.
“That mattered to you.”
“What?”
“That contact.”
Jake laughed.
“You getting nervous?”
“No.”
He leaned toward her.
“You should.”
Emma looked at his chest again.
His breathing had become uneven.
“You’re tired.”
The room erupted.
Not with laughter.
With startled murmurs.
Jake’s face flushed.
“We’ve been moving for two minutes.”
“You’re still tired.”