Chapter 3
Chapter Three
Siobhan
Good gracious. Aury is so hot. All tawny brown skin with a single, silver chain necklace hanging against his chest that glimmers under the bright lights of the dance room.
He’s been talking for probably five minutes now, but I haven’t heard a single word.
The soothing sound of his voice as he goes over the history of tai chi nearly lulls me into a stupor, it’s so relaxing.
Next thing I know, Wren is nudging me with an overly wide smile on her face. I blink and look around, startling when I see everyone slowly walking around, smiling at each other. Then Aury’s soft words filter in.
“Warm up your cheek muscles. Smile, say hi to those around you.” He nods and smiles, weaving his way between all of us. “Gentle walking, gentle breathing.”
My breath stalls in my chest when his rich brown eyes land on me and he blinks slowly, his smile never slipping and steps never faltering as he dips his chin respectfully in my direction.
The only thing that falls out of place is a lock of hair that flips onto his forehead, giving him a playful, devilishly sexy look.
My lungs scream at me, reminding me to breathe, and I end up gasping in a breath like a dying fish out of water.
Real smooth, Siobhan.
“Good. Now,” Aury says, stopping at the front again and turning to face us. “We will start with stretching the joints. Shoulders, spine, hips, knees, ankles.”
He takes us through the movements, one intentional shift at a time.
The graceful way his body moves as he glides across the floor, muscles rippling and flowing under the cut-off cotton tee and loose shorts he’s wearing, has me focusing more on not perfuming than on following his movements.
I lick my lips and force myself to focus.
“Steady flow,” he says, twisting his upper body and arms to one side, then the other, before moving one arm up so his palm is to the ceiling and the other is by his hip. “Imagine your spine stretching.”
He never stops moving, and it baffles me how he can make this look so effortless. My arms are already tired from holding them up for so long, and we haven’t even started yet. We’re still on the warm up stretches.
“Easy movements, deep breathing,” his calm voice reminds us, and I suck in a deep breath. “Now, gentle punch forward with opposite knee.”
He lulls me into the most relaxed state I’ve been in years, and the lesson is over before I know it. It feels like I blinked and we went from smiling at each other to packing up our bags.
“Remember,” Aury says as Sage, Wren and I take sips from our water bottles. “Practice at home so you can do the movements by memory. If you can remember the forms, you can internalize it and use it anywhere, anytime.”
It strikes me that this is how he was able to take that guy down at the farm earlier this summer when Vee put out the call for help.
I glance at Sage, wondering if she’s having the same thought, but she’s got a sappy smile on her face as she looks at her phone.
Probably one of her pack sending her cutesy messages.
Jealousy flares, but I stamp it down. I’m happy for her; she deserves an amazing pack, and Vee, Riley, and Brooks are perfect for her. It’s just that I’ve lived here my whole life and am starting to wonder if I’ll ever have that…
I sling my bag over my shoulder and turn to wave goodbye to Aury, flushing again when I see his eyes are already on me. He smiles and I bite my lip, turning away while wishing I had the guts to go over there and talk to him. Or ask him out. Or kiss him. Or—
“I think he likes you, too,” Sage murmurs as we walk down the hallway. “Neither of you could keep your eyes off each other.”
“Gah,” I scoff. “It’s not like that.”
“It totally is,” Wren pipes up, and I look at her in surprise. She’s not normally one who joins in on giving me a hard time, but she just smiles, all kindness in her gaze. “I’m glad we came, I think this will be good. I have a good feeling about it.”
I give each of them a hug and thank them for coming with me, then make my way home.
I have two client readings to do this evening, then I need to plan when and where to film more content this week.
Coffee shop and library videos always do well, as does outside in the park, but whether I can film there or not depends on how busy it is and if the autumn weather holds up.
I fold my silky altar cloth and place it in my bag, then add in a couple candles and some jars with dried bundles of herbs.
I look over my “accents” shelf, picking up a long piece of lace and adding that to the bag.
Lastly, I grab a couple decks to tuck into the front pocket.
Except, when I turn around, there’s a stray card on the floor.
The Star.
Hope. Dream big. Patience.
I blink at her in surprise.
I shove the card back into its box, wary of letting that hope in. I’ve wished for so long to find the people I belong with, wanted for years to have a pack, and all but given up. If I let myself start dreaming again, who’s to say I won’t get even more hurt?