“I can see it in the way you walk,” she added smugly.
Dyrk stopped walking.
“And stand,” she added with a faint smile as he glared over his shoulder at her.
“I’ll stop by a pharmacy on the way home and see what they recommend for that,” he murmured dryly as he made his way to the coffee machine.
As annoying as Tessa could be with all of her New Age hullabaloo, he had to admit, the quality of the coffee had gone up significantly since she started buying the fair trade, organic stuff.
“I don’t think they can help with that.” She giggled. “You need to relax before your mind will work properly. You couldn’t run a marathon if your leg was cramping, and you can’t think straight if your chakras are blocked. You’re as brittle as a dry herb. I think some yoga would do you a world of good.”
Dyrk poured a couple of black coffees, his preferred method for clearing his chakras—whatever they were. “Thanks, but I think I’ll stick to aspirin and black coffee when my mind is aching.”
“Actually,” Charlie said cheerfully as he strolled into the break room. Dyrk groaned inside. He’d heard that tone too many times and knew he wasn’t going to like what his boss had to say.
“Since you’re having a bit of a rough morning, Dyrk, I think Tessa’s idea is brilliant. Why don’t you give it a try, hmmm?”
“Charlie, I don’t—” Dyrk started, but never finished.
“I know,” Charlie said, cutting him off. “I didn’t put much stock into yoga either, but Alice has really opened my mind. And my chakras,” he added with a wink. “It would be irresponsible of me not to have you try it. Tessa, excellent thinking.”
“Thanks!” Tessa’s moss green eyes sparkled with delight. She looked like a kid with a big birthday present sitting in front of her.
As charming as that was, Dyrk still reached for the cupboard that held the spare bottle of pain relievers.
Tessa jumped straight into preparing for Dyrk’s company as soon as she stepped through the door to her apartment. She sang to herself as she flitted around the place, tidying up and trying to make the already zen space even more inviting and comfortable.
Some people might accuse her of being spacey, but she was no fool. Dyrk wasn’t exactly thrilled about the prospect of taking instruction from her, especially on something so seemingly inconsequential as meditation and yoga. It never failed to amuse her by how easily others dismissed the things they couldn’t quantify with cold, hard science.
But Tessa had never been especially interested in science. Her mind didn’t function in numbers and labels. It was more like a free-for-all with gentle chimes and a water fountain trickling in the background. That was just the way she liked it. Her mind was a safe place for her to retreat, much like her apartment. She worked hard to keep it that way.
Fostering happy, creative vibes was important to her, even if most people she knew didn’t understand. That was fine. She was okay with being seen as the odd one out. After twenty-five years of not quite fitting in, she was used to it.
Ever since she was a child, Tessa had confused people. She was too calm, too gentle. People couldn’t believe she really was so full of love and peace that it bled into every facet of her personality. They thought she had to be pretending, exaggerating, faking. But the truth was, what you saw was what you got. There was no point in trying to be anyone but herself, so she’d learned to lean into her choices.
Of course, there was the added oddity of her heritage. As the adopted human daughter of a koala shifter family, her existence had been questioned too many times. Most people didn’t believe she was “merely” human. Her loving and nonjudgmental ways were so clearly koala, she just had to be a mix. But no. She’d simply learned from the best.
Lighting several candles in her living room, she quickly moved on to a stick of mellow incense. Instinctively she knew patchouli would be too aggressive for someone as tightly wound as Dyrk, so she chose a soft citrus scent. To get herself in the right headspace, she selected a particularly soothing piece of yoga music and took several deep, cleansing breaths. Hopefully the space would allow Dyrk to unwind and relax. Even a little.
She’d already changed into her yoga pants and comfiest tank top and plaited her thick auburn hair into a braid to keep it out of her face. All that remained was to lay out a couple of thick yoga mats and a couple of soft foam blocks, just in case Dyrk needed the help with some of the more difficult poses.
Tessa was determined to make this a positive experience for him. He was already going so far outside his comfort zone it made her heart ache for him. The least she could do was make this session as painless as possible.
Besides, Dyrk wasn’t the kind of guy to explore a new avenue for very long. He wanted immediate results. Yoga and instant gratification didn’t usually go hand in hand, but danged if she wouldn’t give it a go.
Exactly sixty minutes after she left the office, a sharp knock sounded on her door. Tessa resisted the urge to skip as she answered it. Swinging open the door, she beamed up at her student, but to her dismay, he didn’t return it. If anything, he looked shellshocked.
Oh boy, this is going to be interesting.
Then his gaze drifted down the length of her body, taking in the curve of her waist, the slope of her hips, the swell of her breasts and ass, and her face flamed red. He wasn’t shellshocked from the thought of doing yoga. He was stunned by her.
It wasn’t lost on Tessa that she looked mighty fine in yoga pants. All that downward dog had paid off, big time. Poor Dyrk didn’t stand a chance. His gaze turned fiery as he drank in her Rubenesque physique, any apprehension he had turning into something much baser, something akin to desire.
That wasn’t the vibe she’d been shooting for, but she’d take it. Better than angry or surly. Besides, she wasn’t going to complain about the hungry way he looked at her. In fact, it kind of made her feel even better about herself than she already did.
But he wasn’t here to ogle her body. This was not a hookup. It was a very important yoga session meant to realign his screwed-up, neglected chakras. His emotional well-being was at stake here—as was the mysterious case of the super-shifters wreaking havoc across the city—and Tessa took her assignment very seriously. Reaching out, she grabbed Dyrk by the hand and pulled him into the apartment. She could hardly wait to get started.
“I’ll be honest. This isn’t really my thing,” Dyrk admitted as she led him to the yoga mats.
She smiled warmly. “I know, and that’s totally okay. I’ll help you as much as you need. I am here to help guide you however I can.”
Dyrk frowned down at the mat, like it might turn into quicksand and slurp him up if he let his guard down. To show him how safe he was, Tessa sat down on her own mat and gestured for him to follow. He reluctantly took a seat on the other mat, looking very uncomfortable as he crossed his legs.
“Let’s start out with some gentle poses to help stretch you out and get you in the right frame of mind for the session,” she began, using a relaxing, breathy voice. “Cross one leg over the other, bring your knee up, and then press your elbow against it while you stretch your back. Great. You’re doing great.”