Gym and Spanking

EMMA

The most irritating sound in the world—my alarm—jolts me awake. I groan, switch it off, and glance at the time. It’s 2:55 a.m. If I don’t haul my ass out of bed now, I can wave goodbye to my gym session.

I’ve worked too hard to let my body slide, so I force myself up and into the bathroom.

Once I’m done, I pull on a black gym top and short gym shorts.

I grab my phone and head out of my bedroom. Levi, already dressed in his gym gear, is waiting for me by the door.

“Ready?” he asks.

“Yes,” I mumble. I’m not a morning person. I ~despise~ mornings. We ride the elevator down to the gym in silence.

Levi knows me well enough to keep quiet this early in the morning. We can chat after my workout. Until then, anyone who talks to me is asking for trouble.

It’s a tough routine, but if I want to be the best, I have to make sacrifices.

As we walk into the gym, I see Kenny has already set up the punching bag with the kick/punch sensor.

“Morning, doll. Ready to begin?” Kenny, a protective fifty-something, knows me well. He understands my moods and my drive for perfection.

“Are the sensors calibrated for accuracy?” I grumble, not in the mood for any hiccups this early.

“Of course. It’s my job, isn’t it?”

“Whatever, Grandpa. Let’s get this show on the road, shall we?”

Levi heads to the upper level where all the weights and machines are and starts his own workout.

I plug my phone into the speakers. I need music to work out and to drown out my constant thoughts of Dean, and especially of what happened last night.

Music is the best escape. As usual, I crank it up. I start with my morning warm-up. One hundred sit-ups, a hundred push-ups, a hundred jumping jacks, and some stretches.

After my warm-up, Kenny and I start with the punching bag. I need to increase my punching and kicking force.

We start with some overhand punches, fifty for each hand, then we move to the shovel hook—a punch aimed at someone’s jaw.

I’m a bit too short to perfect the regular hook, which connects with your opponent’s temple, but I’ll get there. “Practice makes perfect” has become my life motto.

After an hour of throwing punches, I can barely keep my hands up. I practice without gloves.

I mean, come on. In my line of work, no one is going to wait for me to put gloves on before we start fighting or defending ourselves.

This is hell on my knuckles, so I just wrap tape around my hands for some protection. We move to kicking. I practice the spinning hook, the most powerful kick in Taekwondo.

We do a hundred per leg. I won’t lie, it’s fucking exhausting. I stagger over to Kenny to check the results, my legs nearly giving out from the number of kicks I did.

When I reach him, I see him frowning.

“What’s up, Kenny?” I ask, panting, trying to catch my breath.

“The sensor must not be calibrated properly. It’s not giving me accurate readings of your punches or kicks.”

Needless to say, I fucking lose it. It’s almost 6 a.m. and I’m beyond tired and agitated.

“Kenny, my first question this morning was if you were ready. You said yes and, I quote, ‘it’s my job.’ Now you’re telling me I won’t have anything to compare my progress with tomorrow.

“Are you fucking kidding me? I have no choice but to fine you for your negligence.”

“I’m sorry, boss. It was in perfect working order when we started but I can’t seem to find the problem now.”

He knows he’s in deep shit if he calls me boss. Everyone knows this by now. I’m only called boss when they know they’ve fucked up.

I’m actually pretty laid back with staff and everyone around me unless they fuck up—especially a fuckup that affects my physical progress ~and~ happens this early in the morning.

It throws off the rest of the day and my weekly routine. It’s a complete disaster.

“Kenny, I’m not impressed. Get the fucking machine fixed or buy a new one. Either way, make sure it’s working properly tomorrow morning.”

Without giving him a chance to respond, I head over to Levi who’s jogging on a treadmill. I hop onto the one next to him and start running at a breakneck pace.

I’m absolutely livid and I need to blow off some steam.

“Ems, you need to calm down. Everything in life isn’t perfect. Sometimes things go wrong. It’s a simple fact of life. I know you want to control everything but life doesn’t work like that.”

“What the fuck ever, Vi, just let me be. You know I have a faceoff with Diablo today and I can’t tolerate any imperfections. Not today of all days. I want to relax before then.”

“I thought coming home in the early hours of the morning would have relaxed you, but I’m clearly mistaken. Did you and Diablo get into a fight after you left the club last night?”

“Not exactly, Vi,” I can’t look him in the eye.

“Alright, so what did happen between the two of you, then?”

“We fucked.”

Levi is actually my best friend, Carly a distant second. Being so close to him every day changed the dynamics of our relationship. I had to lie to Carly last night about our friendship.

Our friendship and his role as my bodyguard are basically on the same level. He knows everything about me and vice versa.

I mean, who else am I supposed to talk to? A woman needs someone who will listen to her rants. I’ve entrusted Levi with all of my secrets and he’s done the same.

Our relationship is rock solid and based on trust, better than mine and Carly’s.

“Well, that was quick.”

“What do you mean Vi? I am, for all intents and purposes, his ‘girlfriend.’ You know he’s my first.”

“I know, but what about Dean—and the fact that Diablo fucked Lauren?”

“Vi, don’t. You know how I feel about Dean. If circumstances were different, I’d be in his bed right now—but they’re not.

“Don’t mention him again. You know my heart’s still healing from leaving him. I’ll always love him, but I need to move on.”

“In our line of work, I can’t risk getting him hurt. That would destroy me.”

“I don’t approve of Diablo sleeping with Lauren. I hate them both for doing that to me, but it’s over now.”

I slam the stop button on the treadmill, tears welling up in my eyes, threatening to spill over. Levi halts his machine and looks at me.

“I’m sorry, Ems. That was insensitive of me. You know I care about both of you. I just want what’s best for you.”

“I know, Vi, but please, just don’t bring it up again.”

My heart aches. I miss Dean terribly, but I had to leave him to start my future. I grab my phone, stopping the music, silencing the gym.

Levi and I head upstairs to the penthouse in silence, each lost in our own thoughts.

It’s time to prepare to face my devil, Diablo.

Before I shower, I text Diablo to ask if he wants to meet in his apartment or his office. His response comes quickly.

Diablo

where the fuck did you run off to, with my key for the elevator might I add?

Emma

I had to get some sleep, then gym at three this morning and now trying to arrange a meeting with my annoying “boyfriend.” PS: I took my key to the apartment, use your spare

Diablo

not impressed Emma. Apartment now!

Emma

need to shower and dress first. See you in 30.

Diablo

just hurry the fuck up.

I shower and dress in sleek black trousers, black heels, a grey top, a grey handbag, and a black feminine tie. I keep my makeup simple, just foundation, mascara, and lipstick.

I pull my long hair into a ponytail. This is a business meeting, after all.

When I leave my room, Levi is already showered and dressed in his black clothes.

“Ready to face the devil, Vi?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be.” He smiles at me. At least he’s calm. I, on the other hand, am nervous as hell. Diablo’s messages have an angry tone.

I can only imagine what’s about to happen, and I’m not looking forward to it.

The elevator ride up to the apartment is silent. I know I need to stand my ground with Diablo if this relationship is going to work, but that doesn’t mean I’m not scared of him.

He’s intimidating as hell, and his temper is fierce.

The elevator doors slide open, and Levi and I walk to the door. I unlock it with my key and walk in with Levi following me.

Diablo is in the living room with Luis. Shit, this is going to be interesting.

Diablo stands up and glares at Levi, who’s standing behind me.

“Get the hell out of our apartment. Emma and I need to discuss business.”

Diablo’s words are laced with such venom I flinch. Levi doesn’t move, unfazed by Diablo’s outburst.

“I’ll leave when Emma tells me to leave. If not, I’m staying.”

“Get the hell out!” Diablo yells at Levi again.

I walk up to Diablo, stopping in front of him.

“No, Diablo, he stays. He works for me, not you. He follows my orders, not yours. Deal with it. He’s staying, so get over it.”

Diablo is livid. I can see it in his dark green eyes. The next thing I know, Diablo grabs my wrist and bends me over the couch, my ass sticking out.

Holding me down with one hand on my upper back, he starts spanking my ass with brutal force. I look at Levi, signaling him not to move.

I see a flicker of hatred in his eyes aimed at Diablo, but I just shake my head. Luis stays seated on the couch, too shocked to react.

After what feels like forever, Diablo runs out of steam and stops spanking me. He roughly grabs my shoulder and pulls me upright.

I turn to face him. His nostrils are flaring, and his face is red with rage. I’ve never seen him this angry before. My ass feels like it’s on fire.

I refuse to let him see the effect he has on me. I want to rub my ass and run away crying, but my willpower, discipline, dignity, and training keep me standing there, glaring at him.

Levi moves a bit closer to me; I feel his presence to my right, ready to act if I need him to.

“Well, Diablo. Now that you’ve gotten that out of your system, can we get down to business? Or are there any more childish acts you wish to perform before we can begin?

“I don’t have all day to entertain a toddler. I have businesses to run.” I’m calm on the outside, but inside I’m on the verge of breaking down and crying.

“What the hell, Emma? Are you seriously going to act like nothing just happened?”

“Yes, I am. You said you were going to punish me. You did. End of story. Now we can get down to business.”

I move to the couch and carefully sit down, crossing one leg over the other.

Levi moves to stand to my right, as always, leaving a seething and stunned Diablo glaring at us.

Eventually, he moves to the couch opposite me and sits down, uncertainty flashing in his eyes. He clearly didn’t expect me to react like this.

Truth be told, neither did I.

I turn and look at Luis.

“Luis, be a dear and order us some coffee and light snacks. It’s going to be a long, tedious meeting, I see.”

Both Luis and Diablo stare at me, their mouths hanging open.

The only sound in the room is Levi’s chuckle, which luckily only I can hear.