Balance (Off Balance Book 1)

by Lucia Franco

  Kova’s eyes tightened at the corners and his forehead scrunched together. He lessened the pressure on my legs but his hands stayed in place. I exhaled lightly. His voice dropped low, but the sincerity in his eyes showed strong when he said, “Even at a young age, taking the road I was offered was eventually a choice my mom left up to me. She did not push me, but coming from someone who has been down that path, listen to me when I say it is not easy at all. It is extremely hard. It was so much more than what I expected. Adrianna, I do not think you have any idea what training for the Olympics entails, or what you have to give up. I lost out on school dances, parties, hanging out with friends, everything a young adult is supposed to do and have a memory of. I missed out on my adolescent years. Maybe your mother does not want you to miss out on that. Yes, it was my choice, and I would not change a thing, but you really have to decide if it is something you want.”

  I didn’t hesitate. “I want it more than anything.”

  “But why?” he asked, curiously. “What is the driving force?”

  “Isn’t it obvious? I just told you I love gymnastics and what it means to me.”

  He scoffed and it annoyed me. “A lot of people love the sport, it does not mean they give up everything and make a career out of it. So few make it that far. You can compete in college and still have a life. Collegiate gymnasts are only allowed to practice half the hours of what you are doing now.”

  My brows furrowed and my heart began to speed up. I didn’t like the direction this conversation was going in. “I feel like you’re against me.”

  Kova pulled back, his nose flared. “I am not against you, I just want you to be aware of what is required of you. What you stand to lose. I am telling you what your other options are.”

  “I’m not going to lose anything, Kova, I’m going to gain. I don’t need dances or parties, I need to be in the gym. If I don’t take a shot at my dream, I’ll live with regret, what-if questions that will plague me for the rest of my life. I need to try and see if I can do it. I have all the means to succeed at my fingertips to accomplish what I want.” My voice rose and I became heated. I sat up and pulled my shoulders back, his palm rested high on my thigh. “I don’t know what kind of life you were born into, but others would kill for mine. I’m going to use it to my advantage,” I said firmly. “I want this. I want to be elite. I want to make the National Team, and one day, I want to go to the Olympics. I thought by coming here and telling you my aspirations you’d understand.”

  Kova’s posture became rigid, his fingers pressed into my skin. I was pushing his buttons.

  “I understand more so than any coach here,” he retorted.

  “Then what’s the problem? Isn’t this what every coach wants to hear?”

  We faced off in a battle of wills, both of us determined to make the other one understand. Thing was, I was stubborn and hardheaded. There was no way I was going to back down. Then again, I didn’t think he would either.

  I placed my hand on his forearm, hoping he’d understand how strongly I felt about this. He flexed under my touch and his grip tightened, but his eyes didn’t waver and he didn’t pull away. His palm warmed my skin and my cheeks flushed from the reaction.

  “You’re either with me or you’re against me, Kova,” I nearly pleaded, just inches from his face.

  Silence thickened between us. Kova’s jaw flexed and he looked straight at me. “I will be completely honest, no other gymnast I have trained has wanted it as badly as you do. It is rare. You have no idea how refreshing this is to hear.” He sighed heavily, his green eyes burned with newfound desire, and I liked it. Being this close to him and having this conversation caused my heart to patter against my ribs.

  “If this is what you want, what you truly want, I will do my best to help get you there. But you need to have a good understanding there is a chance you still will not make it all the way. There will be many obstacles in your quest that could eventually halt you instead of finding ways to overcome them. Are you ready for that?”

  I absorbed his words deep into my soul and took in the compassion in his eyes. My pulse was racing. A small smile tipped my lips, one I had to refrain from splitting across my face.

  “Do you mean that?”

  He nodded slowly. The side of his mouth tugged up in challenge. “If that is what you want, but there is no going back once you decide. It is not fair to me, or you.”

  “This is my dream, and I’m going to show you. I’ll prove it. Actions speak louder than words.”

  He was silent for a moment, then I saw a flash of hunger enter his eyes. I loved it. “I am going to hold you to that.”

  “I hope you do.” I raised a brow. “It wouldn’t be in your nature not to.”

  The room stilled as Kova tilted his head to the side. Pensive eyes stared down at me, and I felt myself falling into a bottomless pit. He had my full attention, I couldn’t look away. He was sucking me dry, feeding off my emotion. And truthfully, I didn’t want to look any other way but his. I wanted him to see I wasn’t kidding about my future.

  “You are not what I expected you to be.”

  That caused me to grin and I laid back down on the table. “Good...Exactly what I wanted.” I grew quiet, then asked, “What did you expect?”

  “Not someone as determined as you that is for sure. You are strong-minded.”

  A little laugh rolled off my lips. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

  Kova ran his tongue along his bottom lip and I tracked the movement. Something clicked between us, an understanding only someone as ambitious as us could identify with. It was there. I felt it, and the look his emerald eyes penetrated me with told me he did too. I hadn’t realized it, and I didn’t think he did either, but at some point in time during our conversation, Kova had stopped stretching me. One hand was now half on my waist, half on the table. His other hand cupped the back of my leg, nearly holding onto the crease of my ass. I didn’t remember him moving them, but I liked it. The tips of his fingers pressed into my inner thigh and caused a rush of heat to sear me. They were dangerously close to my sex and I swallowed as a throb resonated in my core.

  I breathed in deeply, the way Kova taught me. One small move and he’d touch me where no one had ever touched me before. I didn’t know which was worse, wanting to feel his fingers there or the fact that I didn’t find the action repulsive.

  I parted my leg slightly and looked in the direction of his hand. Kova followed my gaze, and swiftly pulled away, clenching his eyes shut.

  He cleared his throat. “All right. Where were we,” he said more to himself than me. He guided me to my stomach and into position. He placed a flat hand on my hamstring, prodding the muscle for tightness and grabbed my knee, pulling it backward.

  “Ah, not as hard as last time I see,” he said. “This is good.”

  I watched his movements from the side, my right cheek to the cushioned mat. A tightness developed in my pelvis and a little grunt escaped my throat. I grabbed the edge of the table. Kova glanced at me when I winced and gave a knowing look to breathe. He tapped the side of my butt twice with the back of his knuckles, and I exhaled slowly, then drew in a breath with my stomach. He nodded in approval.

  “You know, I was a scrawny thing when I started gymnastics. I could barely hold the bar for more than a couple of seconds.”

  My eyes widened playfully and I bit down on my lip. I eyed his strong arms. “You’re kidding me.”

  He shook his head. “I wish I was.” Then he went into a story about when he first started gymnastics and it lightened the private session, leaving me with a slight smile and a blooming heart, wanting to know everything I could about my coach.

  After a full day of training, I was exhausted, and the blisters on my palms were getting progressively worse. Kova didn’t go any easier on me today, if anything, since agreeing to help me with my goal, his dick factor increased. The blisters were tender to the touch and filled with fluid that needed draining. I tried not to pick at them s
o they could be treated properly at home, but something had to give. My hands were on fire and throbbed from irritation.

  As much as I wanted Hayden to help me heal my impending rips, I didn’t want him to go out of his way and make him stay up later than usual. It was almost ten o’clock at night, and I imagined he was just as tired as I was.

  Before I could give it any more thought, my doorbell rang. I quickly got up from the couch and peeped through the hole.

  After unbolting the lock, I opened the door to Hayden standing on the other side in gray sweatpants and hoodie, a pharmacy bag hanging from his hand.

  “Hey, come in.”

  With perfectly white, straight teeth, Hayden smiled and walked in.

  “Are you sure it’s not too late for you? I kind of feel bad.”

  I decided the lightning in my kitchen would be best for him to doctor my hands. With the condo’s open floor plan, it was parallel to the living room, and the pathway to the two bedrooms was in view. Hayden’s nose scrunched up as he took in the view, a grin working across his face. “It’s like nine o’clock, Aid.”

  I shot a glance at the clock. “It’s ten fifteen...and I know you have to get up early.”

  He dropped the plastic bag on the countertop. “I’m a big boy, I think I can handle it. But since you’re so concerned about my bedtime,” he chuckled playfully, “let’s see what you got here so I can get home for my beauty sleep. Show me your hands.”

  I jumped up and planted my ass on the cold granite countertop, sending goose bumps down my body from the contact. I wore a loose fitting white T-shirt and a pair of cutoff denim shorts. Holding my hands out for him to view, I placed them face up on my thighs and waited while Hayden unzipped his hoodie, revealing nothing underneath except for extremely low sitting sweats.

  My jaw went slack and my eyes widened. Hayden draped his jacket over the back of one of the high back chairs I used to have breakfast and began rummaging through his bag. I swallowed hard at the sight of him so close, wanting to reach out and run my fingers down his solid chest. Every inch of his body was honed to perfection, every muscle ripped, curled, and dipped.

  This wasn’t the first time I’d seen Hayden shirtless, but it also wasn’t something I paid attention to at the gym very often. He was just a guy doing the same sport I loved. In fact, I rarely noticed. I had a tendency to get tunnel vision, and lately, it had been nothing but Kova and gymnastics, shutting out everything else around me.

  Maybe I should have taken notice though, because his body was a work of art.

  “Ah, do you always go out dressed like that?” I asked hoarsely.

  Hayden paused, then looked down at his body before meeting my gaze. He cleared his throat and said, “I didn’t even realize it. I came from practice and didn’t feel like slipping on a shirt since I was hot and sticky. I can put my jacket—”

  “No!” I yelled, blinking rapidly. “You’re fine, I just wasn’t expecting...it.”

  A half smile tugged on the side of his mouth. “You see me like this every day.”

  I shrugged, trying to avoid his impish gaze. “Guess I never noticed before.” He was right. I did see him like that all the time, just never secluded like we were in my condo. Or so close...

  “You guess you never noticed,” he deadpanned.

  I tried not to smile by flattening my lips, but my cheeks gave me away. They were flaming hot. “What! What do you want me to say?”

  He smiled and my gaze drifted to his hair. It was chalky and messy, and I had the sudden desire to know what it felt like against my skin. Feel the softness.

  I shook my head, erasing the thoughts.

  “All right,” he said, stopping to look in my eyes. “Promise not to laugh?”

  “Promise.”

  “My mom is a labor and delivery nurse. When my rips were getting bad and nothing was working...” he shuffled through the bag and pulled out a purple box, keeping it out of view, “she came home with this stuff.”

  “What is it?”

  Hayden opened his palm and showed me what was laying in it. “It’s, ah, ointment,” he said sheepishly.

  “Let me see,” I said, taking the purple box. Flipping it over, I read it out loud. “Lanolin. Soothes and protects cracked...” I trailed off. “Nipples?” Nipples came out high pitched and I looked up at him, bemused.

  A rosy hue filled his cheeks and I couldn’t help but grin.

  “Yeah, it’s nipple cream. My mom says mothers who breastfeed use it on their boobs to, ah,” he avoided my gaze, “help with cracking and bleeding.”

  “Bleeding?” A frown formed on my face. “Bleeding nipples? And cracked?” My nipples ached at the thought.

  “Yeah, well it works. Take my word for it. At least I didn’t bring over nipple cream for cows.”

  “You mean to tell me you use nipple cream? Hayden Moore uses nipple cream on his hands.”

  I tried hard to hold it in, but a fit of hysterical laughter over the situation escaped.

  “Oh my God! Do you bring this to practice? Do you share it with your teammates? Do you buy this, or does your mom?”

  Hayden didn’t seem impressed with my questions, or the fact I couldn’t stop laughing. He leaned over, coming close to my face, and placed his hands on the counter next to each side of my legs, effectively putting his body directly between my thighs. He lifted a brow and waited for me to calm down. I tried to stop humiliating him by pursing my lips together, but I burst out again the moment I looked at his face.

  “I’m sorry! I don’t know why I find this so funny, I just do!” My head rolled back, tears coated my eyes as I imagined Hayden buying nipple cream and trying to hide it. He pressed a hand to my bare thigh in an effort to gain my attention.

  “Laugh it up. By the end of the week you’ll be kissing my feet, thanking me.”

  I grimaced. I hated feet. No way in hell would that happen, no matter how thankful I was.

  “Done?” he asked, trying to hide his smirk. I flattened my lips and gave a hasty nod. It was the only way I wouldn’t laugh.

  Hayden’s thumb grazed my skin in circles and it was then I realized he hadn’t moved his hand from my thigh. Our gazes grew deeper. My breathing slowed as his head tilted just slightly to the side to take me in. I hadn’t noticed before, but up close Hayden had the most stunning cobalt blue eyes. They were dark and illusive, inviting and compelling, with shadows of slate grey hidden in between.

  My breathing deepened as the moment grew slow and quiet. Hayden stood to his full height, stepping in closer between my legs so his waist was pressed to the countertop. My lips parted, a breath rolling off as he stared deeply into my eyes. His hand carefully cupped my cheek, his fingers holding my jaw steady. I swallowed when his eyes traveled to my mouth, his head dipping down just inches away from closing the distance.

  “You’re so pretty when you laugh, Aid,” he whispered, his nose rubbing mine. Goose bumps broke out across my skin. “Your whole face lights up,” he added, this time against my lips as his hand slipped into the back of my hair, kneading my head. “You can make fun of me all you want if it makes you laugh the way you just did.”

  He closed the short distance and pressed his lips to mine, soft and gentle. My heart pounded, unsure what to think of this moment.

  Tenderly, he pulled my bottom lip into his mouth and nibbled on it. I gave in with only a slight hesitation. A simmering heat washed over me when his warm tongue slipped inside and met mine.

  I moaned, liking Hayden’s kiss. It was completely unexpected and I wasn’t sure what to think. Not that I could—or wanted to. Leaning into him, I pressed my chest to his, my back arched and my hands came up to his firm shoulders before sliding into his chalky hair. Even with the fabric of my shirt between us, the heat of his bare skin against mine was heavenly.

  Hayden deepened the kiss as I tugged on his hair, and my thighs squeezed his hips, feeling pleasure streaming through my body. Our mouths mimicked each other’s, our tongues dancing perfect
ly as a sweet bliss hit both of us.

  Hayden was a damn fine kisser.

  And I had a pretty good idea he knew when he pulled me closer. He took control and set the pace, and I allowed it. There was no space between us, my legs wrapped around his back, and my heels pressed into him, wanting to feel him closer to me.

  Hayden’s mouth became aggressive. Pleasure flowed through my body, starting from my head down to the tips of my toes. A blaze of warmth steadily grew between us and we both drew from it. I’d kissed a couple boys before, but Hayden’s kiss belonged in another league.

  My hands moved from his hair down his neck and onto his firm pecks, skimming over his honey colored skin. He exuded strength beneath my touch, and I wanted to feel every inch of his body. Moving to his hips, the back of my knuckles danced over the V that dipped into his sweatpants. His stomach twitched, and he squeezed me just a little tighter. Sliding around to his back, I cupped his round ass. This time it was his turn to groan into my mouth, and I liked the sound of it. I gave his ass a little squeeze and he tensed.

  “Hayden,” I whispered against his lips, but he didn’t process my words. His hands didn’t stop caressing and kneading my waist, my back, or my thighs. He was everywhere.

  “Aid,” he mumbled on my lips, palming my cheeks.

  “Hmm?”

  “I want to feel you all over me.” Then he slammed his mouth to mine. His hands roamed my body, as if he couldn’t touch me fast enough. My panties dampened at his touch. Hayden moved my hand to the front of his pants to cup his hardness. I held back a grimace, my palms pulsated from my rips, but I sucked it up because curiosity got the best of me. The urge to dip my hand inside his pants was strong. I wasn’t a prude, but I didn’t have a ton of experience either. I’d had a boyfriend back home and we fooled around, but nothing serious. When he realized gymnastics was more important to me than having sex with him, he dropped me like a bad habit. I was fine with that.

  My chest rose and fell, my breathing deepened at the contemplation of my hand exploring him.