“You’re not dying,” Roan said. “You’re feeling your body work. Big difference.”
“I’m alive, but I can’t move,” Marcus said.
“You moved for ten minutes straight,” Roan said. “That’s huge for day one.”
Julia lowered herself carefully to sit on a box. “That was harder than I expected.”
“But you did it,” Roan said. “All of you did it.”
“Cody, how many rounds did you get?” Roan asked.
“Seven and a half.”
“That’s solid for first day. Good work.”
Cody shrugged, but Roan saw the hint of satisfaction in his expression.
Roan turned to Reese, who was stretching her quads, completely composed. “What about you?”
“Ten.” She grinned. “Told you I could keep up.”
“Ten rounds in ten minutes?”
“Is that good?” She fluttered her eyelashes playfully, knowing darn well it was good.
Emma sat up, staring at Reese. “How are you not dead?”
“Dancers train hard,” Reese said. “This is different, but not harder.”
“Reese, you’re legit,” Marcus said, still on his back.
Cody was watching Reese with obvious respect. “You did real push-ups the whole time.”
“Sure did,” Reese said, flicking her fingers through her ponytail. Sassy. That was the Reese that came out when she was having fun.
Roan loved it.
“That’s …” Cody paused. “That’s tough, Reese.”
Reese laughed. “Thanks. You were pretty tough yourself. Isn’t it fun to move your body?”
“Yeah. It was. I need to do it more.” Cody glanced toward the window. “I feel like myself in here.”
“Fun is not the word I was thinking,” Emma said, still on the floor, but she was grinning.
“All right,” Roan said. “Cool down time. Everyone up. I know you don’t want to move, but, trust me, you’ll feel better tomorrow if you stretch now.”
He led them through basic stretches—quads, hamstrings, shoulders. When they finished, everyone looked exhausted but not miserable. Even Emma was smiling. Cody’s posture was looser, less defensive.
“So that’s what I can offer you,” Roan said. “Questions?”
“Yeah,” Emma said. “Does it get easier?”
“Yes and no. You’ll get stronger, so these movements will feel easier. But then we’ll make the workouts harder. That’s how you keep improving.”
“Great,” Emma said. “I can’t wait.”
Everyone laughed. Even Cody..
