the sight before him rocked him to the core.
Kelly, pawing through yoga mats, was dressed in pink shorts and a skin-tight bra top. He thanked the heavens for blessing him with this particular moment in time.
Rafe wasn’t sure if he should continue to ogle or announce himself, but she peeked up at him.
“Hey,” she said. “I’m trying to find you a mat. We have larger ones for tall people, but they’re in the bottom of the box.”
At the mention of bottom, he turned around to leave, but the Seymours were just arriving. Gracie was a physical therapist and her brother a trainer for a college football team. They were friends of Kelly’s who worked the pro-surfing circuit while putting themselves through college. Behind them was James Limon, one of the most popular directors in Hollywood. He and Rafe had discussed Limon’s time serving in the Gulf War and about his passion for surfing. He’d encouraged Rafe to try the sport when he was feeling up to it.
With nowhere left to hide his appreciation of Kelly, he rushed over to the box and knelt, as best he could, next to her.
“Here,” he said, grabbing onto the first mat he spotted. Thankfully, she couldn’t see the evidence her fine body had on his body. When he lifted his head, his eyes were level with her breasts.
Rafe sucked in a breath. He’d survived three tours, and now the universe was determined to kill him with her beauty.
“Oh, are you okay?” She was stared at him worriedly. “You shouldn’t kneel with your leg the way it is. Let me help you up.”
Panicked, Rafe mumbled, “I’m fine,” and made his way to the back of the class. Others had joined in while he’d been talking to Kelly.
By the time she began the class, there were four women and three men, one of whom looked like a pro baseball player, but Rafe wasn’t sure. Everyone put their mats on the floor and rolled them out. He couldn’t quite do that yet.
Facing the back wall, he willed his body to calm down. He forced himself to think of the last time that he’d been shot. The muscles in his body clenched, but the pain solved his problem. A few seconds later, he sat on the floor like the rest of the group.
Well, almost. His legs didn’t quite cross the way theirs did. He put the pads of his feet together. That was as much as he could do with his stiff leg.
“This is rehab yoga,” Kelly announced from the front of the class as she sat down and crossed her legs. “We have a new guest—Rafe.”
Everyone turned to smile and wave at him. He gave them a grin that was probably a bit more like a grimace, as his sore leg chose that moment to tense up in a charley horse.
His jaw tightened as he worked the muscle with the heel of his hand and then flexed his foot so the calf could lengthen.
“These exercises are done on the floor to ease the muscular pressure one might experience if doing them in a regular yoga class,” Kelly explained. “Today is about stretching and helping those muscles to relax so your body can heal. Okay, let’s start in the lotus position. That’s good, Rafe. If you need to you can separate the soles of your feet,” Kelly instructed. “You should not feel pain.”
Rafe’s groin wasn’t happy about where his legs needed to go, but he ignored the pain. He didn’t have the heart to tell Kelly that the pain never left his body. It served as a constant reminder that he was human and just as mortal as the next guy.
In the military, he’d been taught that he could do anything. Survive anything. But as they moved through the next two positions, he wondered if his body would ever recover from Kelly’s pretzel-like torture.
No pain, my ass.
“Now lift your arms up and over your head as we open ourselves to the sun.”
As she gracefully extended her arms above her head, Rafe noticed her top pulled tightly against her chest. He’d never make it through the class if he didn’t stop looking at her. Leaving was his best option, but he didn’t want to disappoint her. She had such high hopes that her classes would be beneficial for him.
Doing his best to stop staring at her, he switched his attention to the other men in the class and followed their actions. Finally, Rafe brought himself and his rebellious libido under control.
Until he glanced over and saw Kelly with her legs stretched wide.
As the class neared its end, Rafe’s muscles relaxed for the first time in months. Amazingly, the exercises had helped his leg. His muscles seemed considerably looser. The group was attempting one last stretch when Kelly put her hand on his ankle to turn his foot the right way.
“You want to keep it perpendicular so that you don’t pull on those hip tendons too much.” She gave him one of her dazzling smiles, and he was lost. Her gentle touch sent heat through his body.
“Thanks,” he said roughly, using every bit of his control to keep himself in check.
Her eyes narrowed slightly as if she were trying to figure something out, but she returned to the front of the class to do the last bit where they lay down on the mat to rest.
Rafe now equated yoga to sexual gymnastics. Sure it worked, but he was exhausted. A shower and a nap were next on his agenda.
“Close your eyes, and listen to the waves,” her gentle voice directed. “Feel the movement of the water as it caresses your body and sends you to your happy place...that Zen only you can find.
“Namaste.”
The sound of the waves filled Rafe’s head, and his body became so light that it seemed to float out over the ocean. He hadn’t been this calm in years.
“Rafe?” Kelly’s voice penetrated his thoughts. “Are you okay?”
He didn’t want anyone interrupting this peaceful feeling. Gesturing toward her, he hoped she’d get the message.
Kelly giggled, and his eyes popped open. She was biting her lip to keep from laughing.
“What’s so funny?” he asked.
“You,” she replied sweetly. “I bet you were riding those waves like a Zen pro.”
Rafe chuckled. “I don’t know about that, but I have to stop making fun of froufrou yoga crap. I feel better than I have in months, maybe years. You’re a great teacher.”
“Thanks.” She extended a hand to help him up.
Rafe was shocked to find they were the only ones in the studio. “Where did everyone go?”
“You’ve been like that for about fifteen minutes. I let you rest while I cleaned up. I would have just left you there, but I worried your hip might stiffen on the hard floor.”
“Right. Well, I guess I’d better hit the shower. We didn’t move that much, although I did sweat.”
“Yes, it’s funny what happens when you are really working those muscles. Why don’t you take your shower, and I’ll put you down for a massage later this afternoon. Mason, one of our top masseurs, has terrific hands, and it will be good to get in there
