Emotional, physical, and existential issues may arise when the energy of the heart chakra does not flow. By healing the heart chakra, one may experience a boost in energy, positivity, love, and compassion, and an increased sense of connectedness to life. There are a variety of different yoga poses, breathing techniques, stones, crystals, and therapy that you can do to heal your heart chakra. Speak to a Registered Yoga Teacher for yoga tips or do a little research online. Deepak Chopra is a known guru on the subject.

“Angel. The first thing you need to know about self-defense are the soft targets. Regardless of what position an attacker gets you into, these are gold.”

I nodded, standing across from Nicholas Salerno in a pair of black yoga pants and a royal-blue ribbed tank top that said “Love Me a Latte” on the front. Every time I wore the tank, I snickered, and today I needed some humor, mostly because the situation with my ex was not humorous at all.

“We’re going to start with the eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and throat moves.”

“Okay.” I jerked my head back and put up my arms like I’ve seen in kung fu movies.

He grinned and shook his head but took his stance across from me. He wore a pair of black lounge pants and nothing else. Magnificently bare chested. His torso was what women all over the Lotus House facility were drooling over. Now I personally understood what the hubbub was about. Nick had a large defined chest packed with muscles, with smooth skin all the way to his belly button, where a smattering of hair met the V of his waistline. I’d bet many had lost their minds over that happy trail. Under no duress, I’d happily admit the man was sex on a stick. Still, his chest had nothing on my man’s.

An image of Clayton’s broad golden chest entered my mind. Thank goodness I had my own man whose chest bested Nick’s, but not by much. Not by a long shot. Nicholas Salerno was ridiculously attractive. His hair shined a dark cappuccino like a new coffee bean. However, his eyes were the most incredible feature by far. My goodness, it was as if they were translucent. Kind of like looking through sea glass. The palest blue with a thin line of yellow around the edge. Stunning. I’d bet the right woman could look into those eyes and see her future. Probably many had tried. He hadn’t committed to any that I knew of.

Unaware of my musings, Nick continued. “Now, if your attacker goes for your upper body from the front, there are a variety of things you can do to ward him off. Start with the soft limits though. Those tend to be the easiest to remember. As he comes close, go for his face with your hands. Use your thumbs to jab straight into his eye sockets. Like so.” He placed his hands on the side of my cheeks and moved his thumbs right in front of my eyes but didn’t penetrate.

“Oh, okay. I get it.” The position made sense. It would definitely hurt if someone used their thumbs to poke into an opponent’s eyes.

“You try.”

I repeated his move and felt rather proud of myself for getting it right the first time.

“Awesome. You can also go for the eyes with a spade-like shape, meshing of your fingers, or even knuckles first. I’d recommend the thumbs though because using them seems to be easier for women in the heat of the moment. And remember, you’re not trying to bruise them. You’re trying to blind them. Take away their sight so they can’t see you and they let you go. Ears up next. I’m going to come at you, and you’re going to grab both of my ears. Just not too hard!” He grinned. “This is pretend.”

I chuckled, and as he placed a hand on my shoulder and got close, I grabbed both his ears.

“Good. You can use this position to grip with all your might and bring me down and into your knee. Or, you can just twist the ears and my head will automatically jerk back to protect myself. This will give you precious moments to hopefully escape. Still, I’d go for the knee to the face if at all possible, because it will hurt more and give you more time. Let’s practice.”

For several rounds, we practiced the move until he thought I had it just right. Sweat prickled at my hairline and my shoulders were tense. My back ached a bit but not bad enough to call a halt. I enjoyed the overuse. The skin where my stitches had healed had been feeling stretched tight and itchy. The doctor mentioned it would as it healed. However, I wasn’t ready to call it quits due to a little discomfort. Clay wanted me to learn this training, and I needed to for my own safety. Protecting myself didn’t come naturally. I was a giver by nature, but I hoped the tools Nick and Clay bestowed would take hold and I’d be better for it—more prepared in the event Kyle came at me again.

Nick went over to a table, grabbed a sports bottle, and sucked back some water. I did the same with my own that I’d set in the corner near my stuff.

“You’re a natural at this, angel.”

Nick’s compliment and a sense of accomplishment made my heart feel full.

“Remember, doing this is going to ensure that if you’re ever stuck in a position with that asshole again, you can defend yourself and get away. Yeah?”

“Yeah, I know. It’s hard though.” I looked down and focused on my neatly pedicured pink toes and gathered my thoughts. “I hear about cases all the time where a man beats his wife and vice versa, and their relationship is not only volatile but destructive. Then other cases with child abuse, as well as women being sexually assaulted or attacked. I’ve always been one of the ones who thought it could never happen to me.”

“But it can happen to anyone.” His voice was soft and gentle.

“Intellectually that makes sense, only, Nick, he could have killed me. Had my client not come down to the exact same level on the garage, he would have slit my throat and left me for dead. That stuff doesn’t happen. Not to me!” The tears I’d been holding back flowed to the surface, and I shook my hands and shoulders, trying to push the emotional blast out of my mind.

Nick was beside me in a couple of seconds. He curled a hand around my nape and got close to my face. “You did nothing wrong. You hear me? Nothing.”

“But what if I egged him on in some way? Asked for it by not being a good wife and mother?” Some of my biggest fears spewed out of my mouth like a vile gas that had built up and couldn’t be contained. The last month I’d been working hard with my therapist, and God knows between Mila and Clay I’d conquered some demons, but that little voice inside—the one that told me how insignificant and worthless I was—that voice was still there. I hadn’t been able to vanquish it, and I worried I never would.

“Bullshit!” Nick’s words were as abrasive as sandpaper over tender skin. “I’ve known you for years now. Years!” He punctuated his words by dipping his face closer. I could smell the musk of sweaty man, soap, and a hint of cologne. “No woman asks for what he did to you. He’s twisted, Moe. Seriously messed up in the head. You do not take that on. It’s not your cross to bear. What you do is focus on how you can protect yourself in the future. What do you say?”

I sniffled, closed my eyes, and wiped at the lone tear I wasn’t able to push back. When I opened them again, my resolve was in place.

Fuck him.

Screw him and the horse he rode in on.

I had been a good wife. The best wife! Doting, loving, and considerate. Always.

Scowling, I narrowed my gaze until Nick was nothing but a blur. All I saw was red.

“You’re right. And I’m ready. Let’s continue. Show me how to be a badass!”

Nick squeezed my neck before pulling back. “Then it’s time to get a little dirty.”

I cocked an eyebrow, and he chuckled.

“Not that kind of dirty. Mama mia! I’m going to show you how to attack his nose, mouth, and throat.”

“Goody. Let’s do this.”

“Goody.” He rolled his eyes and chuckled. “Get settled in the stance I showed you. These are still the soft targets but definitely require closer range. You see this spot on my neck?”

He pointed to the divot at the top of his chest, in between the clavicles and below the Adam’s apple. “This indentation is often referred to as the tracheal well. There’s only a thin layer of skin protecting this vital organ. If your attacker comes at you with both arms out, or even one arm, move in toward him and shove your thumbs right into that indent the same way you do the eye gouge. Now come at me.”

I went for him fast, trying to impress the teacher. He got a lock on my shoulders, and then I shoved my hands between his, gripped his shoulders, and pressed my thumbs to the area. He let go immediately.

“Yes! Perfect. You’ve got it. The best part about this hold is that it puts you in an awesome position to pull the man down lower than your hips and knee that sucker in the face!”

He shifted forward until I got the hint and pulled him low and then brought up my knee in slow motion.

“Nice, Moe. You attack that the same way you attack the eyes. Thumbs right to the indentation. There’s also the carotid arteries that run on either side of the trachea here.” He grabbed my hand and placed it on his neck, pressing his fingers into the sides of the cylindrical shape of his neck. Just that hold made me uncomfortable, and I was the one touching it. His Adam’s apple bobbed and I let go.

“Take a claw-like approach with thumb and forefingers around the cylindrical shape. Press in and squeeze to your heart’s content. The goal here is to get his hands off you. His goal may change when you attack these sensitive places to getting your hands off him.” He chuckled manically, his slick hair falling forward across his forehead. Nick had thick well-groomed eyebrows that arched beautifully but also had a very sinister appearance when he contorted his face the way he was now.

I squinted at him and snarled dramatically. “Don’t be scary, Nick. It won’t work on me!”

We both laughed and backed up into position. I glanced at the clock. It had already been almost an hour, and I hadn’t even thrown him to the ground the way I’d seen in the movies.

“When do I get to flip you over my shoulder?”

He blinked, smirked, and then shook his head. “Angel, you are not going to throw me over your shoulder. You, sweetheart, are being taught practical defense today. We may get into the crazier moves months down the road when you’re an expert on these.”

I pouted. “Bummer.”

“What I will teach you, though, is how to get out of a hold if your attacker is trying to rape you,” he clarified meaningfully.

Rape.

The thought of rape had never even crossed my mind, which was utterly asinine because, really, any woman was at risk at any given time. I just didn’t believe Kyle had that type of attack in mind when it came to me. No, he’d gone straight for the jugular so he could get to the pocketbook.

“I tell all the folks in my self-defense classes that the ultimate goal is to always stay standing. That way, you can strike your attacker and run away. Unfortunately, that isn’t always the case. If you’re in the unfortunate situation of being brought to the ground…” Nick swiped my legs out from under me so fast I lost my breath. He hovered over me. His hands went straight for my neck and looped around it loosely. Fire rippled up my sore back where I’d fallen to the mat. Luckily this was practice instruction and I was on thick padding, or I would’ve been in a world of hurt.

“If you’re ever stuck with a man on top of you, I’m going to show you how to get yourself out of it.”

I flashed on Kyle straddling me, pulling my hair, and forcing my head back so that my back arched unnaturally. I had been completely immobilized.

“But what if he has me facing down?”

“Turn around fast. Shove and twist until you can.” I nodded and he smiled. “Now what would you do in this particular position? Don’t think. Use your instincts!” he encouraged.

Squirming around, I shoved my arms up and against his chest. He grinned wickedly and shook his head.

“Nope, angel. Wrong. That would allow him to slam your head into the ground and punch and choke you like so.” He lifted my head and it flopped back onto the mat, and then he pretended to punch me. “Instead, what you want to do is wrap your hands around my neck and bring me down against your chest.”

I frowned. “That’s counterintuitive. I want to bring you close to my lady bits?” I gasped in shock.

He chuckled. “Just go with it.”

“Fine.” I sighed, brought my hands around Nick’s thick neck, and pulled him toward my chest. He rested his forehead between my breasts. “What next?”

“You let his ass go and you have your instructor switch places with your boyfriend.” Clayton’s deep rumble broke through our concentration. “Nick, I see you’ve got yourself in a great position.”

Nick being Nick, as in the epitome of an Italian Stallion, pressed up and onto his fists while still hovering over me. “That I do. My job is awesome. Being on top of a sexy woman… What could be bad about that?”

“Her boyfriend could kick your ass from here to kingdom come?” Clay deadpanned, but Nick wasn’t having any of it.

Nick ruffled the top of my head, messing up my hair for the hell of it the same way a big brother would. Nick had a bunch of sisters, and he was the only boy in the family. That made him keenly overprotective when it came to those he cared about, and his big-brother side came out easily. We had that type of relationship, and it was the same with all of the female teachers at Lotus House and the regulars like me. He and Mila were really good friends too, and because of my relationship with her, he also put me in the friend category.

Nick shifted up and onto one hand before kneeling and standing.

“Come on, Clay. You may be big, but I teach boxers for a living, and you haven’t been in the ring in a long time. I’d wipe the floor with you,” he goaded good-naturedly.

Men were weird. I could hardly tell if they were kidding or being serious until Clayton finally smiled. “Touché. Now what do you want me to do?” His expression turned a bit on the serious side, his blue eyes flashing with interest, regardless of the serious nature of what I was learning. He came over to me and kneeled between my legs.

“Hi, beautiful. You working hard or hardly working?” He cocked a sexy eyebrow.

I preened and ran my hands from his wrists up his corded arms until I could caress his face. I stroked his bottom lip with my thumb. I wanted so badly to rise up and kiss that lip. Instead, I answered with a breathy, “Working hard.”

“Well, you look good doing it.” He winked.

“Blah, blah, blah, let’s get on with it. I was about to teach her how to get out of a rape situation. Rape. I’m assuming you want your woman up to speed on that?” Nick taunted.

“Fuck yes!” Clay growled, all hints of the humor he’d shown a moment ago long gone. “Let’s do this, baby.”

I nodded.

“Okay, so I’d told her not to push against her attacker but to bring him closer.”

I took the instruction and wrapped my hands around Clayton’s neck and brought his face in between my breasts. He took that moment to bite down on one through my tank.

“Ouch!” Cheeky bastard.

“An attacker might do that. I’m just keeping it real.” He smirked, and I wanted nothing more than to kiss his full lips again; instead, I narrowed my eyes.

“Pay attention!” I chastised.

Nick chuckled. “All right, Moe, so what you want to do is wrap your legs around his waist and lock your heels.”

I followed his instruction perfectly.

“Now we’re getting somewhere,” Clayton joked.

“Once he’s secure, bring your hands around his head and press your thumbs into his eye sockets, doing the eye gouge.”

I moved fast, having already learned this move. Clayton veered back as I pretended and startled him, pushing his head up and back.

“Nice, Moe. Perfect. As you can see, he braced himself above you when you shoved him up. Right now, he’d probably be screaming and spitting mad about his eyes. Use that moment to lock one of your arms around his and press into the side of his face, pushing him away from you. Let go of your leg guard around his waist, bend a knee, and twist with the scissor sweep until you’re on top of him and have the upper hand.”

I used the moves he’d taught me and flipped Clayton over onto his back, where I straddled his waist. A fist pump and trophy arms was totally in order, but I didn’t think either of the men would appreciate it like a woman would. Mila would high-five me for that move alone. I couldn’t wait to show it to her using Atlas as my lackey.

“Okay, here you’d go for one of your soft targets again like the carotid or the eye gouge, or you could straight up wail on his ass with some punches.”

Wrapping my left hand around his trachea, I lightly compressed his carotid and pretended to punch him in the face with my right.

“Damn, woman! You’re a badass!” Clayton sat up and hugged me to his chest, then laid a mess of kisses all along my neck. His loving embrace soothed my soul and aching form. I wrapped my legs around his waist and sat back so I could look at his smile.

“Really great, right? Nick taught me so many cool moves, and I’m convinced I could do them if the need arose.” I positively preened for my man. What was that saying about being silly in love?

“Yes, I did teach you a lot. Still, your sweet ass is going to be in here on Thursday at least one more time. I want you to go home and practice with Clay until then,” Nick instructed.

Clay stood up, again hefting me around like I was a feather before letting me slide down his delectable body until I was standing. Yum. My skin tingled at the contact, wanting more. I always wanted more of Clayton’s touch and nearness. That’s what made our falling in love so fast not seem so ridiculous. We both felt it deep. The connection. As if when Kyle broke my heart, Clayton filled that broken half with his own, making me whole again.

My guy tipped his head down and took my mouth in a sweet, quick, but still meaningful kiss. After he’d had enough of my lips, he slid his nose along mine in a touching gesture that was somehow more lovely than the kiss.

Clay pulled away and went over to Nick, where he was gathering his things. He held out his hand. “Appreciate you doing this for her, Nick.”

Nick frowned. “No thanks necessary. We all love your girl. If I can teach her some moves to protect herself against that dirtbag, I can sleep easy tonight.”

“Still, I appreciate it, man.” He squeezed Nick’s hand and gripped him on the shoulder. Clayton turned to me as I was zipping up my white hoodie. “You ready? Want to pick up the queen and get working on our project.”

I pursed my lips and grabbed his hand. “Which would be what?” He hadn’t mentioned that we’d be doing anything handy around the house. Not since he had the window fixed and the security system installed.

“Getting Lily back in her own bed. That defense position reminded me your back is finally good to go. It is good, right?”

I twirled my hair with my free hand. “Maybe…”

He nudged my arm with his. “Don’t tease me with the prospect of heaven, beautiful. It’s just cruel.” He dipped his head close to mine and whispered in my ear. “I want you flat on your back, legs spread, showing me all your sweetness.”

My voice lowered, sounding desperate even to my ears. “Clayton…”

“Not waiting any longer, Monet. It’s been over a month. I want in.” His words brooked no argument, not that he would get one from me. We wanted the same thing.

It still shocked me that it had been over a month since my attack and our rapid pairing. Even though we’d basically done everything else in the bedroom, we hadn’t consummated our relationship—our love—through intercourse. It was the final step toward our unity. In that moment, it seemed crucial, vital to moving forward with our forever.

“I want you in too,” I whispered back, a girlie sense of anticipation fluttering in my stomach like a dozen flapping butterflies.

“Then let’s get a move on.”

“Bye, Nick, and thank you for everything.” I waved.

“You got it, angel. See you on Thursday for the follow-up session. At that one, I’ll be teaching you the bear hug, the hammer grip, and the wrist sweeps!”

He sounded honestly excited about it. Made me wonder if he should be teaching this class regularly at Lotus House. I’d bet Crystal and Jewel wouldn’t think twice about adding a class to the schedule.

“Have you approached the owners about adding this class to the Lotus House regular schedule? It seems like a pretty important subject and something all women and men alike should learn.”

Nick tipped his head and rubbed a hand along his jaw. “You know what, I think you’re right. You being attacked really woke up the staff here. I’m going to chat with Crystal and Jewel. See if it’s something they’re interested in. Regardless, I should definitely open a session at my boxing gym. There’s no reason I couldn’t. Heck, the boxers alone have enough girlfriends and wives who would probably want to learn how to protect themselves too. Thanks for planting the seed, Moe.”

I grinned. “Thank you for teaching me the ropes. I’ll see you Thursday for sure!”

“You got it, angel. Keep your man honest, yeah?”

Clay looped an arm around my shoulders. “Always, man. Always.”

“I’ll just bet.” Nick grinned, and Clay gave him one of those super cool three-fingered waves that totally said tough guy.

“So, our project?” I niggled at Clay.

He tipped his head back and smiled. “Yes!” The word came out as a hiss. “You already know I’m so into you. Can’t wait to bury myself deep inside.”

My cheeks flamed. “I do. And I’m so into you too!” Admittedly we were being super cheesy, but I was having fun with it. Something I hadn’t had in a relationship before.

“Now it’s time to physically get there.” He nipped at the shell of my ear, sending a spark of lust spiraling right between my thighs.

I physically ached for his touch there. Heck, everywhere. “We’ll make it happen.”

“Tonight?”

“Tonight.”

“Halle-fucking-lujah.”