The Scars of Us by Nikki Narvaez

one. I loved watching her body move and seeing sweat glisten over her skin. Fuck, I want to feel that body beneath me.
    I didn’t notice that Kaiya had completed the last move until she cleared her throat. When our eyes met, she smiled shyly and asked, “What next?”
    Smooth. She caught you checking her out. Concentrate. Playing cool, I ignored that she had noticed me looking at her.“You can also use a double palm strike on an attacker’s ears, which will completely knock off their equilibrium. Aim for right here,” I instructed as I demonstrated on the dummy. “Right outside the ear. Slam as hard as you can.”
    We continued working on different strikes, and Kaiya’s anger began to slowly fade as she released it on the bag. I didn’t focus on her technique that much because I could tell she needed to blow off some steam, so I just let her. I knew she’d been hiding something beneath her guarded exterior, and whatever it was affecting her tenfold today.
    When class was over, I stopped Kaiya as she was about to walk out, catching her at the door. I pulled her to the side as the remaining students squeezed past us and left. “Hey, you want to grab a drink? You seem stressed today.”
    “I really shouldn’t,” she replied as she pulled her bottom lip between her teeth, her tone indecisive.
    “You always give me that lame excuse. Just one drink—you earned it after kicking the shit out of that dummy,” I said with a grin.
    She rolled her eyes as she fought a smile. “Should you be taking your students out on dates?”
    “Oh, so this is a date?” I teased, raising my eyebrows as my smile spread.
    “No! I… you know what I mean.” She blushed as she darted her eyes away from mine.
    “Yeah, you want me to take you out on a date.” I smirked knowingly.
    “No, I don’t,” she blurted as her eyes widened in embarrassment.
    “Oh, really?” I challenged as I played with my tongue ring, knowing it unnerved her. I always caught her staring when I messed with it.
    As I expected, her eyes darted to my mouth, and her lips parted slightly. With a knowing chuckle, I asked her again, “So, do you want to grab that drink or not?”
    Her eyes snapped back to mine. “I need to shower.”
    “Do you need help? I’d be happy to assist you,” I offered as I continued to toy with the barbell in my tongue.
    Her gaze darted back and forth from my mouth to my eyes as she stammered, “No… I… I can meet you after I shower.”
    Yes. Smiling confidently, I suggested, “Phoenix Landing? In an hour?” Phoenix Landing was a popular, central bar in Cambridge, so I figured it was a safe choice.
    Her words were rushed as she replied, “Sounds good. I’ll see you there.” Tucking a strand of stray hair behind her ear, she gave me a flustered smile before turning to leave. “Bye.”
    “Bye,” I returned with a laugh.
    Glancing over her shoulder as she walked out, her lips curved up more as our eyes locked. I’m going to taste those lips again tonight.
    Rushing to close up, I quickly wiped down everything and locked up since my class was the last one of the night. I was anxious to meet up Kaiya, hoping to get another step closer to getting her in my bed. I blocked out the thoughts that passed through my head of actually wanting to spend time with her, ignoring that I wanted to get to know her. No relationship—just sex. You don’t have to get to know her to have sex with her.
    An hour later, I was waiting for Kaiya at the bar, leaning my back against it with a Jack and Coke in hand. After fifteen minutes had passed, I thought she had changed her mind and wasn’t going to show. If she’s not here by the time I finish this drink, I’m leaving.
    As I took another sip from my glass, I glanced over toward the door. My lips involuntarily spread in a grin as I watched Kaiya walk in, wearing some tight jeans and a strapless, white top. Her hair flowed down her back before ending in big, loose curls, and I pictured myself