Page 178 of Untying the Knot
Nichole:You don’t. There is nothing here for you.
Myla:That’s not true. You’re there. My life was there.
Nichole:Your life is with Ryot.
“Hey, babe.” I glance up from my phone to where Ryot is standing at the end of my lounger. “We should get ready for the wedding. It starts in an hour.”
“Oh, okay,” I say as I stuff my phone in my bag, Nichole’s words ringing through my ears.
Your life is with Ryot.
Is she right? At one point, I thought it was. I thought my life revolved around him, and his life revolved around me, but then, he retired, and everything changed. Could it be that if we worked hard enough, we could get back to where it used to be?
“Everything okay?” he asks as he grabs my bag from me and then takes my hand. When he starts to move, I stop him and tug on his hand so he’s facing me.
“Ryot?”
“Yeah?” he asks, a crease of concern on his brow.
“I’m proud of you,” I say, the words feeling like a sense of relief as they slip off my tongue. “Really proud of you.”
“What? Why?”
I place my hand on his chest, and I quietly say, “The Jock Report. You’ve worked so hard to create something that helps others. And I know that it’s damaged a part of us, but I want you to know that what you’ve created, it’s huge, and you should be proud of yourself. Because I am.”
His eyes soften, and he lowers his forehead to mine. Quietly, he whispers, “Thank you.”
I move my lips up to his and gently kiss him before pulling away. “You’re welcome. And this new opportunity with ESPN? It’s amazing, Ryot. It truly is. You’re perfect for the segment. Charming, handsome, knowledgeable, and you care, which matters the most.”
“Myla, we don’t have to talk about that.”
“No, but I need you to know I’m proud of you. I don’t want you to hide your accomplishments from me, ever.”
He sighs heavily as he brings our linked hands up to his mouth and presses a kiss to my knuckles. “That means more to me than you know.” His voice is strained, and it makes me sad because I know in other circumstances, he wouldn’t be so concerned about me, but rather, we’d be celebrating this great news.
“Okay,” I say, gripping his hand tighter. “Let’s go get ready.”
We make our way through the hotel and to our room. We don’t say much other than how our mornings were, simple things like that, but I’m not sure there’s much to talk about after the conversation we just had, so I’m grateful for the uncomplicated chat.
When we’re in the room, Ryot sets my bag down while I walk over to the bathroom. Since my hair is already in a bun, I turn on the shower and strip down to nothing just as Ryot walks in and leans against the bathroom doorway. His eyes peruse me, hunger tainting them as he wets his lips with his tongue.
“You’re so fucking fine,” he says as his eyes reach up to mine. He removes his shirt and pushes down his shorts.
I smirk.I do love naked Ryot.“Speak for yourself.”
I move into the shower and wet down my body as Ryot opens the door and slips in as well.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“Showering with the hottest girl I know.”
“I can’t get my hair wet.”
“Can you get other things wet?” he asks with a waggle of his brow.
“Do you expect cheesy lines like that to turn me on?”
He chuckles, then turns me around and covers my back with his large body. His hands smooth up my sides to my breasts, where he cups them. I feel his erection grow against my backside as he toys with my nipples.
