“Slavik?”

I moved her past the running machines, the weights, toward the far part of the room. A punching bag hung, looking a little worse for wear, but durable.

Mitts waited, and I picked them up, securing them to my wife’s hands.

“I’m not going to fight you. I’d lose.”

“This is not about you fighting me,” I said. “You think I don’t know a thing or two about pain? About rejection? About not measuring up?”

“Slavik—”

“I do.” I’d never spoken these feelings to another living soul. “I use it to help make me a better leader. I don’t need people to like me or to care about me. They have to respect me. There is no shame in being who you are. They don’t like you, that’s on them, because, Aurora, when I look at you, I see no fault, no flaw. I see a woman who is worthy of my attention, and everyone else around here can go get fucked before I let them treat you like that. The Bethanys of this world, they’re everywhere. I can find a hundred of them right here in this building, but I can only find one Aurora. You don’t need to compare yourself to them. There’s nothing wrong with you. You’re one of a kind, and that makes you fucking special.”

I cupped her face, tilting her head back to kiss her. “Now, all of that pain, the anger. Feed it. Channel it. Throw it at this, and let it leave you, knowing you’re a better person than most. You don’t need all of that other crap.”

I slammed my fist against the bag, and it swung. “Just unleash it.”

I moved to stand behind the bag, holding it into place.

“This feels silly.”

“It’s not. You’re afraid. Don’t be. I’m here. I’ve got you. I’m the only one that can see.”

She licked her lips and held her hands up.

The first jab at the bag was pitiful. There was no real fight to her, and I got it. She’d never given in.

All these years, she had no choice but to swallow the bitter pill and look the other way. To hide it deep, deep down. She couldn’t do that. If she did, it was only going to make her feel worse.

“There is no shame in this, Aurora. Trust me to help you through this. Remember, I wasn’t surrounded by family. I had to earn my place here. I was kicked out. Ignored. Rejected. I worked the streets for every single crumb. This is my life now. I will never allow another person to treat me like trash. I will crush them. You’re worth everything, Aurora. One day, we’re going to have children. If we have two girls, or three, would you let one or two feel like they didn’t matter because of the most beautiful?”

“No!” She slammed her fist against the punching bag.

It was harder than before. This time, she didn’t need any more encouragement from me. With each hit, I watched the anger come to the surface, the sheer agony of everything she’d been through.