She smiled. “You’re welcome. Any requests for lunch?”
I shook my head.“No, what you’re making is fine.”
“Perfect.”She offered a smile and I returned it before going to find Ryland. I crossed the house, taking the stairs to the basement.
We hadn’t toured this part of the house yesterday and I assumed it was because neither me nor Rylee would be spending much time here. It felt very much like a glorified man cave.
There were flat screens on two of the walls facing each other, a bar in the corner, and sofas that contrasted the one in the living room because they were more comfy looking with rounded cushions instead of the block design of the ones upstairs.
It smelled like Ryland, woodsy and sweet, like sandalwood and bergamot. I followed the instructions and walked to the end of the hall where the walls shifted to tinted glass and I saw a bunch of expensive equipment inside, a treadmill, an exercise bike, an elliptical, and a weight machine similar to what was in a gym, but I didn’t see Ryland until I fully entered the room.
He was sitting in a cold plunge tub positioned in the corner, head back and eyes closed. As soon as I cleared the door, his gaze was on me. His eyes swept me from head to toe before he sighed.
“Thought I was going to have to come drag you out of bed.”
I took him in, the parts of his body I had access to. Broad shoulders and thick arms inked by a very talented artist because they looked damn good. The one on his right arm was my favorite. A football field, flames, a football, and two helmets. The words fear nothing stretched the length of the field.
I grinned.“It’s a very comfortable bed. Can you blame me?”
He chuckled.“I don’t. It’s the same one I have in my room.”
“So this is really a thing, huh?”I asked, nearing the tub, noticing his body submerged in ice water.
“Unfortunately, yes. It helps but it’s also torture.”
“I thought this happened after games.”
“Usually, yes, but I skipped it the other day because I had a flight to catch. I paid for not following my routine so I’m trying to make up for it now.”
“Sorry about that,”I signed.
“Not your fault. Don’t apologize.”
“I met J-O-Y. She seems nice.”
And she’s pretty.
“She’s new. I wanted to hire someone you and Rylee could communicate with, but if she doesn’t fit, we can try someone else.”
“Rylee’s making Italian subs. I think she fits.”I grinned at how comfortable Rylee seemed with Joy.
“So what’s on the agenda for the day?”I asked, feeling awkward standing here ogling the man while discreetly trying to see what he was wearing. Most visuals I’d seen of athletes in ice baths were just them in spandex and I wanted a peek. After enjoying the visuals of all his assets on social media, I needed real-time proof that it was just the angles and not the man.
“I would like to give Rylee a few days to wrap her mind around being here, but she probably needs to be enrolled in school. Unless you decided on homeschooling. I have to do everything by the book so there isn’t anything they can hold against me when it’s time to apply for permanent custody.”
“We should probably get her enrolled somewhere. Me being here is temporary. I don’t want Rylee relying on having me around and creating yet another thing in her life that will change,”I signed, noticing his gaze narrow a little before he nodded and his hands were moving.
“I agree. She needs to adjust to life here with me. Did you have any thoughts on the schools I sent? I can call and set up tours.”
I did a mental inventory of the schools he sent as options and provided my opinion on my top two.
“Chandler Academy is my top pick. Being at a school similar to Harrington would be the best option in my opinion. It won’t be as much of a culture shock. But I’m also not opposed to Little Einsteins. Their programs for Deaf and hard of hearing students closely mirror the way things were set up at Harrington. The added bonus of hearing students sharing the classroom with Rylee might be a good thing. She functionedfine in public school, although their resources weren’t that great. I don’t feel that will be an issue at Little Einsteins.”
“I’ll call and get an appointment for a tour. I already reached out to explain the situation and both were more than willing to accommodate getting Rylee enrolled.”He extended an arm, reaching for a towel hooked on a metal stand next to the tub.
Once he had it in hand, Ryland stood, and well… fuck. My gaze moved the length of his body, enjoying the visual of muscled brown skin, more ink down his right side—some type of tribal artwork—and muscled thighs. My eyes moved up to the white spandex shorts that covered his lower half, now very much see through because they were soaked. The outline of a very impressive dick was pressed against his thigh, and considering the man was just submerged in ice water, there was no way it should have been as long and thick as what I was witnessing.
I didn’t snap out of my perusal until Ryland moved, stepping out of the tub and standing beside it. My eyes darted up to find him running the towel over his chest, wearing a smug grin.