I don’t know if I’m happy or mad that my ten o’clock appointment got rescheduled. The odds of that being purely a coincidence are very low. It reeks of Brady.
He’s been giving me some space this week. The only times I’ve seen him were at his three appointments and then again last night, when I ran into him bringing a few more boxes to his new place. But every time I saw him, he mentioned the photo shoot. He wanted to make sure I was going to be there.
I contemplate skipping the shoot altogether in protest, but after fifteen minutes of brooding in my office, the pull to see what’s happening on the other side of the gym is strong. I walk into the reception area and then back to the part of the gym they’ve cordoned off for the shoot. They’ve erected screens around it so gym patrons can’t see in, and bright lights are reflecting off the ceiling above.
I approach the entrance to the area and Mason, who appears to be standing guard, waves me by.
“If you stand over in that corner, you’ll be out of the way,” he says, ushering me past some other people.
I didn’t really want to be one of the few who are witnessing the shoot, but now I feel obligated to stay, seeing how I’d have to walk by everyone to leave.
I see Brady standing off to the side as Griffin, one of the other owners of the gym, who is also a big-time photographer, poses Murphy for some photos in front of a weight machine.
Brady sees me and walks over. “Glad you could stop by.”
I eye him skeptically. “It’s not like I had a choice or anything.”
“You always have a choice, Ry.” He winks at me.
I have a hard time not staring at his chest. He’s wearing nothing but athletic shorts and he’s been sprayed with some kind of oily mixture that makes him look like he’s been working out. There is a fine sheen across his body, and his muscles – oh, my gosh – they are more glorious than I remembered.
He catches me staring. “They have me pump iron before every set of pictures, it helps my muscles look bigger for a few minutes.”
“Because they aren’t big enough as it is?” I ask, clearly swooning over his half-nakedness.
He snickers. “I’m glad you approve.”
“Are you done? Did I miss it?”
“No, I did my single shots first and now Murphy’s doing hers. When she’s done, he will shoot us together.”
I stare at Murphy, who’s been made up to look even more beautiful than she already is. It looks like they had her get a spray tan as she’s absolutely glowing. She’s completely in her element. I know she wanted to be a model before her face got damaged. But with makeup, you can barely see her scar and if you can, it makes her look edgy.
An attractive woman comes up to me. “Are you Rylee?”
“I am.”
“I’m Skylar Pearce, Griffin’s wife. Murphy tells me you have a three-year-old son. I wanted to introduce myself and let you know I have two kids myself and would love to get together sometime.”
“It’s really nice to meet you, Skylar. I would love that. Are you the restaurant manager Murphy told me about?”
“Yes. I manage my parents’ place, Mitchells NYC. You should come in if you get a chance. We have a great kids menu.”
“I’ll do that. Thank you.”
She hands me her card. “I have to get to work, but I wanted to stop by and see the excitement and meet you. Call me and we’ll set something up.”
“She seems nice,” I say to Brady after she walks away.
“Yeah, she does. I don’t know her all that well, but she’s right – we need to take you to Mitchell’s. It’s really good there.”
“Are you asking me out on a date, Brady?”
“I don’t know. Is that allowed?” He leans down and whispers in my ear. “I know we said no sex. But there was kissing. Really. Good. Kissing. I’d like to have some more kissing and that usually comes after a date. So how about it?”
He’s standing next to me half-naked whispering to me about kissing. I feel myself go weak in the knees.
“Don’t you leave tomorrow?”
“Yeah, but we’ll be home Thursday. So how about next Saturday? Do you think you could find a sitter?” He shrugs uncomfortably. “Or you could bring Stryker.”
I appreciate the fact that he’s trying to include my son. But I know how hard it is for him. Maybe easing him into things would be better. “I think I could arrange a sitter.”
“Brady, we’re ready for you,” Griffin’s assistant calls out.
“Fifty-five days, Ry. Don’t think I’m not counting.”
I laugh as he walks across the room. He doesn’t need to know I’m counting, too.
Brady drops to the floor and does a few dozen push-ups and then someone hands him some barbells, helping him maintain the grip with his left hand as he pumps a few rounds. I know it kills him to need help with his grip, but he doesn’t let his disappointment show. And, whoa – what his muscles look like when he’s done.
Now I realize what he’s been doing all week. He kissed me senseless on Sunday and left me wanting more. Then he tantalizes me all week with his fleeting glances and deliberate touches during his appointments. And he brings me here, knowing I’ll see him all buffed up and looking like freaking Tarzan. He wants me to want him. He wants me to squirm during our time apart. He wants me to daydream about how I’m seeing him now.
Griffin positions Murphy on a weight bench and he has Brady standing over her helping her with a free weight. They do various poses, moving an arm this way or a leg that way until Griffin is happy with the photo. Then he has Murphy sit up on the bench and Brady sit behind her as Murphy looks back at him like she’s in love with him.
Griffin snaps a bunch of shots and then puts down his camera. “Brady, show me some emotion. You see how Murphy is looking at you? You two are the hottest couple at the gym. You are who everyone wants to be. Let’s bring the fantasy out for the camera. Look at her like you want her. Like you can’t live without her. Like you want to rip off her clothes and devour her.”
Brady raises his eyebrows at Griffin. “Dude, she’s my best friend’s girl.”
“It’s called acting, bro,” Griffin says. “Caden knows it as well as everyone here in this room. Sex sells. She’s sexy. You’re sexy. The two of you together are off the charts. Dig deep and do what you need to do to make it happen.”
Brady’s eyes find mine. He stares at me long and hard. The rest of the world melts away as I read what he’s telling me with only his heated gaze. We share one incredible moment. An indescribable connection. And suddenly, I can’t wait for it to be next Saturday.
“Exactly!” Griffin shouts. “Just like that.”
Brady pulls his eyes away from me and looks at Murphy the same way he was just looking at me. Griffin was right, they are hot. I watch them make love to each other with their stares. It’s almost hard not to get jealous as I watch the two of them.
Twenty minutes later, when they’re done, Murphy pulls me off to the side. “Holy shit, girl. Whatever you are doing to that man, keep doing it.”
“I’m not doing anything, Murphy.”
“Are you kidding? The way he looked at you. The way you looked at him. I felt like I was watching a fully-dressed porn show. You rose the temperature in the room by ten degrees.” She laughs.
“But he was looking at you the same way,” I say.
She shakes her head. “No, he wasn’t. He may have been looking at me, Rylee, but all he was seeing was you.”
I look over her shoulder at him. He lifts his chin at me on his way out. “I have something for you,” he says. “But I’m going to hit the shower first.”
I check my watch. “I have a client in ten. Unless you rescheduled that one, too.”
He gives me an innocent smile. “I’ll be quick.”
I retreat to my office and sit in my chair, wondering, not for the first time this week, if it can really work between us. There are so many reasons why it can’t. Why it shouldn’t. He leaves tomorrow. He leaves for the start of the season. To the first of many cities and to the first of many girls.
There is a knock on my door and I look up to see a wet-haired Brady, dressed in jeans and a t-shirt.
“Hi,” is all I can say.
“Hi, yourself.” He walks in and sits in the chair in front of my desk. He holds out a key to me.
“What’s that?”
“It’s a key to my new place.”
“A what?” I stand up so forcefully, my chair falls over. “If you think—”
“Will you shut up for two seconds, Ry, and let me finish?”
I put my hands on my hips and stare at him.
“The movers are coming tomorrow. It’s the only day I could schedule them. I’m not comfortable giving them a key. I know it’s a lot to ask, but do you think you could, I don’t know, supervise them for me? The building manager at my old place is going to handle things on that end, but I don’t know anyone well enough in the new building. It would mean a lot to me. I have some pretty nice things, Rylee. Things I’d like to make sure are treated with respect.”
I close my eyes and breathe a sigh of relief. Then I hold my hand out. “Sure. I can do that. Do they know where everything goes?”
“They can put things wherever you think they should go.”
“Me? I can’t make those decisions.”
“Whatever you tell them will be fine with me, and if I don’t like something, I’ll just move it. It’s not a big deal.”
“Okay, if you’re sure.”
“I’m sure,” he says, getting up to leave. Before he goes out the door he turns around. “I’m going to miss you, Ry. I just wanted you to know that. I’ve gotten used to seeing your face every day.”
“I suppose I’ll miss you too,” I say. Then I look down at the key in my hand. “But just so you know, you’ll be getting this back as soon as you return from Arizona.”
He smiles big. “So, you know where I’m going, do you?”
I shrug. “I’m a Hawks fan, of course I do.”
He laughs as he walks away.
I sink back down into my chair and look at the key, turning it over and over in my hand.