"Hit it again."

I punched the center of the heavy bag suspended from the ceiling. It barely moved.

"Quit dropping your shoulder, Cami. And you're punching from your wrist instead of using your whole body," Chance growled.

I dropped my head and pressed it to the center of the bag. "I'm tired. I'm done with this. Can't we just go home?" I whined pitifully.

"No," he scowled, coming around behind me to get my body into position. We had been at this for an hour and I was so done with this training. We had run five miles this morning and I had put in a full workout before my run-in with Greg.

I shivered a little when Chance's large palm slid over my hip, tilting my left side forward. His other hand gripped my right arm, holding it while he took my body through the motions of throwing the perfect punch. Chance pulled my left hip back as my right arm swung forward and powered hard into the center of the bag, sending it forward. "That's a little better, but you need more power," he rasped into my ear and I tried to ignore the way his voice stirred something inside me.

"I'll try again tomorrow," I sighed, trying and then failing to turn and face him.

He held my hips and I could feel his breath on my neck. "Do it again."

"No." I was pouting and he knew it. Anger still radiated off of him and I was sick of it. "I'm going home," I declared defiantly.

When I tried to twist out of his grasp, he held me tightly around my midsection and I cringed. "You're staying," he countered.

"Let go!" I exclaimed, jerking out of his grasp and turning to face him.

"You mad?"

I lifted my gaze to find his bright blue eyes cutting through me, darkening as they ran over my face. "Yeah," I panted. "You're in my face and I hate it."

"Enough to do something about it?" Chance challenged.

I pressed both fists to the center of his chest, but he stood his ground. "Leave me alone," I whimpered.

"Make me."

I rolled my eyes at him, disgusted with this macho man act he was putting on. He never acted this way before. All the times we had worked out together, he had listened to me when I said I'd had enough. I couldn't understand why today was so different. When I turned my body and tried to slip out between him and the heavy bag, he gripped my shoulders and pressed me against the wall behind him.

"What are you gonna do the next time some guy has you pinned to the wall, Cami. Huh? With his forearm pressed against your throat? You gonna freeze again?" Chance taunted. When he raised his hand to my neck and closed his fingers around my throat, I lost it.

"Get off me!" I squealed, punching him in the ribs and bringing my knee up to rack him in the nuts. He jumped back to avoid it and chuckled.

I stormed up to him, shoving him hard enough that he stumbled a little. "You pissed at me now?" he smirked as he grabbed my forearms and yanked me close.

"Fuck yeah I am. Don't ever do that to me again!" I spat, wriggling in his arms until he finally let me go.

"You should have done that when Greg cornered you," Chance called to me when I turned my back on him. "You froze, Cami."

"You don't know what the fuck I was feeling...what I was going through when he touched me. So don't stand there and give me pointers after the fact, Chance. You have no idea..." my voice broke as I turned back to face him, stepping up close and seeing the look in his eyes.

"I have no idea what it's like to be scared? Bullshit." He sighed deeply, shaking his head as he stepped back from me. "It scared the shit out of me to know someone hurt you and you wouldn't even tell me what happened. I shouldn't have to look at the security footage, Cami!"

I blinked quickly and nodded, knowing he was right. I should've been honest with him. "I didn't want you to know. I didn't want anyone to know," I whispered as my head hung and I stared at the floor.

Chance stepped up to me, holding my face in his hands with his thumbs cradling my jaw. "Look at me, Cami," he demanded when my gaze stayed glued to the floor.

When I didn't, I felt him press his forehead to mine. In a low voice, he told me, "You gotta know your worth, girl. It isn't based on your weight or looks or muscles or..." he paused and I finally tilted my head back to meet his gaze. "And it most certainly isn't because some dickface calls you fat," he adds with a clenched jaw. Chance's expression softens when he leans closer, with his lips nearly touching mine. "You are worth everything, because of what's in here." His fingertip taps my chest, indicating my heart. "If you want something...you gotta go after it, regardless of what people say about you or how you think you look. Take what's yours and don't give them another thought."

Butterflies blasted through my stomach when Chance leaned closer and brushed his lips across my cheek. I reached for him, wanting more, so captivated by his words that all other emotions fell away. But once again, the nerves and the fear had me trembling. So when he turned on his heel and walked away from me, I let him.

"Fuck!" I muttered to myself when I heard the locker room door shut. I was sick and tired of being afraid. Afraid to show my body, afraid people wouldn't like me, afraid of going after what I wanted. Fuck fear. I know what I want.

After struggling to get the gloves off my hands, I grabbed my discarded hoodie and rubbed my sweaty hands on it. I marched down the hallway, past the women's locker room and Chance's office. I could still hear the water running from this side of the door. I took one giant deep breath and shoved the men's locker door open.

I heard the squeak of the shower faucet turning, knowing I could wait a minute and give him time to dress or just say screw it, and catch him with his pants down...literally. Let's go with option 2.

My heart was pounding so hard and I prayed I wouldn't pass out before I could reach him. I moved slowly through the room, pausing at the end of each row of lockers. I stopped suddenly when I heard his voice echoing through the nearly empty space.

"Yeah...I'm still at the club...I just had to take care of a few things...yeah, it's fine...I did have to revoke a membership."

I couldn't hear who he was speaking to, but if I had to guess, I would assume it was Sara. Sara was one of the co-owners of the gym and it wasn't a secret that she had a thing for Chance. Ugh. I had always wondered if they had ever slept together. I mean, why wouldn't he? She was a little older than us, pretty but in a fake way. I just couldn't stand the way she treated fat people. She acted like it was a felony to not be fit.

"I don't know..." I heard Chance's voice again as I peeked around the corner and saw him rifling through his locker. "Honestly, it's my night off and I was just planning on going home...I just don't..."

I could hear the hesitation in his voice. She wanted something from him and he wasn't wanting to comply. I approached him now. With the locker door now closed, I could see his full backside as he yanked his towel away. I froze. I was too close to turn back and not far enough away to pretend I didn't see anything.

"Yeah...I'll be there...just one drink though...I can't stay for dinner...because I promised my roommates we would have a movie night...okay...yeah give me 30 minutes."

Chance ended the call and I suddenly felt like disappearing. I turned on my heel and the squeak of my shoe was like an alarm that rang out loudly. "Cami!" he gasped.

"Fuck," I whispered to myself when I realized he had caught me. I pivoted my body slowly, with my gaze darting around.

Chance stood before me, fully naked with his boxer briefs in hand. I sauntered up to him like it was no big deal for me to see him like this. He kept a clenched jaw and a hard gaze on me. I bit my lip in anticipation of what he was about to say.

He sat on the bench between the aisle of lockers and dressed himself. I leaned against the closed lockers and tried not to stare. "I just wanted to talk to you," I muttered softly when he said nothing to me first.

Chance stood to button up his jeans, the waistband of his Calvin Kleins peeking out ever so slightly. He grabbed a shirt from his locker and closed it once more. When he moved in front of me, I held my breath.

"I know what you want," he growled. I watched his hand move up beside my head and my body tingled at the thought of him touching my face as he had done earlier. "I'm sure you came in here to fight some more...or demand an apology, but can we not?"

When Chance pressed his flattened palm to the locker beside me, I arched my back and forced my ample breasts out a bit farther. "I don't wanna fight anymore," I murmured. My voice sounded breathy and needy. Chance must have thought that too because his gaze grew dark and dropped to my mouth.

"Then what do you want?"

Well that most certainly was the million dollar question, wasn't it?

My throat went dry when I tried to answer him. It was like my mouth had locked up because I just wanted to scream, 'I want you!' But I didn't. Instead I lunged forward and threw my arms around his neck. "Thank you," I whispered against his neck.

Chance only hesitated for a moment before locking his arms around my waist and hugging me back just as fiercely. "Well damn, baby. I don't what you're thanking me for, but I love this hug action you got going on here."

I laughed as he mumbled into my hair and breathed deeply. Chance was originally from Texas and at times, his adorable Southern accent came out and left me in a puddle on the floor. I smoothed my hands over the bare skin on his back and devoured that just-washed smell of his neck. Fuck, why do guys smell so damn good?

It wasn't the first time we hugged. Chance loved getting hugs from Shayne and I. And I wasn't one to ever turn one down. But normally he had a shirt on. His massive muscular back felt so silky under my palms. I could feel him pulling away and I struggled to do the same.

"Why are you thanking me, sweetie?" he grinned widely, brushing stray hairs from my face as he gazed down at me again.

I shrugged, my nervousness coming back like a tidal wave. I glanced up at him and returned his sweet smile. "I never thanked you for sticking up for me with Greg. I was so wrapped up in feeling sorry for myself and being humiliated that I didn't express how much it means to me to have a friend who would beat the crap out of someone who hurt me. I don't deserve you."

"Friend?" he chuckled sadly before retrieving his bag from the bench and grabbing his wet towel. He steered me toward the door with a gentle hand on my lower back. After tossing his towel into the laundry basket and shutting off the lights, we stopped at his office and I also grabbed my own bag.

As we left the gym, I considered his question. Were we only friends? All we had done was discuss my embarrassing dream and kissed once. Was it too late to just stay friends?

"Fuck!" he growled as he locked the front door. "I gotta go meet Sara at The Wharf and I really don't want to go now."

So it was Sara. "Go ahead. I'm gonna head home and take a long bath. It's...been a shitty day."

Chance sighed deeply as his hand found mine. "I should drive you home."

"No!" I insisted, bumping his shoulder. "I walked here and I can walk back. Go meet her. You already told her you'd go." I hoped that didn't sound as bitter as it felt.

Chance surprised me when he pulled me close and brushed his lips across my forehead. "I really wanted to get out of it. But she is my boss, so..."

"Go," I sighed, tipping my head back so I could look into his amazing eyes once more. "I know you need to go."

After going back and forth a few more times, Chance kissed my cheek and whispered near my ear. "Give me an hour. I'll be home and we can talk some more, okay?"

My whole body was warmed by his words and his breath in my ear. I watched him drive away and wondered if he meant it.

...

"Damn."

I was piled up on the couch across from Shayne and I had just finished telling her everything that had happened these last two days. I shared my dream, which led to the embarrassing admission of what I had done with her. I couldn't read her reaction from behind her giant wine glass, but she didn't seem disgusted or not wanting to be friends with me.

She couldn't believe how Greg talked to me or how Chance reacted. Shayne was shocked at how he pushed me after everyone left. As I told her the story, I realized what he did, what he gave me. I finally figured out what he wanted to show me.

Confidence.

A little while later, I was stumbling toward the bathroom, carrying my wine glass and planning for my date with the bubble bath I told Chance I'd be taking. I tried not to be too pissed off when I noticed an hour had passed and he still hadn't come home. I tried to ignore the fact that he was having one drink with his plastic bitch boss, who undoubtedly was making her move on him.

And I definitely didn't want to think about the way I was throbbing between my legs. The wine didn't help, but I still continued to drink it. I let out a loud groan as I lowered myself into the heavenly foamy water below me. The water was perfectly soothing my muscles, so much that I couldn't help but throw my head back and close my eyes.

I think I was starting to drift off when I heard the door open. "Don't you look like an angel right now?"

My chest tightened when I heard Chance's voice wash over me so quietly that I had to make sure it was real. My eyes flashed open and I nearly knocked over my wine glass as it sat perched on the edge. My eyes adjusted to the dark room, illuminated only by a single candle. I held my breath when Chance knelt beside the tub and took the glass from my shaky hand.

He sipped it slowly, his eyes roaming over my body, that was luckily still covered by a mountain of bubbles. "What...what are you doing here?" I sputtered nervously, probably slurring my words a bit. If the wine hadn't gotten me tipsy enough, the sight of Chance gazing at me naked sure would have gotten me drunk.

He handed me the glass, tapping the bottom to indicate I should drink up. I tipped my head back to finish what was left, but nearly choked when I felt his hand skim the water and smooth over my bare knee. "I think it's only fair that I get the opportunity to see you naked since you saw me earlier in the locker room."

"I...I didn't mean to invade your privacy like that," I breathed as his hand moved down my shin and the bubbles continued to part. A little more of this and he would be able to see all of me. Fuck, I'm not ready for that.

"Why were you so eager to talk to me? So eager that you couldn't even wait for me to get dressed," he teased me with a mischievous smile. "And don't say it was just because you wanted to show me how thankful you were."

Here was my chance. He was giving me the opening I needed to admit my true feelings. I slid my hand through Chance's sandy brown hair and watched as his eyes drifted closed. In a moment of bravery, I sat up and moved closer to his face. I knew that my breasts were exposed and the bubbles were dissipating, but I had to take this opportunity. I was pretty certain I wouldn't get another chance.

"You told me if I want something...I should go after it," I sighed, a small smile creeping across my face when Chance's eyes snapped open.

He took in the sight of me, hair damp on the ends, body covered in bubbles that were sliding down my body, and my face probably flushed from the wine, the heat of the water and the way he gazed at me. "I know what I want now," I declared when his eye contact met mine once again.

"Do you?" he rasped as his hand slid up my arm and behind my head. He was breathing deeply, eyes hooded and his teeth were biting down on his lower lip. "And what is that, Cami? Tell me what you want."

I turned to face him more, afraid to look down at how exposed I was in that moment. It was like I was totally opening myself up to him. My body was on display and in a moment, so would my feelings for him. I could feel the tension in my stomach, clenching hard because I knew I couldn't take it back once I said it.

"You," I paused and ran my tongue over my lips. "I want you, Chance."

I saw the way his eyes widened and the way his mouth formed an O as he blew out a deep breath. I wanted him to say something...anything so that I knew I wasn't alone here. But he didn't.

My body shivered when he let go of me and rocked back on his heels. His hands gripped the edge of the tub tightly and his eyes didn't quite meet mine. Suddenly that nervous pit in my stomach became a volcano erupting with regret.

"Cami..."

"Get out."

He sighed and let his head drop into his hands. "Please don't be mad at me right now, I can't take it."

"Just go," I whined as I wrapped my arms around my legs and waited for him to leave.

As the door began to shut, I heard Chance whisper, "I want you too, Cami. And we should talk about this when you're sober."

My heart sank and I swear I could feel it sliding down the drain along with my bathwater. He thought I didn't mean it? He thought I was too drunk to make this declaration? I know what I want. It hasn't changed this past year.

I want Chance.

.....

A/N: hello all my lovelies! I'm back for more. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and it left you wanting more!

Should Cami take back her admission since it wasn't clear if Chance wanted her too?

Or should she make him see she is completely sure of his feelings and jump his bones?