Chapter 3
CHAPTER THREE
He should not work out in his own house. Victor knew that in the same way he knew not to leave a pan unattended on high heat or to underestimate a five-year-old with a head full of questions and her mother’s stubborn streak. Some lessons were simply understood, while others came with a jolt.
Off-season training meant structure and discipline. It meant reclaiming control of a body that had spent months being battered, tested, and pushed to its limits. It meant early morning runs, controlled breathing, and reps counted in his head.
Every summer since he’d joined the Baltimore Stingrays, Victor had done the majority of his off-season workouts with the team because, despite having a decent gym in his own home, he preferred the equipment at the training facility.
The team gym allowed him to focus and ensured there were no distractions. Like the mail carrier dropping off a package. Or the washing machine buzzer telling him it was time to switch the load to the dryer. Or remembering mid-workout that he forgot to take something out to thaw for dinner.
Plus, he got a better workout with his teammates, who pushed him to go harder and longer.
However, knowing that didn’t matter. Because it was becoming too damn obvious that he was going to keep working out at home this summer.
Despite the biggest distraction of all.
As if his thoughts had summoned her, Belle walked into the gym, pulling up short when she saw him. He was halfway through a set of pushups, his shoulders burning, sweat sliding down his back.
She froze in the doorway like she’d walked into the wrong room.
He was glad he was still in the pushup position because, thanks to the sight of Belle in her oversized T-shirt, one side slipping off the shoulder, and her cut-off denim shorts, he was rock hard, his cock tenting his workout shorts.
Why the hell had he stripped off his shirt?
For a second—one long, suspended second—they just stared at each other, and his brain shut down.
He forgot how many reps he’d done, what set he was on.
Forgot how to function as a normal human being.
Instead, all he could focus on was how Belle’s wavy brown hair was pinned up in a messy bun on the top of her head, and how much he’d like to pull the hair band out and wrap those soft tresses around his fist.
Yeah. That wasn’t helping him…or his cock. He probably looked like an idiot, holding the planking pose, but without a shirt to tug over his raging erection, he didn’t have much choice if he wanted to hide the impact she had on him.
“Sorry,” Belle said, blushing slightly.
He smirked at the way she tried not to look at his body—and failed.
“I saw Pip come this direction and I wanted to make sure she wasn’t in here using your weight bench as a jungle gym again. I didn’t realize you were working out.”
Victor grimaced, his arms screaming at him. He rolled to his ass, reaching for his shirt at the same time, pretending to wipe his sweaty chest with it when he was really using it as a shield. “I haven’t seen her yet this morning.”
“She probably kept on trucking to the kitchen,” Belle replied. “Her first order of business was to remind me that I promised to make her waffles. But first…coffee.” She muttered the word like it was the answer to all of life’s problems.
Victor chuckled. “I made a pot before coming in here. It should be ready.”
“You are a saint,” she said. “Should I make waffles for you too?”
“Fuck yeah. I’m almost finished here.” He was nowhere near finished. If he’d managed to pull himself away from the house and to the team gym, he would have put in another good hour or two, and he sure as shit wouldn’t ruin the work he’d done by pigging out on waffles drowning in syrup and butter.
Belle gave him a quick smile before heading down the hall to the kitchen, humming as she went.
He recalled how he’d bitched about her Mary Poppins attitude to his teammates.
Part of him truly had expected her cheery attitude to grate on his nerves, but so far, he’d found sharing a house with her surprisingly easy and enjoyable.
While they were polar opposites—personality-wise—somehow they made a great team when it came to caring for Pip.
Victor remained where he was for a beat longer, trying to will away his erection.
Then he dropped his head and powered through the rest of his set like a man being chased.
His muscles strained and his breathing sharpened, as he forced his focus back in place through sheer will.
When he finally pushed himself off the floor, he grabbed the shirt again and dragged it over his face.
Walking out to the hall, he started to head to his bedroom for a quick shower, then paused for a moment, listening to the sounds coming from his kitchen: cabinet doors opening and closing, the soft clink of a mug, Pip’s tinkling laughter as Belle sang some silly song she appeared to be making up on the spot about a lost spatula.
He’d been living on his own for well over fifteen years, so he’d grown accustomed to a quiet house. Typically, the only other voices to fill the place were the ones that came from the television.
He’d always told himself he liked the silence and the solitude, because the older he got, the more set in his ways he became. But there was no denying these new sounds of life were…nice.
Victor growled under his breath. Pip and Belle were only here for three months. After that, life was going to return to normal.
Normal.
He repeated that word to himself throughout his shower, the cold water serving as his reset, so that by the time he entered the kitchen, he felt more grounded.
Belle was the nanny.
She was practically family.
She was not available to him, even if he wanted a girlfriend…which he fucking didn’t.
He liked his life the way it was. Unencumbered, easy.
Fortunately for him, Pip was also a distraction—a welcome one.
As he sat down at the island, she monopolized his attention, telling him about some dream she’d had involving a purple dragon, a puppy, and how she’d been a princess in a castle made of marshmallows.
Belle flitted around the kitchen, placing a fluffy, golden-brown waffle in front of him.
“Fuck,” he muttered under his breath, aware he was going to have to return to the gym again today—and probably every day—because Belle was proving to be an amazing cook.
Victor was okay in the kitchen, but he didn’t ever push the limits or get fancy.
As a single man and a professional athlete, his dinners were pretty much always the same.
A protein—salmon or chicken—a salad, and some other vegetable he could heat up in the microwave.
“Uncle Vic,” Pip said, pointing to the swear jar. “I heard that.”
He grunted but didn’t argue. “Left my wallet in my bedroom.”
“That’s okay,” Pip said, putting a tick mark at the top of the picture she was coloring while eating. The paper was as sticky as her plate, but Pip didn’t let it deter her. “I’ll keep count.”
Belle laughed as she joined them with her own plate, pouring syrup all over the waffle before cutting it and digging in with gusto. Victor didn’t mean to stare, but watching her plump lips open, then hearing her moan of bliss was the sexiest thing he’d seen in a long time.
So much for the fucking cold shower and pep talk.
He was right back where he’d started in the gym.
It wasn’t until Belle’s gaze connected with his, and she tilted her head curiously, that he realized he’d been looking too long and too hard.
“Uh, what are you two planning to do today?” he asked, searching for some sense of normalcy.
“We’re taking a walk!” Pip shouted excitedly. “Mrs. Evans said I could play with her new puppy.”
“She adopted the most adorable corgi,” Belle added. “Named her Bunny.”
Pip continued the story. “She got Bunny because her other doggie, Pepper, went to Heaven.”
Mrs. Evans was Victor’s closest neighbor, and while he typically offered a wave whenever they were in their yards at the same time, he’d never initiated a conversation. Somehow, within eleven days at his place, Belle and Pip had befriended the woman enough to get her entire pet history.
“Sounds fun,” he said.
“Then we’re going swimming,” Pip added.
He ruffled his niece’s hair. “You didn’t have to tell me that part,” he teased. “Because you’ve been in the pool every single day since you got here.”
“That’s cuz I love the pool more than anything,” Pip said dramatically. They continued to chat as they ate, and once they were finished, he and Belle rose, working in tandem to clean the dishes.
“Okay, go get your shoes on, Pip, and we’ll head over to Mrs. Evans’s house.”
Pip groaned dramatically. “I don’t want shoes.”
“You said that yesterday. And the day before,” Victor replied. Pip would happily remain barefoot for the rest of her life if they’d allow it.
“And every day since the beginning of time,” Belle added with a grin. “But tragically, shoes are a must when walking on a hot sidewalk. Trust me, your feet will thank me.”
“Fine,” Pip said, sliding off the tall stool. “But I don’t like them.”
“Duly noted,” Belle said seriously.
He listened to their progress as they headed down the hall. He was still sipping his coffee in the kitchen when Pip darted back in to grab the puppy treats she and Belle had snuck into the cart when they were at the grocery store.
Pip started to race back out of the kitchen before turning in the doorway to give him a wave.
Belle popped her head in. “We’ll be back in a little while.”
“Take your time,” he said. “Give Pip enough time to play with the puppy that she gets bored. Otherwise, she’ll start demanding one of her own, and Viv would kick my ass if she came home to find a dog.”
Belle laughed. “You realize you’re the adult, right? And that you can say no.”
Victor snorted. “It’s like you don’t know Pip at all.”
“Pip or you?” the little minx retorted.
“Same difference,” he replied.