Page 56 of Surrender
“Boxing is about matching the rhythm of your opponent,” shecontinued, her voice calm but firm. “One person leads, the other follows. It’s push and pull. And when they push, you better have the balance, the core strength, and the footwork to get the hell out of the way.”
I fought a smile as Ryder paused by the door, his fists clenched at his sides.
A lot of these boys had grown up having to fight for their place in the world, to prove themselves men far earlier than they should have. Many of them would have been bullied or become bullies themselves, and this would have been the exact thing they would have picked on other kids about.
So, today wasn’t just about footwork and endurance. It was about challenging them to see how badly they wanted to change their future. Whether it was enough that they could put their pride aside for a moment to grow as a person.
And while I thought it was going to be me throwing down that challenge, it turns out Darcy was more than ready to meet their bullshit head-on. But I should have known that because she’d never been afraid to hold people accountable or to stand up and speak her mind when she saw something wrong.
It was that fire in her.
And I fucking loved to see it burn.
She turned, strolling to the side of the room, completely unbothered. “Look, I’m not going to make you wear spandex. No one’s putting on a tutu.” She crouched and grabbed a duffle bag, pulling out a pair of gray sweatpants and tugging them on over herpointeshoes before standing up again. “Honestly, if I’d known you were coming, I’d have dressed more casually. But I thought maybe your coach here was just looking to addballerinato his list of accomplishments.”
The group chuckled, and I rolled my eyes, scoffing loudly.
She was winning them over.
No surprises.
“And if it’s too easy?” Nick challenged, crossing his arms.
Darcy shrugged, stretching her arms over her head. “You give me an hour of your time. An hour ofreal effort,” she bargained. “I’m not going to make you do anything that I can’t do myself. And if you’re not sweating, aching, and wishing you could tap out, then I’ll tell your coach here that he wasted both your time and my time, and on top of paying me for the class, he also owes you all twenty bucks.”
The smug, mischievous grin on her face was enough to send the boys into a frenzy, already debating what they’d do with a crisp twenty, thinking they were about to make a bunch of cash out of me.
I almost felt bad for them.
Because Darcy and I both knew that in five minutes, they’d be begging to fucking quit.
“So?” Darcy called over the chatter, holding her arms out wide. “If you’re in, please come join me at thebarre. If you’re out, well…”
I held my breath for a second, but that’s all it took for all six boys to move toward the long woodenbarrethat was connected to the mirror, even Ryder, who was stripping off his hoodie like he was ready to go into battle.
Darcy was smart.
Much smarter than me, so it seemed.
I was ready to come in here with ayou’re in or you’re outattitude.
But I should have known that would never work.
Everyone needed to be motivated by something, whether that was the chance to prove themselves or even just a simple twenty-dollar bill.
Taking a step back, I was ready to sink into the background so Darcy could lead, but I didn’t get far.
“Nope, not so fast,coach,” she called, pointing directly at me.“I don’t believe indo as I say, not as I do. So if they’re in, you’re in.”
My boys erupted into laughter as she fought to keep a straight face.
I exhaled through my nose, slow and controlled, then toed off my sneakers before I crossed the smooth wooden floor to join the rest of them at thebarre.“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?” I accused, holding on with one hand as she stood just to my left, facing the boys who were lined up behind me.
She didn’t turn to look at me, but a sparkling smile played on her lips. “Immensely.”
“Just you wait, Tiny Dancer,” I murmured under my breath, and she inhaled a sharp breath, trying to cover it by clearing her throat.
The reaction was small.
