Chapter 2
“Connor, you need to focus on your breathing, not the goat sniffing your goodies.”
Words I never thought I’d say, but here we are.
“For fuck’s sake. The goat has his nose right under my family jewels. How am I not supposed to focus on that?”
The grumpy defenseman does his best to stay still in his low lunge position, but Wayne, the cute little black goat, has become fixated on the area between his legs. A little snicker next to me has me smiling and looking down at my assistant for the day.
“That’s a dollar for the swear jar, Uncle Connor!”
Sophia stands with her hands raised above her head, breathing in and out steadily, more stable than half the professional athletes standing in front of us. She continues to giggle at the goat who is currently violating her uncle.
Turning my microphone off for a moment, I ask Sophia, “Do you think one of us should go over there and help him?”
Her hazel eyes meet mine and crinkle at the edges as she laughs again. “Uncle Connor sure doesn’t like Wayne very much. I think I’ll go save him.”
“I think that’s a good idea.”
Sophia skips off and slides up next to Wayne and Connor. As soon as she lowers herself to the ground, the goat climbs into her lap, causing her to fall into a fit of laughter that has every grown man in the room looking at her in admiration.
That’s one lucky little girl. Twenty-one grown-ass men, completely enamored by her presence. I’d give anything to have even one man look at me with as much care as these guys are looking at her.
Once Sophia is done saving her Uncle Connor, we move onto our next stretch. I quickly turn the microphone back on and give the team their next set of instructions.
“All right, ladies and gentlemen. Now that we’ve done our stretches and breathing exercises, we’re going to get a little friendly with these cutie-pies.
Please remember to let the goats initiate any interactions.
As cute as they are and how badly you may want to play with them, let them lead.
And once we’re down lower to the ground, feel free to interact with them more, if they come to you.
We’ll still be focusing on our breathing and visualization, but I also want you all to enjoy yourselves.
This is supposed to be fun! Call out if you get uncomfortable or need me to help facilitate a position.
And if you need help with a goat, call out to either me or Sophia. Any questions?”
I look around at the room full of gigantic professional athletes and am met with a multitude of expressions. Hunter is in all of his glory, perfecting every pose. As he should, considering I drag him with me to every yoga session I attend.
Hunter has quickly become my best friend next to Ellie. With how much time Ellie dedicates to her job and new love life, Hunter and I had no choice but to become friends. Turns out, he’s more like my long-lost brother. Unlike my biological siblings, Hunter gets me.
When I was in high school, my siblings would laugh anytime I’d ask them to do yoga with me.
Even though they were younger than me, they had already fallen in line with my parents’ expectations and were dead set on an Ivy League education.
Even my youngest sister had Yale paraphernalia hanging in her room by the time she was twelve.
My siblings were desperate for my parents’ love, which I understand.
They’d always tell me yoga was “a waste of time” and always questioned why I didn’t take life more seriously.
Hunter, on the other hand, embraces every quirk I have, including attending moon circles with me at full or new moons to release our energy and set intentions, even though he has no clue what I’m talking about half the time.
I’m so damn grateful he came into my life.
I may be slowly finding my place here in Green Bay, but having him by my side makes the journey even better.
I shoot Hunter a thumbs up and laugh when Gordie runs wild around his feet. I’m not sure what he was thinking, getting that puppy mid-season but you won’t find me complaining. I am so ready for some puppy snuggles.
I continue my perusal of the room. I’d say about 75 percent of the guys are eager and excited to get closer to the goats, while the other 25 percent are either wearing a look of uncertainty or are completely unimpressed with the situation.
Their lack of enthusiasm picks at my self-confidence.
I can’t help but wonder if what I’m doing is a waste of their time.
I shake off their skepticism, like I’ve been doing my entire life, and continue to glance around the room.
One look, however, causes me to trip over my own feet.
Sophia’s dad, Niko, has his eyes locked on me in a way that sends a shiver down my spine.
His light blue eyes are sharp, focused, and steady, and they hold mine just for a moment too long.
There’s no smile, no flirtation—just something unreadable that makes my pulse skip.
I shake it off, reminding myself I’m here to teach yoga, and nothing more.
Still…there’s something about him that pulls me in.
Sophia’s little voice interrupts the staring contest happening between her father and me. “Miss Sadie! Are you ready?”
I lead the group down onto their mats and run them through some basic, beginner yoga poses. Yes, they are professional athletes, but they’re also getting ready for playoffs and I don’t need one of them pulling a muscle trying to attempt a difficult position.
“The next pose we’re going to do is Cobra pose.
We’ll start this one like we started the last. Lie face down and then place your hands under your shoulders.
Next, you’re going to gently lift your chest while keeping your elbows close to your body.
Make sure your pelvis remains on the ground.
” I demonstrate the pose as I explain the steps one more time.
“You guys try it out. I’m going to walk around to check everyone’s positioning. ”
I slowly walk around, correcting minor things like hand placement and elbow position. It’s pretty freaking hilarious to watch these grown men attempt to stay in position as four wild goats run rampant through the room.
“Goddamn it, Wayne! Will you find someone else to molest, please?”
Poor Connor has a new friend, and he is not at all impressed. Luckily, Sophia runs to his rescue again, just as I make my way to her dad’s mat.
“You’re going to want to try to keep your pelvis closer to the floor.”
He follows my instructions but his chest dips in the process. This is the perfect opportunity for us to rest and reset.
“Okay, everyone. Relax and slowly lower your chest back to the mat. We’re going to try this pose again.
This time, really focus on lengthening your spine and opening up your chest. Engage those beautiful abdominal muscles I know you all have before you lift to support your lower back.
On my count. Three, two, one, and lift…”
I briefly look around the room and see that many of the guys followed my advice and look more relaxed in the pose this time. Turning back to Niko, I notice his lower half is a tad too high off the ground again and lower myself to the floor to help him.
“Is it okay if I adjust your positioning?”
He turns his head and eyes my hands that are hovering near his bottom half. “Sure.”
“We want to keep this area down.” I push gently on his hip so his pelvic area lowers. “And we want your chest to stay up so there’s no strain here on your lower back.” I hold his chest in place and slowly move my hand on his lower back to emphasize the point.
A hiss escapes his mouth, and I pull my hand back fast. “I’m so sorry. Did that hurt?”
His head turns my way again and there’s something hiding in those eyes that causes me to suck in a breath. “No. It didn’t hurt.”
The statement hangs in the air as he waits for me to try and figure out the hidden meaning behind his words.
I do my best to breathe and attempt to swallow. My mouth is suddenly as dry as the Sahara Desert.
“Oh, okay. Good.”
His eyes burn into mine as I sit there like a total idiot, unsure of what to say or do. I can feel the sweat building on my hands as they rest against the tops of my thighs.
Doing my best to stay in my yoga instructor persona, I assess his form again before blurting out, “Great. Much better. Your groin looks fabulous. No—I mean—your chest is staying up and is firm and…shit. Oh my god. I’m gonna go now.”
Niko chuckles as I push up off the ground and speed walk over to my best friend before I can make a fool of myself again.
As soon as I get to Ellie, I crouch down next to her as she holds the Cobra pose. Shit they’ve been holding this pose too long.
“Okay, class. Down and rest. We’ll begin our next pose shortly.”
I blow out a breath, exhaling my embarrassment, and whisper, “I think I just told Niko he has a firm chest. And possibly implied something about his groin being fabulous.”
Ellie’s head jerks toward me. “You what?”
“It just…slipped out. I was trying to talk anatomy. Like, yoga anatomy. Core strength, flexibility, and all that. But the way he was looking at me threw me off. I blanked and then, somehow, those words came out.
Ellie snorts. “Did you actually say, ‘fabulous groin’?”
I groan and bury my face in my hands. “Can we not repeat it? Ever again?”
She laughs. “Oh, we’re absolutely repeating it. Forever.”
I drop my hands and fix her with a look. “Glad you’re enjoying my public humiliation. You’re leading the rest of the class, by the way.”
“Nope.” Ellie grabs my arm before I can bolt. “This was your idea, and it’s working. The guys are into it, they’re laughing, and you’re killing it. Even with the awkward anatomy references. Shake it off and get back out there.”
I sigh, but her encouragement does what it always does and steadies me. I nod. “Fine. But if anyone asks, I said core engagement, not fabulous groin.”
I stand to make my way to the front of the room, but not before Ellie gives me a little slap on the ass.
As I walk away, I give her my best evil eye over my shoulder.
“Sorry. It’s a habit.” She shrugs her shoulders at me, and I give her one last shake of my head before getting to the front of the class.
The goats are climbing all over the players as they laugh and joke about which one of them is going to get to take one home. They really are eating this up. God, I love what I do. Some people might not understand yoga—cough, cough, my family—but it doesn’t make me love it any less.
Clapping twice to gain everyone’s attention, all eyes lift to meet mine.
“Let’s see what you got. This next pose is going to be a tad more difficult. It’s called Balancing Table pose, and I want to see which one of you all-stars can impress me the most with your balance.”
Hoots and hollers meet my challenge, especially amongst the rookies, all of them claiming they’ll be the best. Nothing like a little competition to get them riled up.
Once I’m on my hands and knees to demonstrate the pose, the temptation is too strong. I look to my left at Niko, and those eyes are tracking my every movement. Once they meet mine, I finally realize what’s hiding in them.
Desire.