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"Keep it up. The next one will be against your face."
Shit. I glare at him while lifting my right hand back up. Okay, focus. I hit again, and as I punch, he taps my cheek. Not hard, but noticeable.
"Fuck."
"I told you to protect yourself. Keep your guard up, Alisha."
We keep going, and my frustration builds at a staggering pace when every few punches, I get hit in the face while he growls, "Guard up."
"Oh, goddammit," I yell after being hit for the gazillionth time.
Cole chuckles and lowers the paddles. "Calm down. You did well for the first time."
"Oh, fuck off!" I take a few steps back and hold up my gloves. "This was a goddamn disaster. I suck at this." With panting breath, I lower my arms to my side and gaze at the floor. "I'm so fucking weak."
He steps closer and lifts my chin.
"You're not weak. First times are always hard. I got punched hundreds of times in the first month, and it frustrated the hell out of me. Keeping your protection up during boxing needs to become a habit, and by practicing it over and over, you'll learn it." He holds out his hands. "Enough for today. Let's remove those."
I let out a sigh and stretch my arms. As he helps to remove my gloves, I can't help but stare at his robust hands and remember how well they molded my ass cheeks last night. My attention floats up, and my breath hitches when they lock with his cloudless, blazing storms. The fierceness inside them is in contrast with his relaxed body language.
"It's time to refuel our energy."
I walk to my bag, pull out the small box I’ve put in there this morning. After opening the lid, I hold it out to him. "Here, I brought one for you too."
Cole stares at two Boston cream pie donuts, before sending me a slight smirk.
"They're my favorite," he says while grabbing one. "But you know a protein shake—"
"Cole, the proteins can wait till later. Now it's time to enjoy these babies." I sit on the floor cross-legged. A second later he does the same, and we moan simultaneously as we take our first bite. I can't help but stare at him as lets out a satisfied sigh while enjoying another bite.
"These are incredible," he mumbles with a full mouth.
In these moments, the more relaxed side of his personality shows itself, and I like it. He shrugs when he sees me staring. "What?"
"You look different."
"In what way?"
"More relaxed. You always seem to be so serious about everything you do."
He stops chewing, and his forehead shows a frown. "What is wrong with being serious?"
"Hey, easy," I reply when his posture becomes rigid. "I'm not saying there's anything wrong with being serious. But I wonder if you forget to relax and have fun."
"You think I don't do that?"
"Honestly? No. Or better said, not enough. Tell me. What do you do to release excess stress, Cole?"
His lips turn into a stripe as he thinks. "I work out or hang out with Brian and Nick."
"Oh, come on. Even in your workouts, you're focusing on perfecting your performances. That doesn't count."
"It does." A stubborn expression set on his face as he devours the last bit of his donut.
"No, it doesn't," I counter.
"Okay then, Miss Perfect. What do you do when you're stressed out?"
