Chapter One – Burning Nips #3
I spoke to my mother and father about it.
They had no explanation, only that I wasn’t the only one in my mother’s family who had talked about having this strange ability.
Unfortunately for me, the last person who made any such claim had died long before I was born.
So, I went through life tiptoeing around it.
It was in college when I found understanding and community.
I met Tayvion and Cadence, my best friends who were also magical beings. When I asked what they thought I was, their first guess was empath, but over the years, we would learn I was so much more than that.
Through research and working with other supernatural people, I’d honed my abilities, and it was a huge reason I’d been so successful in helping people reach their potential.
From life-coaching to emotional and physical wellness, I’d taken my sociology degree and paired it with my abilities and built a thriving business.
I took the class through the paces, moving from warm-up to cardio to floor exercises that helped strengthen the core and back.
During the class, our first newcomer, whose name I would come to learn was Melissa, remained shaky.
She doubted herself, but through subtle and targeted pinpoints with my ability, she loosened up.
The shaky edge to her movements stopped, and she found confidence.
When I noticed her sucking in her gut (as if anyone in the class cared), I imagined her feeling safe and confident in her body and pushed that image to her.
She sighed and let her gut hang free. When I noticed her fear of balancing, I imagined her holding her position steady and pushed that to her, and she performed the move with much more grace.
It was often the issue. People couldn’t see themselves the way they truly wanted to exist. For most people, that was enough. I just had to show them how they could be, how I saw them.
Each time I felt any tension and anxiety rising in the room, I focused my energy, pressing my calm state outward until it washed over those around me.
I watched it, a hazy light only I could see, move through the space like a soft blanket covering everyone around me. I added extra layers to Melissa.
By the end of our class, Melissa had a look in her eyes that made my skin tingle. It was there, that slight glint of pride.
Throughout the class, I monitored the other newcomer. She’d signed in as “L. Bane.” And just as I had thought when I first saw her, she needed little encouragement, magical or otherwise. She started and finished the class with the same amount of confidence, enough to supply the entire class.
I quickly surmised she wasn't there because she was a beginner, but because she was new to the area. Maybe she was just testing out the gym and wanted to have a session with the owner. It wouldn't be the first time that had happened.
We lived in an age when consumers wanted to give their money to good people.
So, we would often get bookings from advanced-level students who entered my intermediate or beginner level classes just to see how I operated.
Because hell, if I don't like your attitude, you're damn sure not getting any of my money!
As everyone cleaned up their spots and headed out, I spoke to Melissa. She made a promise to return, not that I asked for one. People often promised to be back. Some followed through while others didn’t, but I had a good feeling about her.
“You’re fantastic at what you do,” the sultry voice called from behind me after Melissa walked out the door.
I turned to find L standing there, watching me just as carefully as she had the entire class.
“Thank you.” I nodded, keeping my eyes away from her nipples, which were easier to see through her damp top. “You were good as well. Didn’t seem like you needed beginner training at all.”
“I didn’t; you’re correct. But I wanted to observe you,” she said honestly.
“And what did you make of your observation?”
“I found you remarkable and in tune with your students. It’s actually quite impressive how you motivate your students. Not many people can make others feel so at ease and comforted in new environments.”
“Well, thank you. That means a lot to me.” I couldn’t help the smile that lifted the corners of my lips as I surveyed the room. “I want this to be a welcoming space, somewhere people want to be.”
“Yes. I can see that.” She paused. “Do you offer private lessons?”
“Yes, we do. If you’re looking for something more private, I’m sure we can arrange something with one of our team members.
They are always eager to offer solo sessions.
” I eagerly tried to pass the buck. It wasn’t something I couldn’t do—I’d done plenty of solo sessions of my own—but it somehow felt a lot more dangerous to think about offering these services to her.
“No, I wouldn’t want to do this with someone else. I would prefer you. I’d like to experience what you did here again.” L insisted. “Is there a reason you can’t be my trainer?”
That was when I felt a tightening in the pit of my stomach. The word “experience” rolled off her tongue, the sound prolonged with a gentle melody.
Why does it feel like she knows more than I want her to?
I tried to sense L, feel what she was feeling, but there was a wall between us that immediately revealed I wasn’t looking at a normal woman. There was something more to her, something that would undoubtedly complicate my life if I spent any time alone with her.
“Do you have any water?” she asked and waited for my response.
“Yes, follow me,” I told her as I picked up the towels left behind to toss into the laundry. I reached over and hit the freshen switch, which activated a cool mist that would spray through the room and sanitize everything to get ready for the next class.
Just outside in the hall, outside of all our workout rooms, was a water station, freshly made with lemon and cucumber.
“Help yourself.” I nodded at the water and headed for the laundry room.
Hopefully, she will drink her water and head out. I don’t know what’s up with her, but that isn’t a normal woman. I really don’t need to deal with any freaky shit right now.
I tossed the towels into the washer, started it up, and headed out of the laundry room. And to my surprise, L was standing there, holding two cups of water.
“Thought you could use some as well,” she said as she handed me one of the cups.
“Yeah, thanks.” I took it and, without second-guessing the offer, gulped the water down.
The flavor was slightly off, and for a moment, I questioned if this mystery woman who went by a single letter had done something to the drink.
Before I could think too much about it though, I felt a stirring inside me, like anxiety on overload.
But as soon as it started, it calmed, and then came a sudden spike of adrenaline, and then… arousal. Intense, sudden arousal.
It took everything in me not to squirm, press my thighs tighter together, and bolt from the hallway. Nah, I wouldn’t go out like that. After coming to terms with how my body felt, I looked at her. L watched me, her eyes shimmering, a dull pink light beneath those deep brown eyes.
Is she wearing contacts?
After a long, suffocating pause, her lips curled up slightly. “So you’ll let me know about those private lessons?”
“I, uh, yeah.” I nodded even though common sense was screaming at me not to do it. I need to stay away from her. “I’ll have Meka reach out with some options.”
“Perfect. I’ll see you around.”
I watched her, and I mean I stared at her, as she swayed away from me, gliding as if her feet weren’t touching the ground at all.
As the door shut behind her, my eyes dropped to the cup, and the stirring inside me ended.
“Oh, she’s different.”