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This was exactly what I wanted.
It was precisely what I needed.
My eyes shifted to the side, where I presumed I needed to be standing to learn whatever was in store for me. “Should I just go anywhere?” I asked, not wanting to intrude or take anyone else’s spot in the room.
“Yeah. You can set your things down at the back or the side of the room, and then find an open spot anywhere that works for you, because we’re about to get started,” Kane answered.
Grateful that I’d had the forethought to wear comfortable yet functional clothes today, I moved to the side of the room to set my things down. I did it feeling slightly nervous, but also very motivated.
And as I found a spot not far from where I’d put my things, I said a silent prayer that this would go well. I hoped I wouldn’t make a fool of myself and that by the end of the class I’d be left feeling encouraged and excited about when I could come in for the next one instead of the opposite.
Suffice it to say, I got a lot more than I had bargained for.
FOUR
Ellery
“So, what did you think?”
I had been wrong.
So very wrong.
And the truth was that I was the kind of woman who could admit when she’d made a mistake. There was no question I’d made my fair share of them, even if there were some I’d make again for the sake of my family.
Fortunately, this mistake wasn’t one that I really had a problem admitting that I’d made. That was likely because even though it might have been embarrassing if I’d confessed my thoughts out loud, what I thought I knew wasn’t entirely true.
I’d unfairly judged Kane.
There. That was it.
I’d walked into this room, been introduced to him, and made a judgment about the kind of guy he was based on his looks.
Or, maybe it was the way he looked at me.
Either way, he’d proved just how wrong I’d been about him.
While I couldn’t technically confirm the accuracy of my initial impression of him just yet, it was safe to say that there was a lot more to him that I had anticipated.
I certainly hadn’t expected all that I’d gotten.
He had seemed so intense and focused when I first came into the room with Avalon, but I quickly learned that he was anything but menacing. He was not only knowledgeable about what he was teaching and excellent at both communicating and demonstrating it, but there was also something very laidback about him. Initially, I’d assumed Jake was the more relaxed one, but it seemed they were both just as easygoing.
Of course, then I started to realize that it was probably the result of them understanding the job they had to do.
They might not have known my reason for being here, and while it was entirely possible that many of the men and women in the room were simply looking for self-defense skills for the sake of it, I recognized the fact that there was a very strong possibility that there were women there who were in bad situations.
At that realization, it came as no surprise that Kane, Jake, or anyone else who might teach these classes would have to find a way to be approachable and friendly.
Truth be told, I was grateful to have found a place like Harper Security Ops. From the moment I walked in until now, it was clear to me that my research had led me to the best place for me to be for what I intended to accomplish.
It was just this one small thing that was posing a problem.
Kane.
I hadn’t been prepared for it when it happened about halfway through the class. He moved toward me after demonstrating something with Jake. He was walking through the room to help everyone with their execution of the move. I’d just performed the move when he approached me.
That’s when he smiled.
