“Three.” I start to model the next pose for him before we get sidetracked again. “You’ll probably recognize this one. It’s called plank pose, and it’s kind of like a pushup,” I add as I lean forward again, letting my hands rest on my knees.

He groans softly. “I don’t like the sound of that.”

“From this bent position, you want to put your hands flat on the floor, then stretch one leg back at a time until you’re on hands and feet, like this,” I say as I demonstrate it for him. “You want to try to keep your back as straight as possible, then hold the pose for several breaths.”

“You make it sound so easy,” Declan says with a laugh as he watches me, but I don’t look up at him.

I don’t think I can handle it, and it’s taking everything I have right now to keep this lesson on track, so I just stare straight ahead and pretend like I can’t see him in the mirror studying me with an intensity that makes my skin prickle with awareness.

After six breaths, I bring my feet back toward my hands and stand. “Your turn.”

“I don’t know how I’m supposed to do that when my hands can’t touch the floor, but I’ll try,” he says and bends over, letting his hands dangle in front of him.

He tips forward until his hands touch the ground, then awkwardly juts one leg behind himself, then the other.

“Straighten out your back,” I tell him, although I don’t dare touch him again. With a grunt, he evens out a little bit but not fully. “Good start. Now hold it for six breaths.” Declan sucks in a breath, but on the exhale, his arms start to tremble, and he stops breathing. “You’ve got to keep breathing, otherwise you’ll tense up and hurt yourself.”

But Declan can’t hold the pose and topples over, and I can’t help laughing. He laughs along with me, the sound rich and genuine, and I know I shouldn’t be thinking like this, but I like that he can laugh at himself. There’s no denying he’s confident, but most pro athletes wouldn’t be caught dead doing something like this, let alone laughing about their failure at it.

“Mr. NHL Hotshot can’t handle a little plank pose?” I tease him, and he scowls up at me from the floor, although his eyes remain playful.

“Of course I can. I just don’t think I’ve used these particular muscles before.”

A smile tugs at my lips despite myself, and strangely enough, the little moment of humor does a lot to dispel some of the tension that’s been crackling between us since Declan got here.