Page 28 of Too Much In Common
“Get away!” Tian answered Melanie Hastings’ question in unison with the other students.
“Good. No purse, no cell phone, no computer is worth your life. We didn’t teach you as many moves as some classes do because statistically, you aren’t going to practice those techniques on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. And if you have to stop and think about them, you are not running. At my age,” Melanie touched her graying hair, “I am not as fast as I used to be. Keeping in mind the basics is what I need.”
“Homework time.” Half the class frowned at Abbie’s announcement. “Two things, before the next session of this class: exercise at least sixty minutes. I don’t care how or what as long as you stretch for part of it. Two: push-ups. I know they are old fashioned, however, they require little space and no equipment. Do one more each day than you think you can. One of your best defenses is going to be to stay in shape. Any questions?”
The middle-aged man who’d come with his wife blurted out the next question. “Weren’t you in the tabloids a few years back? They said you could take down a man twice your size. Was that truth or fiction?”
Abbie crossed her arms. “Somewhat exaggerated. At the time, I was working full time as a bodyguard and so my goal was for others’ safety—which differs from what we’re teaching in this class. Also, I have years of training.”
“So lies.” The man turned triumphantly to his wife.
Alex Hastings stepped forward. A threatening sort of confidence oozed off of him. “Not a lie. My sister beat me two out of three sparring matches last week. And I heard through the family grapevine that she trounced my younger brother earlier today.”
“She is your twin. Of course you’re going to defend her.”
Tian shared a sympathetic look with the woman in a Bull’s shirt. This man didn’t know when to leave it be.
Abbie rolled her eyes. “Johnson? Have I ever sparred with you?”
“No.”
“Put back on a safety helmet, please.”
Chris appraised Abbie for a long moment. She also put on headgear.
“Okay, Johnson, your goal is to get past me to my brother. And you have thirty seconds to do it. If you are going easy on me, I will make sure you work the very worst shifts for the next month.”
For a moment, Tian thought Chris might protest. Instead, he nodded and took a step forward. The next moment, he was lying on his back on the mat.
At his smack on the mat, there was a collective gasp.
Chris sat up and pulled off his helmet. He was laughing.
“I think you went easy on me.”
“No, ma’am, I did not.” He’d thought about it, but he wanted to know the truth for himself. “I didn’t see that coming.”
“Any more questions?” Abbie stared hard at the man who’d questioned her abilities.
The man looked away.
“Alright then. Have a good evening and stay aware.”
Class had run a few minutes late. Tian stood in line to refill her water bottle.
Two women, obviously friends, eyed Chris. “I can’t believe she flipped him on his back. I thought he was strong.”
“He let her,” scoffed the man.
Annoyed with the man, Tian jumped into the conversation. “He looked genuinely surprised to me.”
“Good actor.”
Tian sat to retie her perfectly tied shoes. The walk over had been colder than she’d expected. A lift back would be great, but joining the students who were talking to the Hastings like a flock of die-hard fans wasn’t worth it. Two of the women were particularly interested in Chris. Keeping his arms crossed, he smiled and talked with them. Oddly, his body language wasn’t flirting or open. The shorter of the two women touched his biceps more than once as she spoke. Each time she did, his expression became more stone-like. Interesting. As a pilot, she’d had a nauseating amount of experience watching people react to flirtation. The ones who were closed off were in committed, monogamous relationships or were not interested in the gender of the flirt. After another minute, the women gave up and left.
Chris came over and sat next to her on the bench. “What did you think?”
“After I got over the fact that Abbie Harmon was teaching the class, which explains why they collected our cellphones as we came in, it was good. I’ve taken several classes before. Mostly work related, so nothing new.” Not wanting to dis the class, Tian continued, “But it was a great reminder.”
