‘Now straighten your legs out in front of you and hold them there for thirty seconds or longer if you can.’
Felipe narrowed his eyes and glanced over at Will. Will looked back at him.
He saw his neighbour’s legs straighten and, sucking in a breath, followed suit. He began to count. By ten seconds, he could feel the bite of his stomach muscles. He breathed in and out again, another ten seconds. Twenty-five, twenty-six, twenty-seven… his legs were starting to shake and his stomach muscles were screaming. He got to twenty-nine and realised that Will was still holding his legs out. He gritted his teeth. He wasn’t going to be beaten by Will.
‘Will, you’re arching your back. Navel to spine.’
Will groaned and Felipe grinned, even though his muscles were begging for release.
‘Felipe, lower your legs an inch or so.’
He dug deep and felt the tug on his abs as he lowered his legs a tiny bit.
‘Well done, Will.’
Felipe forced himself to breathe more deeply and sneaked a glance at Will whose face had turned bright red. He could tell the other man was using every last ounce of willpower to hold the position. There was fire across his stomach now, but grimly he held his legs in position.
Rebecca was standing between them now, her eyes bright with amusement. Behind him he was aware of a quiet snigger.
‘Comfortable, gentlemen?’ she asked.
‘Mm,’ replied Will in a half moan, half whisper. Felipe gritted his teeth and closed his eyes.
The minute Will collapsed next to him with a loud groan, Felipe felt a rush of gratitude as he let his own legs crash to the floor.
He turned over onto all fours to get back up and saw that all three ladies were sitting cross-legged watching the two men. In perfect synchronicity they grinned at him.
He scowled and turned back to the front.
‘Now we’ll go into the hundred,’ said Rebecca with a cheerful smile as she sank gracefully to the floor. Behind him, one of the women burst out laughing.
He exchanged a look with Will who glared at him.
Rebecca was enjoying this and it was some consolation that she seemed to be torturing Will just as much as him. He wondered how the date had gone last night and a little bud of hope unfurled. If Will was here and suffering, maybe he was trying to get into Rebecca’s good books. Maybe the date hadn’tgone so well. If these exercises were anything to go by, Rebecca was in a vicious mood.
The hundred was another killer but Rebecca breezed through it, talking all the time in a clear voice, while he panted his way through the counts of ten, pumping his arms and keeping his legs up.
‘Don’t forget to breathe,’ she said with a sweet smile. ‘Forty.’
‘Same for you, Will.’
‘Excellent work, ladies. You’re obviously pros.’
‘Fifty. Halfway there. Doing well.’ Rebecca’s eyes sparkled with glee. She was enjoying this.
‘Now exhale and straighten your legs and hold them at a forty-five-degree angle or as close to it as you can.’ The woman in front of him did just that and held her legs steady.
‘Suck in that tummy,’ said Rebecca from behind him. He’d been so busy concentrating he hadn’t realised she was back on her feet and circulating. ‘Use your core.’
He managed the exercise but it took a lot more effort than he’d expected.
By the end of the class, he felt positively limp and his stomach muscles ached.
‘Well done,’ she said, with a smirky tilt to the corner of her mouth as she looked towards the back of the class at him and Will.
Oh, she’d enjoyed that, he could tell. But he could also tell that Will wasn’t completely at ease either. ‘Ladies, would you like to collect your jewellery?’
He frowned and watched the three women cross to a little basket at the front.
