Page 80 of Those Who Are Bound

After her wraps were on, she checked out Jonah’s green boxing gloves and nodded in approval. “Kale knows his stuff; cheeky boy, but these are good gloves.” She donned her own.

After assisting him in securing his gloves, Elliott ran him through some basic warm-up exercises and stretches. Nothing she threw at him, from jump squats to bicycles, bothered him, and she seemed to appreciate that; he kept up with her as though it was part of his daily routine.

Once they sported a light sheen of perspiration, she instructed him on stance, taking advantage of his awkwardness to shift his hips. She ran her hand down his thigh to properly place his leg, and grasped his arms. He mimicked her as she threw jabs and crosses into the air, not using the bag yet, getting accustomed to the motions and the stance. She showed him the jab, cross, hook, and uppercut and ran him through drills, mixing it up, laughing with him when he’d get confused.

She finally moved him to the bag, calling out combos. She stood back, her attention on his form.Jonah glanced over at her at one point and did a double-take, his glove slipping off the bag, causing him to stumble from the force behind his throw. She hadn’t only been scrutinizing his technique, she’d been straight-up fantasizing. But she quickly schooled her features.

“You need to pay attention,” she chided lightly.

“You need to not be looking at me like I’m dinner,” he teased her devilishly, running his forearm over his brow.

She scoffed. “I think you’re delirious; you should drink some water.”

He returned a smirk, stepping back to the bench as he kept her in his sights. “I know what I saw.”

She raised a shoulder coquettishly. “If you’re going to give me a show, I’m going to watch.”

He jerked his head toward the bag as he picked up the water bottle awkwardly between his gloves. “My turn for entertainment. Show me what you’ve got.”

Elliott watched him for a minute. He thought she was going to decline, but she made a joke of it as she stepped up to the bag. “Prepare to be intimidated.”

He wagged his eyebrows at her. She looked like she wanted to jump him. He’d have caught her.

Facing the bag, giving a neck roll to either loosen her muscles or appear intimidating, she said, “I usually have music. Wanna drop a beat for me?”

He laughed. “Not on your life.”

With her own chuckle, she responded, “Worth a try.” She paused, took a deep breath, then attacked the bag, executing a combination that included slips, elbows, turns, and back-handed strikes, ending with a slide-kick. And then she started into another combination immediately, relaxing into the comfort that hitting the bag gave her. As it turned out, she didn’t need a soundtrack.

Jonah watched her, noticing the resolute look that came over her face even though he wasn’t sure she was aware that there was a bag in front of her face. She just moved and hit and kicked, fluid and sure and strong. She was determined to be the victor over the target she saw in her mind. It was sexy as hell, her concentration, but she was definitely seeing something other than what was in front of her.

Several vicious combinations later, sweat running down the side of her face, she finally stepped away, almost as though stepping out of a trance. Her focus snapped to him, registering mild surprise.

“What do you think about when you go at it like that?”

She blinked, thenforced out a breathy laugh. “I try not to think of anything except for the bag.”

Liar. There was something much deeper going on, but he wouldn’t call her on it.

She motioned to him. “Is break time over or are you finished?”

He shook his head. “Oh no, I’ve got this.”

Elliott made a show of stepping back and giving him room. She again called out a few combinations, then walked opposite him and partnered with him on the bag, delivering the blows with him in concert. The bag bounced; the chains jangled. She was so in her element he could have done this with her forever. She was enjoying this, laughing when the bag would swing too hard one way or the other or when one of them missed a strike.

Finally, he stepped away and held up his hands, breathing hard. “I’m out.”

“Sorry, I get carried away.”She looked over his sweaty form. “I’m impressed. Are you sure it’s your first time?”

“Hand to God,” he assured her.

“What don’t you do well?”

He scoffed. “Fishing. But I think we’ve covered that.” He looked down at his gloves, wondering at how to remove them. Then he remembered her action that had set off his libido from the first time he’d seen her and lifted one of the gloves to his mouth, using his teeth to rip apart the Velcro. He watched her as he did so, noticing the quick flick of her brow. Yep, the action was far from off-putting for either one of them.

Elliott removed hers the old-fashioned way as she had the use of her fingers. “Are those on loan? If not, you can leave them here—unless you decide to join a gym.”

He pulled off the second glove. “Why would I join a gym when the best trainer is standing in front of me? Sexiest one, too.”

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