[WARNING: SMUT]
"𝑀𝑎𝑛 𝑚𝑎𝑦 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑐𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑓𝑖𝑟𝑒, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑤𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑐𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑑 ℎ𝑜𝑤 𝑡𝑜 𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑦 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑖𝑡."
—𝐶𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑎𝑐𝑒 𝐵𝑢𝑠ℎ𝑛𝑒𝑙𝑙, 𝑆𝑒𝑥 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐶𝑖𝑡𝑦

𝒩.

𝐍𝐀𝐓𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐀'𝐒 𝐄𝐘𝐄𝐒 𝐒𝐋𝐎𝐖𝐋𝐘 opened, and her lips tugged into a soft smile as her gaze met Diego's sleeping face.

A couple of weeks had passed since they had first started dating, and it was now nearing the beginning of December.

With Natalia being so busy with work, and Diego with his boxing and vigilante work (at least, that was what he called it), they hadn't been able to go on too many dates in the past couple of weeks. Luckily, they had gotten the chance the night previous (a nice dinner, where they had somehow run into Vanya—Natalia very much enjoyed this exchange, while Diego had not).

And now, here they were the next morning, unclothed and still in bed.

Natalia glanced back at the clock—it was nearing ten o'clock—before nestling closer to Diego. Thank God, it was Saturday, so she didn't have work (though she did have a shit ton of planning to do for the next week of classes).

Diego's eyes opened a few minutes later, and he sleepily planted a kiss on her forehead. "Mornin', princess."

Her heart fluttered at the nickname. "Good morning."

"You aren't busy today, are you?" he mumbled as he pulled her closer to him. "You aren't gonna run away again?"

"I'm not busy," she chuckled as her finger began tracing along his chest. "Why, is there something you wanna do?"

"Yeah, there is something I wanna do," he answered, his upper lip curling as he shifted down so that their faces were level. "You."

Natalia automatically crinkled her nose and turned around, hearing Diego let out a laugh as she shoved her face into the pillow.

"You say some pretty terrible stuff," she told him, though her voice was muffled, "and that was the worst of all."

"Yeah?" he chuckled as he rolled over and slid his hand over her stomach. "I'm sorry, baby, but I'm just sayin', you're on my to-do list today."

She groaned and pushed her face even further into the pillow. "That's even worse."

She giggled as he began to kiss the nape of her neck. His kisses then trailed over to her jaw before going up towards her cheek and making their way to her lips.

Before he could get there, however, Natalia laughed and pushed his face away. "Brush your teeth first, idiot."

Diego rolled his eyes in amusement but made no movement to heed her order. Instead, he continued kissing her neck, and his hand slowly slid down to grip her inner thigh.

Natalia's breathing became a little unsteady as his hand edged upwards. The tips of his fingers skimmed against her stomach, causing butterflies to emerge as he continued further up. His hand quickly found her right breast, and his thumb stroked along the side of it.

As she let out a soft moan and let her body relax back into his, his hand cupped her breast before beginning to massage it. 

Though it took all her might to do this, she pushed him away, giggling as he rolled onto his back with a groan. 

"You can't even wait until after breakfast?" she teased. 

"I've waited for ten years, angel," he murmured as she turned back to face him. "I think that's long enough."

"Come on, handsome, let's get dressed," she told him, kissing his cheek and ignoring his grumbling as she slipped off the bed.

She grabbed her lingerie and clothes that were laying on the ground—a floral blouse with a deep V-neckline and a pair of jeans—and changed into them, only half-listening to Diego's grumbling as he put on his own clothes—his usual fitted black shirt and black jeans.

As she tucked her blouse into her jeans, Diego came up behind her and kissed her cheek. "You want breakfast, beautiful?"

"Depends," she answered with a teasing smile as he playfully slapped her butt and headed towards his fridge. "Does it include raw eggs?"

"You're never gonna let go of that, huh?" he questioned with an amused smile as he opened his fridge and peered inside. "Cereal okay?"

"Mhm," she hummed as she walked over and leaned against his sink.

She watched as he grabbed a milk carton and shut the fridge. He then grabbed an opened box of Cheerios that was sitting on top of the microwave and quickly fixed two bowls.

Diego handed her one, and she murmured her thanks as she took it from him.

"I have a match Monday night," he told her as he came next to her and leaned against the sink. "Think you can make it?"

"What time?" she asked after swallowing her bite of cereal.

He squinted his eyes as he chewed his food. "Eight."

She furrowed her eyebrows in thought for a few moments as she thought. "Yeah, I think I can make it."

"Good," he murmured. "And then, to celebrate my victory, we can go out."

"Aw, you sure you won't be crying too hard from losing?" she cooed before taking another bite of cereal.

Diego lightly elbowed her, eliciting a giggle, and shook his head. "I never lose."

She raised her eyebrows as she pointed out, "Didn't you say you lost a match, like, two weeks ago?"

"I have no clue what you're talking about," he said lightly.

Natalia rolled her eyes in amusement and quickly finished off her cereal. She placed it in the sink, and it was soon followed by his bowl.

"Okay." Diego grabbed her by the waist and pulled her closer to him. He rested his forehead against hers, a slight smirk playing on his lips as he murmured, "I've waited. Breakfast is over."

She gazed at him for a moment, a soft smile on her face. "You can't even wait until after lunch?"

"Really?" He scoffed in amusement. "Nice try."

Natalia chuckled as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "You are impatient, aren't you?"

"Well, you know me better than anyone else," he murmured as his hands drifted down to her hips. "What do you think?"

"I think you're horribly impatient," she answered with a kiss on the tip of his nose. "With everything."

"I waited ten years, didn't I?" he pointed out. "Plus those two months. I'd say I'm pretty patient."

"You waited ten years because you were too scared to talk to me—I was, too, I know," she added on hastily as he opened his mouth to retaliate. "And you spent half of those two months begging me for a date."

"I wouldn't say begging." He scoffed as he shook his head.

"Yeah?" she teased. "What about all the times you went" —she lowered her voice to mock him— "'Please, Nat, one date will change your mind,' and 'You won't regret it if you let me take you out'?"

"Not begging," he corrected as his grip tightened on her hips, "just stating facts."

"Begging," she said firmly, a smile curving her lips as he rolled his eyes.

He scoffed. "I'll make you beg."

Natalia didn't have the time to reply as he pressed his lips against hers, and she quickly melted into the kiss as her arms around his neck tightened.

Diego shifted so that she was now leaning back against the sink, and he pressed himself tight against her. His tongue slipped into her mouth, and the taste of Cheerios was strong (though, to be fair, the taste had already been in her mouth).

His hands moved to cup her cheeks, and he swiftly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. He tilted his head to deepen the kiss, and he began to fiddle with the button of her jeans.

He quickly managed to take her jeans off, and he left them on the floor before pulling her legs so that they were wrapped around his waist. 

She giggled as he threw her onto the bed and climbed on top of her, his eyes roaming every part of her body. 

He kissed her as he began to tug her blouse off, and that soon joined her pants on the ground. 

"God," he whispered, and she couldn't help but blush when she noticed his eyes locking onto her chest, "you're so beautiful."

She let out a short gasp as the chilly air hit her exposed skin once he had unclasped her bra, though that gasp soon turned to one of pleasure as his mouth latched around one of her buds.

A moan escaped her lips as she twisted her fingers through his hair, and that only encouraged him as he swirled his tongue over her bud and sent electric shocks through her body.

Once he was finished with that one, he moved on to the other one to give it as much attention and kissed the underside of her breasts on the way there. Each kiss against her skin sent a jolt up her stomach and into her heart, each one warmer and more exciting than the last. 

He returned to her lips a few moments later, passionately, and his hands moved down to give attention to the lower part of her body.

His hand slipped underneath her underwear and his fingers quickly found her damp slit, which made him grin.

"You're so wet, baby," he whispered to her before pressing a kiss against her lips. "All this, for me?"

"Diego," was all she could whimper back.

"What's wrong?" he teased as he rubbed his fingers up and down her slit, giving some but not enough attention.

"Why are you doing this?" she groaned softly, her fingers tightly wound in his hair. "Don't tease me."

"Oh, I would never do that, princess," he murmured back as he brushed his fingers against her entrance, causing a whimper to rise out of her.

His fingers found her clit and played with it for a moment, causing her to cry out in pleasure, as he placed his lips back on hers, though his fingers quickly returned to trailing in order to tease her. And it was working.

"P-Please," she moaned, and she could feel his lips twist into a smirk against hers. "Diego, please."

"Beg a little more, gorgeous," he whispered, his fingers now beginning to rub her clit once more and causing her head to tilt back. He took advantage and began to kiss her neck and suck at her skin.

"Please," she quietly begged, her hand lowering to his shirt and gripping it tightly. "Stop teasing me."

"All right, I'll stop," he conceded, though his grin told her he was up to something.

He then slid his hand out of her underwear, causing her to groan.

"Seriously?" she muttered. "All that for nothing?"

"Oh, I wouldn't say nothing."

He kissed her gently before shifting himself downwards, and he tugged her underwear off before throwing them so that they joined her shirt.

He gripped her outer thighs before hoisting her legs over his shoulders, causing her knees to weaken.

Butterflies emerged into her stomach as he began to nibble the insides of her thighs. He had a grin on his face as he nibbled and kissed her skin, and Natalia could feel her body aching for him as he grew closer to her heat. 

"Goddammit, Diego," she muttered as he teased her. "Just do it."

He quickly fulfilled her wish as his tongue began to stroke through her damp heat, eliciting a moan from her. His hands gripped her thighs tightly as his tongue found her clit, and she had to do everything to keep herself from screaming out in pleasure. 

Her head tilted back and her eyes closed as her body was taken by ecstasy. His tongue continued moving, faster and stronger each second, sending surges of electricity through her body. 

"Fuck, baby," she moaned, her hands reaching up to grip the edges of the pillow. 

Diego's tongue stopped for a quick moment as he began to kiss her inner thighs. Each kiss was longer than the last, and it was obvious he was taking pleasure in teasing her. 

Finally, the force of his tongue against her clit resumed, and she cried out, her back slightly arched as she begged for more. By the time she could barely take any more, she was overtaken by waves of pleasure that vibrated her body. 

"Is it nothing now?" he teased as he crawled back over her. He swooped down to kiss her before moving back to her neck. 

Her arms wrapped around his neck as he nibbled at her jaw, and her body ached for more. 

"Diego," she groaned, kissing him roughly as he lifted his face towards hers. "I need you."

He grinned and began to unbutton his pants. 

Before he could take his pants off, however, there was a loud knock at the door. 

"Diego!" came a deep voice. "It's ten-thirty, man!"

Diego let out a loud groan as he separated from her. He glanced up towards the door and called, "Wait!"

"That's fine," Natalia muttered as she crawled over to the side of the bed and grabbed her lingerie from the ground. "You're busy."

"I'm sorry, baby," Diego murmured as he buttoned his jeans, frowning. "I didn't remember—"

"Don't worry," she laughed, leaning forward to kiss him lightly as she slipped her arms through the loops of her bra. "Save it for another night."

"Yes, ma'am," he mumbled, his smirk reappearing while she got up to put the rest of her clothes on. 

Diego watched longingly as she put her clothes back on, calling another "One second!" as knocking filled the air once more. 

When she was fully dressed, he sighed and walked up to the door. He glanced down at Natalia, who was now leaning against the sink and watching, and then opened the door. "What's up, man?"

A man, who was much taller than Diego (which was saying something; Diego was quite tall), was at the door, wearing a white sleeveless hoodie and athletic shorts. His skin was a little darker than Diego's, and he had a sharp nose and dark eyes that were currently narrowed.

"We have to prepare for your match on Monday!"

Diego scrunched his nose. "I don't remember agreeing to this."

"You did," confirmed the man. "Yesterday."

"Ah." He nodded slowly, though that nod soon turned into shakes of the head. "No, I still don't remember."

"Yesterday afternoon?" the man reminded with a sigh. "I asked you if you want to train at ten-thirty today, and you said yes."

Diego pursed his lips for a moment and shook his head once more. "Still not ringing a bell."

The man tilted his head, a sly smile appearing on his thick lips as his voice grew threatening, "You want me to make it ring a bell?"

"Okay," Diego said quickly, "I'm remembering it now."

"Good." He nodded. "You ready to go?"

"I just . . ." Diego glanced down at Natalia before looking back at the man and sighing, "I'm busy right now."

"What?" The man scrunched his face. "With what? Sharpening your already sharp knives again?"

Diego shook his head. "Nah, I have . . . a guest."

"What," he scoffed, "another girl?"

"Girlfriend," Diego corrected, gesturing towards Natalia, who then waved.

The man, having seemed to just notice her gave her a small wave back before turning back to Diego and questioning, "Girlfriend? You were serious about that?"

His eyebrows furrowed. "You thought I was lyin'?"

"Yeah. I mean, you're you," the man chuckled as he shrugged. "I haven't seen you in a serious relationship since . . . ever."

"Well," Diego told him as Natalia came up the stairs, "I am now."

"Hi," she greeted with a smile. "I'm Natalia."

"Nigel." He nodded, the corner of his lips tugging upwards. "So you're the girl keeping my man from training, hm?"

Natalia turned to Diego and shrugged. "Well, I'd be fine if he wanted to go."

"See, Diego?" Nigel egged, leaning forward and lightly punching the other man's shoulder. "She wants you to go. Come on."

Diego let out a sigh. "Can you give me, like, twenty minutes?"

Nigel's eyebrows furrowed as he questioned, "To do what?"

"Oh, I don't know," he scoffed loudly, "spend time with her?"

Nigel's eyes widened, and he turned to Natalia as he muttered to her, "Damn, what'd you do to him?"

"It's not me," she said as she raised her hands in defence. She nudged Diego's side and murmured, "Just go, babe. I'll see you Monday."

His nose crinkled. "Monday's so far."

"It's the day after tomorrow."

"Yeah," he insisted. "Far."

"What if she comes? Watches you train?" Nigel suggested with raised eyebrows. "You wanna impress her, don't you?"

Diego quickly shook his head, letting out a scoffing chuckle. "I'm sure she'd be bored—"

Natalia, on the other hand, nodded and agreed, "I'll come watch."

Diego turned to her, still shaking his head. "You don't—"

"I'm free all day," she insisted with a shrug. "I'll watch."

"I like your girlfriend," Nigel remarked. His eyes roamed over her for a moment before he leaned towards her and murmured, "Hey, if he ever hurts you, I'm available."

"Enough," Diego cut in, sending a glare to the man, who then laughed. "Let me change, we'll meet you out there."

Nigel raised two fingers. "Two minutes."

Diego rolled his eyes and nodded before shutting the door.

"You don't have to come," he called as he followed Natalia down the stairs.

"What, you nervous?" she teased, leaning back against the railing as she watched him pull his shirt over his head. "You wanted me to watch your boxing match, what's the difference?"

"I'm not nervous," he scoffed as he grabbed a black muscle tank and slipped it on. "I just . . . don't want you to watch me train."

She folded her arms, her eyebrows mildly raised as she pointed out, "You're acting as if we didn't spend five years training together."

"And those five years were also spent with you correcting me on everything," he grumbled as he swapped his jeans for a pair of grey athletic shorts. "Stance, form, strategy, whatever."

Realization suddenly dawned upon her, and she let out a laugh. "Oh, so you're not scared of being embarrassed in front of me. You're scared of being embarrassed in front of Nigel."

Diego glanced up at her as he tugged his shorts a little higher. "Pfft, no."

She sighed. "I promise I'll . . . try my best to not correct your terrible stance and horrible form."

His eyebrows furrowed as he looked up at her and incredulously echoed, "Try your best?"

"Mhm," she hummed with a nod.

"That's not promising."

"I said 'I promise'!"

"To try your best."

"Yes, my best."

He raised his eyebrows as he grabbed a water bottle from the fridge. "Like how you 'tried your best' to not hit me in the face when you tossed me a book that one time?"

"I tried!" she defended with raised hands.

"Nat," he pointed out as he walked over to her, "I was standing two feet away from you."

She pouted. "Okay, you literally have the power to manipulate the direction of whatever you throw, and you sliced me with your knife when we were training when we were, like, fourteen. I still have the scar on my arm."

He shook his head. "That was on purpose."

Her eyebrows furrowed as she exclaimed, "You told me it was an accident!"

"If I said I did it on purpose, you would hit me with another book!"

She rolled her eyes at him before sighing and questioning, "Why did you do it on purpose?"

"Because you were pissing me off."

"What do you—" Natalia paused, her face scrunching up. "What did I do?"

"No, you didn't do anything," he sighed. "It was just that Klaus was teasing me all day because of you, and, well . . ."

"Oh, those were the times," she chuckled. "He was so annoying about that."

"Still is," he muttered.

"Diego!" shouted an angry Nigel from behind the door. "It's been five damn minutes!"

Diego rolled his eyes before turning towards the entrance and calling out, "Okay, I'm coming, you big, whiny baby!" He turned back to Natalia and raised a finger as he sternly told her, "No correcting."

"Mhm," she hummed in agreeance as she followed him up the steps.

"Not trying your best," he insisted. "One hundred percent, you will not."

"I won't" —her voice dropped to a mutter— "probably."

He glanced back at her, an amused smile on his face. "I heard that."

After chuckling at the tongue she stuck out at him, Diego turned towards the entrance and opened the door, revealing Nigel, who was leaning against the wall next to it with folded arms.

"You done getting ready, you princess?" scoffed Nigel as the two of them left.

"Hey," Diego chided as they began to head down the hallway, "you wish you could look this good in five minutes."

Nigel raised his eyebrows. "Right."

The gym was pretty full by the time they reached it; it was a Saturday, after all. The loud grunts and yells of coaches only helped in informing them of the others' presence, and only a couple of people glanced their way as they entered.

The stench of sweat immediately hit Natalia's nose, causing it to crinkle, but she did her best to ignore it as she followed Diego and Nigel toward the boxing ring in the middle of the room, which was currently empty.

Natalia stopped a few feet away from them, folding her arms as she watched both Diego and Nigel stretch. The two of them wrapped their hands in beige bandages and put on headgear (Diego's was red while Nigel's was blue).

After a few minutes, Diego sent her a wink and climbed onto the ring, Nigel following closely behind. The two of them grabbed the punching gloves that had been hanging over the ropes and slid them on.

Natalia couldn't hear the low murmurs that Nigel was giving to Diego, but soon after, the two put space between themselves and readied their stance.

Natalia watched as they began to box. Diego had always been pretty strong when they were at the Academy, but it seemed that his strength had increased exponentially since then.

Natalia bit her tongue. Her eyes analyzed every movement, his stance, his form, the areas he hit, the kind of punches he used. They had learned boxing back at the Academy—Reginald made sure they learned every fighting style—and she could feel all the memories coming back as she watched. And every single time there could be an improvement, she stopped herself from blurting it out loud.

It really took her back to the Academy days. Back then, she had made sure to learn every move; how to analyze the situations and the person she was fighting; the proper stances and angles . . .  She had always wanted to be an outstanding student, not only in academics but in the fighting as well (there was also the fact that her life also depended on her skill when they were on missions, so . . .).

Was she a know-it-all in these kinds of situations? Absolutely. Was that really annoying? For sure. Did Diego hate that? One hundred percent. Did she care? No, of course not.

As she watched, she tried to focus on the other things. The sound of his grunts, the sweat glistening on his skin, the wink he'd send her every now and then (which was also accompanied by a warning look). 

It was working. Ish.

"Okay." Diego stopped, wiping his sweaty forehead with the back of his forearm. He raised his eyebrows as he walked over to the side of the ring and leaned over the ropes. "Tell me. Everything that's wrong, just go for it."

"What?" she scoffed as she took a step closer. "I don't know what you're talking about. It was great. Perfect."

He shook his head as he pointed toward her. "I'm not blind, I can see that look on your face."

Her eyebrows furrowed. "What look?"

"The scrunched nose, the narrowed eyes, a general look of disgust—I mean, it's the face you always make when I don't do things up to your standard."

"Up to my standard?" she repeated incredulously. "The hell is that supposed to mean?"

He shrugged. "Perfection."

"Just go back," she sighed as she gestured for him to go. Upon him not heeding her request, she called, "Nigel, tell him to go back."

"Yeah, Diego, listen to your girlfriend."

"No," Diego insisted as he leaned further down. "I want you to tell me."

"I thought you said not to," Natalia pointed out as she raised her eyebrows.

"Yeah, but just do it. But don't tell" —he gestured over to Nigel, who was wiping the sweat from his forehead— "him."

"Nigel," Natalia instead called, "take him back."

"Diego," Nigel ordered as he pointed towards the spot Diego had been standing in before, "you come back here and keep trainin' or else I'll take your girlfriend from you."

"Ye—" Natalia paused after processing his words, and her face scrunched. "Wait, what?"

Nigel waved a dismissive hand. "Just sayin'."

"Okay . . ." Her eyes narrowed before she chuckled and motioned for Diego to go once again. "Go."

"I hate you," he mumbled under his breath before walking back.

Nigel sighed as rolled his shoulders back. "Now that you're finished with your nap—"

"I was standing over there for two minutes."

"—let's get back to business."

Diego rolled his eyes as he adjusted his gloves, and he glanced over to Natalia, who made sure to plaster an encouraging smile on her face. He raised his eyebrows at her before turning back to Nigel and began fighting him once more.

Natalia watched with a small smile, focusing on the look of determination on Diego's face rather than the terrible mistakes he'd make every now and then.

A few minutes later, he stopped again, and an exasperated sigh left his lips. "What is it, Nat?"

"What?" she scoffed incredulously as she straightened up and threw her hands into the air. "I didn't say shit!"

"The face."

Her incredulity only increased. "I was smiling!"

"It was fake."

"It wasn't."

"I can tell," he sighed as he wiped his forehead and walked towards her. "What'd I do wrong?"

"Yo, why you going to her for advice?" called Nigel, who had a baffled expression on his face. "I'm right here. Also, I'm the one training you!"

"Ah," Diego gave a dismissive wave towards the other man as he reassured him, "don't mind it, Nigel."

Nigel walked over next to Diego and looked towards Natalia with furrowed eyebrows. "Do you box?"

She shrugged. "It's been a really long time."

"Then why the hell are you asking her what you're doing wrong?" Nigel questioned as he returned his gaze to Diego. "No offence," he quickly added, causing her to shake her head and wave a dismissive hand.

Diego ignored the other man as he jumped out of the ring and came to Natalia's side. "Tell me."

Natalia glanced up towards Nigel, who was in the middle of rolling his eyes and turning the other way, and sighed. "Fine. But you won't get mad?"

He shrugged. "I'm asking you for help."

She folded her arms and thought to herself for a moment before murmuring, "Lean more weight on your back foot; rotate your hips more when you're dodging; he keeps his fists way too high, so it opens up his chest and stomach; bounce more on your toes; try parrying more rather than just dodging, it saves time; tuck your elbows in a little more—"

"Christ," he interjected with furrowed eyebrows, "I didn't think you were going to give me a ten-page list."

She gave him an amused smile. "That wasn't even a fourth of it."

"I hate you," he groaned. 

Her eyebrows lifted as she dubiously questioned, "Do you?"

Diego glared at her for a moment before a small grin broke out on his face. "No."

"Go back." She patted his sweaty shoulder and kissed his cheek. "Beat his ass."

Diego's grin broadened before nodding, and he headed back into the ring. 

"Finally," Nigel sighed as he adjusted his headgear and met Diego in the middle. "You ready?"

"Oh, I'm ready," Diego reassured him. 

Natalia folded her arms as she watched Diego spread his feet to be shoulder-width apart, with his left foot leading. A smile spread onto her face as she watched him put more weight on his back foot while he raised his fists—his left under his cheek and his right just under his chin.

The two quickly began exchanging punches and jabs, while simultaneously dodging and parrying the other's move. 

Nigel made to do a cross punch, but Diego quickly parried it as he knocked it toward the other side. He rotated his hips and shoulders to avoid another punch that was sent to his head and sent another punch toward Nigel's chest, which he did successfully.

Natalia grinned. She loved when Diego actually took her advice. 

Diego bent his legs to avoid a hook to the head and lunged towards Nigel to jab his stomach, sending him stumbling backwards.

Nigel quickly regained his balance and bounced on his toes for a few moments to catch his breath before trying to strike Diego once again, though his body weaved around the punch, and it hit only air instead.

"Who are you?"

Natalia spun around to see an older man much shorter than her, in around his sixties, who was wearing a beanie and had narrowed eyes. "Oh, hi. I'm, uh . . . Natalia. Kim."

His eyes narrowed further as he examined her blouse and jeans. "You a coach or somethin'?"

"Oh" —she shook her head— "no."

His eyebrows raised as his eyes flicked to Diego and Nigel (Diego had just parried another punch). "Really?"

She turned her eyes back to the fight as the man came to her side. "Mhm."

"Huh." The man paused for a moment as they watched Diego duck to avoid a punch and send a jab to Nigel's chest. "You gave Hargreeves over there some advice?"

"Yeah, just a bit," Natalia answered with a shrug. "How'd you know?"

"Eh, Nigel would usually have him knocked out by now," the man explained, his grin showing off his small teeth. "Also saw the two of ya's whisperin'."

She nodded. "Ah."

He turned to her, and his eyes carefully inspected her before he asked, "You box?"

"I used to," she answered with a shrug. "Years ago."

"How you know Hargreeves, if you're not a coach or boxer?"

"Oh, I'm his girlfriend," she replied as she gestured toward Diego. 

The man's eyebrows furrowed. "Really?"

"Yeah," she confirmed. 

Her attention was suddenly turned to the ring as a grunt rang out, and she grinned once she saw that Diego had managed to knock Nigel to the ground. 

Diego helped the other man up, grinning as Nigel slapped him on the shoulder and muttered something to him. The two of them slipped off the ring and headed towards Natalia and the man as they took their gear off.

Natalia grinned as Diego came to her side. "Guess my advice helped."

"Just a little," he humoured her before lifting a hand towards the man. "Hey, Al."

Al stared at him for a moment. "Hargreeves."

Diego's eyebrows furrowed. "Yeah?"

"You should bring your girlfriend around more often," chuckled Al. "You do better when she tells ya what to do."

A teasing smile appeared on Natalia's face as she rounded on Diego. "Well, I do love telling Diego what to do . . ."

"I don't mind havin' her around more," Nigel added with a grin.

Diego rolled his eyes in amusement as he leaned over and punched Nigel's arm playfully. "Stop flirting with my girlfriend, man."