That made him look at those thighs, long and strong and oh so strokable.
Take it easy, cowboy.
“Good girl,” he murmured to her. A flush spread over her cheeks and stole down her neck to paint her upper chest. Christ, but she had a pretty blush.
The seconds continued to tick by. Finally, Cordy released a gusty sigh.
Chance immediately understood what that meant and caught her full weight in his arms right as her legs gave out.
His arm came around her waist, right under the soft swells of her breasts. Her ass rubbed against his cock, which had been half-hard the entire time.
But most of all, he felt the trembling in her muscles, exhausted from the effort she’d put out. Because Cordy always gave it her all when it came to her baby.
His heart felt like it was trembling, too.
The entire room busted out cheering, even Ms. Reston. Chance realized they’d put on quite the show.
Cordy was laughing as Chance straightened them both up. She turned in his arms, hooking her hands behind his neck. Her body pressed against him, and his every nerve lit up. If they weren’t in front of an entire classroom, he’d have kissed her until she was begging and breathless.
“You did it,” he said to her. “Almost four full minutes.”
“I couldn’t have done it without you.” She leaned into him, and he had to bite back a groan before he embarrassed them both.
“You’d have been fine,” he said gruffly. “I was just spotting you.”
“No.” Her green eyes were earnest. “I’m serious. I needed you, and you were there.”
Those words and their meaning sank into him. Made dark, unnamable feelings swirl in his chest. Made him want things he knew he couldn’t have, not a man like him with a woman like her.
But all he said was, “Anytime.” And meant it with every fiber of his being.
They returned to the house late, so late Cordy fell asleep on the ride home.
She jerked awake when the truck stopped, her body realizing before her brain something was up.
“Oh.” She blinked and rubbed her mouth. “Oh, I didn’t mean to fall asleep.”
“It’s okay.” The cab was dark, but Chance’s voice was warm and rough. “You were tired.”
“My thighs are already aching.” She laughed to herself. A four-minute squat? What had she been thinking? “I can’t believe I did that.”
“I can. You’re strong as hell.”
She was… and she wasn’t. In the beginning, Cordy had wanted to prove to Ms. Reston and the entire class that she could do it, that she was capable, that she would be the best at labor squats, dammit. It was her usual approach.
Chance might help her, but Cordy wouldn’t lean on him. She would prove she could do it herself. At least, that was what she’d thought at first.
But when her legs had started to tremble, and she had the urge to quit, she’d found herself focusing on Chance’s eyes, how deep and varied the brown was. Looking at him made the burn in her legs manageable.
So when she wanted to give up, she focused on him. How steadily he watched her, how firm his hands were on her, how much he believed in her. It gave her a fresh surge of strength each time.
When she finally ended up collapsing, she’d pushed her body well beyond what she’d thought were her limits. She’d pay for it tomorrow, but she was glad she had.
But Cordy couldn’t have done it without him. That was true about a lot of things lately.
Cordy was strong, but she was stronger with him. Too bad she’d learned today exactly why she couldn’t rely on his partnership forever. Not that she was looking for anything lasting—her parents had taught her the danger of wishing for something permanent.
Still, something fundamental had shifted between them. Cordy felt like they were looking at each other straight on for the first time. Seeing each other’s flaws, yes, but also the good. Accepting each other as they were.
