Fighting and Loving Ch. 03

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Nic bent over, placing her hands on her knees and tried to slow down her breathing. From the corner of her eye she watched Des move slowly around her on the mat, annoyingly relaxed and breathing easy. They were a good hour into their individual training session, the other students and teachers having already left, and Nic felt like she was about to drop. Her muscles practically trembled in exhaustion after having worked all day, going to the regular adult class, and the intense drills Des was running her through. Still, she knew that she wouldn't quit or ask for a break. She wouldn't give Des the pleasure of thinking she couldn't keep up with him.

Standing up straight and placing her hands behind her head to stretch the muscles in her back, Nic could feel the way Des' eyes watched her figure. They had yet to talk about what had happened on Friday and the tension between them was thick enough to cut with a knife, though neither would admit to the feeling. Still, it annoyed Nic that Des appeared so calm and confident. That combined with his relentless workout had about pushed her to the limit of her self-control.

"You're enjoying this aren't you?" Nic asked out of nowhere. "You have some kind of sadistic streak in you that gets satisfaction in putting me through this torture."

Des' lips quirked in his familiar smile as he brought his attention from Nic's stretched form to her face. Her eyes were closed as her breathing calmed, the rise and fall of her breasts slowly becoming less pronounced. He knew she was tired, but her stubbornness refused to let her give in, only adding to his respect for her. And, he had to admit, watching her go through the forms, breathing hard, and lightly sweating, was something of a turn on. Des couldn't help but imagine what other types of exercise would leave her out of breathe.

"Maybe I do enjoy it," Des responded to her question. "That's why I'll ask you to run the last combination again." Des had barely gotten the words out when Nic groaned, dropping her arms to her sides and turning to look at him straight on.

"Come on Des, um...sensei. We've been working on this same combo for the last ten minutes; I think I've got it."

"I didn't say you don't have it down. I asked you to run it again. This is why we're here. Not because you don't understand what you need to do; but, because it's more than learning the steps. Everything should be inherent to you, should come as second nature. That's the place I'm trying to get you to. The torture is just a bonus for me."

Nic sighed softly at Des' words, knowing that he was absolutely right and surprised that she had let her personal feelings inspire a childish outburst. Somehow this man seemed to bring out the most irrational feelings in her, and always in the most extreme levels. Moving back into a starting position, Nic rolled her shoulders one final time and readied herself for the attack.

"Yes sensei," Nic said humbly as she forced her muscles to relax. "I understand, even if I don't like it." She couldn't resist getting in the last word.

Des raised an eyebrow at her remark and resisted smiling. Stepping onto the mat in front of Nic, he prepared to make the first move. As he stepped forward and flowed into the first attack of the combination, he watched Nic's face. What he had said earlier was true. She knew how to do the movements and had the mechanics down behind every attack and defense. But, she still wasn't believing in her body's abilities and letting go mentally. She had done it on the first day he noticed her in the classroom. Des just wanted her to find that confidence again.

Watching her as they continued through the mock fight, he noticed that the sheer exhaustion she was feeling was pushing Nic in the right direction. Instead of concentrating on each position, trying to remember the order and response, she was letting her body do the work, and giving her mind the chance to step back and see the big picture. As they went through the choreographed actions, her breathing evened and her eyes took on that familiar lethargic look. It was as though Nic was no longer seeing Des; she was more focused on the way her muscles reacted, the shift of her weight, and the transitions in the air as they sparred.

Nic wouldn't have believed it, but Des could have described her with no other word than beautiful at that moment. As he threw the last punch, which Nic easily blocked, and they came to a stop, both exhaled deeply. They stood motionless until Nic refocused on the room and the man standing in front of her. As she looked into his eyes, she could see they had that same dark, stormy hue that had plagued her waking and sleeping hours throughout the weekend. She inhaled quickly and felt a hitch in her stomach that had everything to do with the way only Des could make her feel so nervous and aroused with a single glance.

"Very good," said Des, finally breaking the silence. "There was a difference that time. Did you feel it?"

Nic nodded slowly in agreement. Breaking eye contact, she relaxed and put a little space between herself and Des. If she was being honest with herself, the space was more for her own peace of mind more than anything else. She didn't trust herself when it came to Des, already having experience from the past of what little control she held.

"Then, I think we'll be done for the night," continued Des, forcing Nic to look at him once more. "Good work. You can pack up and head home."

Nic nodded again before remembering to bow to her senior. Funny that she seemed unable to speak. Pack up and head home, Nic thought as she moved off the mat and headed to the wall where she had dropped her towel and water bottle. Are we just going to ignore what happened on Friday? She grabbed her drink and opened it harshly, not really sure if she was mad at herself or Des. It was hard for Nic to believe that he wasn't going to bring up their previous encounter after the expression she had just seen on his face.

As Nic drank deeply, trying to relieve the thirst she had built up over the past hour, she tried to find some way to bring up the topic they had so successfully avoided up until now. She concentrated so deeply on finding something to say that she neither heard nor felt Des move to stand behind her. Finally setting her mind upon the question she was determined to ask, she turned, only to have her mind erased of all thought at the startling nearness of him.

They both knew that he was going to kiss her, and oddly enough they both were equally sure that neither would stop it from happening. With a dip of his head, Des' mouth was on Nic's, taking what he had been thinking about all weekend. He coaxed her mouth open with gentle nips of his teeth and sweeps of his tongue, until he could taste her sweetness as she stopped trying to fight her growing need.

This time, the kiss wasn't desperate or rushed, as it had been in Nic's kitchen. It was just as passionate, but slower, building heat moment by moment. Nic's water bottle fell from her fingers as Des gently maneuvered her into leaning against the wall as he crowded closer. His hands found her hips, pulling her lower body closer to his own, as he tilted his head for better access to Nic's mouth. Her gentle moan of pleasure and the feeling of her hands grabbing the front of his uniform clouded his mind with the urge to finish what they had started on Friday.

Des hadn't meant for it to go this far. He had just wanted to take the edge off of the craving they had been trying to resist. Now, his mind was telling him how easy it would be to unknot the belt around her waist and pull open the front of her uniform. He should have been disturbed at what seemed like a lack of control, but it was amazing what you could get used to when you were slowly being driven insane by a loss of blood to the brain.

Finding a reserve of strength he didn't know he had, Des broke off the kiss and rested his forehead on Nic's. He didn't, however, move away from her sensual warmth. His hips still rested on hers, keeping his throbbing erection in close contact with her own sex. His right hand slowly dragged from her hip to the underside of her breast, his fingers barely brushing that gentle swell as she inhaled deeply.

Nic tried to control her breathing, both hopeful and afraid that he would continue. Almost as if reading her thoughts, Des' hand skimmed over her breast and reached the opening of her uniform, finding the skin of her neck. His fingers lingered there only a moment before continuing on to cup her jaw, his thumb gently caressing the softness of Nic's lips. He moved his head back and stared into her eyes, his other hand coming to rest on the wall, effectively using his larger frame to create their own space.

It was almost claustrophobic, having Des so close. And the way he looked at Nic, as though she were the only thing in the world...no, the universe. She'd never felt anything as intense as the weight of his stare. His thumb moved slowly across Nic's parted lips, first along the fuller bottom half, and then across the top. It was almost hypnotic, the way he lightly teased her mouth and yet was able to transfer the feeling of that touch to her entire body.

Without thought, Nic opened her mouth wider as Des' thumb made another circuit. Using her tongue to invite the digit inside, she softly sucked, closing her eyes to enjoy the pleasure of the unique taste of his skin. Nic opened her eyes again upon hearing a harsh exhalation from Des. His face looked strained, his teeth obviously clenched together in an effort to restrain himself.

Realizing what she had done, Nic quickly released his finger, embarrassed at her actions. It had been unintentional on her part, but she had heightened the situation, and the unreadable look on Des' face made her worry that she might have gone too far. Nic was relieved when Des removed his hand from her face and shook his head slowly, a slight smile lighting his features.

"You really don't know what you do to me, do you?" Nic didn't know how to respond to that question and remained silent. Des pushed away, allowing space to reinsert itself between them. For the first time since they had started working alone that night, he would not look directly at Nic, instead bringing his attention to the clock across the room. It's almost imperceptible tick, tock was the only sound in the room for a long minute.

"We're going to go on a date tomorrow night," Des said, his low voice filling the silence. "I'll pick you up at eight and we'll go out to dinner. We'll talk about frivolous things, if you want, and we'll keep everything light and simple. But, by the end of the night, we need to decide where this is going, because it's obvious we're going to be moving fast. Alright?"

"Alright," said Nic after a moment, the first word she had spoken in what seemed like forever. Des' tone hadn't really left any room for anything besides agreement. In a way it was almost a relief to have finally come to some sort of resolution, even if it was only that they realized a decision had to be made about the future.

Des nodded once at her agreement and moved toward the back of the dojo where the workout room was held. Nic knelt slowly and retrieved her dropped water bottle and towel, before walking to the changing room. It took only a matter of minutes for her to pull on jeans and a t-shirt before hoisting her bag to her shoulder and heading for the door. If Nic wasn't absolutely certain that she was awake, she would have sworn that what had passed between her and Des had been no more than a dream. But, the beginning of soreness in her limbs was proof that the night was real.

Before Nic could step outside into the cool night air, she heard the sound of the punching board being rhythmically struck over and over. It was apparently going to be a long night for both of them, and for some reason this knowledge made Nic feel better. Pushing the door open, the wind chime over the frame, which signaled any entrance or exit, rang out its soothing song. For a moment the sounds coming from further in the dojo stopped and a voice drifted to the front.

"Sweet dreams Nic," said Des, before the distinct noise of fists connecting with wood once again echoed through the hall. Nic smiled to herself and wondered how she would ever be able to get to sleep.

To be continued...