Page 24 of Daddy's Pride
Chapter 7
Harris
I return to the obstacle course, wearing black jogging bottoms, a pair of well-loved trainers, an old, baggy t-shirt, and a hoodie.
“I’m ready to be put through my paces, Daddy.”
Miles smiles as he appraises me.
“Do I pass muster?”
He chuckles. “Yes. We’ve had rain over the last couple of weeks, so the course will be muddy.”
I wave my hand. “I can handle a little mud.”
“You should warm up first, boy.”
“Show me how?”
He folds his arms, which makes his biceps and triceps bulge. “I’m sure you know how to warm up.”
“I do, but you might have guests who don’t. Pretend I don’t know what I’m doing.”
He rolls his eyes and laughs. “All right. We’ll start with some basic stretches.”
I follow along as he runs me through exercises to gently stretch and warm my muscles, starting from my neck, arms, back, and down to my lower body. Next, he gets me to jog on the spot and do star jumps to get my pulse going. He’s firm but encouraging.
“What? No push-ups?” I grin.
“I could order you to drop and give me twenty.”
“Um, no, thanks.”
He closes the gap between us and pinches my chin between his finger and thumb. I gasp. “Don’t be cheeky, boy, or you will be doing push-ups for me.”
“Yes, Daddy.”
He kisses me and gestures to the start of the course. “When you’re ready.”
“I hope that’s not how you’ll treat all your recruits.”
He folds his arms and glares. “What did I say about being cheeky?”
“Sorry, Daddy.” I give him a sassy hip wiggle on my way to the start of the assault course, which is wide enough for six people to run it at the same time.
The first obstacle consists of several tires you have to run through. Visions of getting my foot stuck and falling flat on my face fill my mind.
“The trick is to pick your feet up. Bring your knee to a right angle, and you’ll be fine.” Miles demonstrates where he is and then runs through the tires.
“You make it look so easy.”
“Take your time and watch where you’re putting your feet. You’ve got this, boy.”
I grin. “Yes, Daddy.”
I take a deep breath and start, doing as Miles showed me and lifting my legs high, bringing my knees to a right angle so my feet clear the tires each time. It’s not easy and surprisingly tiring, but I don’t fall flat on my face.
Once I’ve cleared the tires, I sprint to a series of bars, alternating between low and high. I vault over the high ones and duck under the low ones. Miles claps and offers encouragement as I weave up and down and sprint to a slanted wall.