Page 43 of Let's Kiss and Tell

“My man’s got a hidden talent, Lucy.” Eddie pats Marsh’s shoulder. “I didn’t have to hold back.”

“I saw.” I look at Marsh who now has sweat droplets around his temples. A pool of heat slides deep in my belly. “I’m impressed.”

“I think he could do some mitt work with you,” Eddie suggests.

My brows lift. Mitt work isn’t easy.

“Unless you’re scared,” Marsh says, and I narrow my gaze.

“All right, you’re on, Oakley.” I punch my gloves together. “Let’s do it.”

Eddie pats Marsh on the back. “I got my seven-thirty private. You guys enjoy, and don’t go easy on her, Marsh.”

“Me?!” I give Eddie an incredulous look, and he just laughs as he goes to meet his other student.

Marsh and I get in the ring, but I stop when Marsh takes off his gloves and reaches for the hem of his sweater. In one fell swoop he lifts it over his head, and I see a sliver of skin and a light trail of hair leading past the waistband of his shorts. My eyes instantly look away, and he puts his gloves back on.

I’ve never noticed how a T-shirt fits on him—how it accentuates the curves of his shoulders, the surprising circumference of his biceps, and the broadness of his chest.

I try to remember the last time I had sex. I think it’s been a month…maybe two? I literally don’t remember, and seeing Marsh’s abdominal cleavage doesn’t help. I wonder if he’s good with his fingers, his tongue, his—

“You ready, Luce?” he asks, and I snap back to the moment.

I get into my stance and hold my hands up. “Areyouready, Marsh?”

He starts lightly bouncing on his feet and holds his gloves up. “Ready.”

“One,” I say, and he throws me a jab with his left hand. It’s firm, quick, and makes that delicious pop sound when his glove hits the mitt. “One, two,” I call out, and he throws a jab on his left and then right. “One, two, three.” He gives me two jabs and a hook.

“Okay?” he asks. It’s then that I realize there’s no ego with Marsh. He didn’t want to box today to show me up in any way or impress me. He wants to learn and he wants to be here, possibly because it’s something important to me.

“Yeah,” I say, not trying to flatter him. “I seriously wouldn’t have guessed you haven’t done this in a while.”

“I forgot how much fun it is,” he says and then gets back into position. “I get why you do this all the time.”

“One, two, three, two three.” I hold up my mitts, and he delivers effortlessly.

I then squint and move my mitt to his side, but he blocks me.

“I have to keep my guard up at all times,” he says. I know that’s something Eddie told him.

I home in and then try to come up with a combo in my head that I’ll be able to do myself. “One, two, five, six, block, three, four.”

The two of us move our fists and arms in sync and it sounds and feels perfect. I’m fired up in the best way possible. We’ve found a groove, and rather than me trying to help Marsh, I feel like I can challenge him. Or maybe he can challenge me.

“Don’t go easy on me,” I say.

“I’m not going easy on you.”

“You’re telling me you’re punching your hardest?” I raise an eyebrow.

“Lucy.” He deadpans. “If I were punching my hardest, I would break your wrists.”

Okay, fair.

“Let’s switch then,” I say. “You wear the mitts.”

“I haven’t worn mitts before,” Marsh says.