by Gossamer on March 15th, 2010, 12:07 am
Truthfully, she watched in amusement as he did all her work for her. Summer normally took the time to undress the clients, starting with their boots, and gave them a completely pampered experience where all they truly had to do was relax. But, if the man wanted to tend to it himself, that was fine by her, of course. The customer, after all, was always right. And besides, she was starting to see the man had a sense of humor and a confidence that was normally lacking in some of the frequent customers.
So while he was busy himself, Summer took the time to slip out of her own attire. Nudity in Syliras was not really a taboo. The bathhouse did not have separate areas for men and women, above and beyond the private rooms. Everyone joined together in the main bath - though truthfully it was mostly comprised of men. Clothing was always optional, more due to the nature that cloth was precious and sometimes the harsh soaps they used on their skin was not necessarily best for the garments. Laundry was offered, which allowed customers to have cleaned and dried (courtesy of a water reimancer that was particularly gifted at removing water from things) in time for the client to slide into clean clothing just about the time their body was clean.
At Jaeden's question, Summer was happy to show him. "We have kettles on the roof that heat water in the summer, but this time of year the hot water comes from boilers that we run from stormgems in the basement beneath the offices where the laundry is." She walked over, gestured to the pipes bringing the water in (while keeping an eye on the pool filling that was going to indeed take a few minutes) and showed him how to operate the shower. "It's a rinse, to take the dirt, trail dust, and muck off before you soak in the pool. These two leavers here? They operate hot water and well water. The well water is very very cold, the hot water is boiling, so you stand here, to one side, open them up slowly, and adjust the flow of each until you get just the right mix." And then, being a guy, she stepped back, and let him obviously play with a contraption that of course all men wanted to play with. "When its the perfect temperature, go ahead and step in." She invited, then moved around the room quickly doing some other chores.
His laundry sitting next to the basin was placed down a chute. A basket of thick towels was placed next to the tub along with a tray of soaps and shampoos as well as a razor, a strap, and a mug water could be added to in order to make fresh foam.
Summer moved with a confidence that showed she had no problems doing her job and enjoying it. And while her body wasn't one of a hardened warrior, it wasn't flabby or soft either. Jaeden could tell she worked hard, ate right, and took exceptionally good care of herself. Young, but he knew that already, she had a love of life and was decidedly a natural blond.
Once he'd stepped into the shower, Summer joined him sliding in carefully behind him. There was plenty of room as she reached forward, laid her hands on his shoulders a moment, then picked up a stiff but soft bristled brush and began to gently work it across his skin letting the water sluice away any debris or combination of dust and sweat on his skin. "First, we'll rinse here, then the bath will be done enough that we can move in and relax. I've got it filling with extra hot water, so while we get comfortable, I'll give you a shave and a trim on your hair since it needs the ends done." She said smiling as she talked to him through the spray of water. Even standing behind him, she missed nothing, running the brush over every inch of him. Sometimes she had to press against his back to reach parts of his front, but she didn't seem to mind. Each foot was even carefully lifted, scrubbed, then replaced on the floor.
As she worked, she talked, though her voice was by no means obnoxious or irritating. "Soothing Waters has been here as long as the city has been. The Dyres family opened the bathhouse to accommodate the knights. Sometimes we get men in here that are so wounded nothing but exercise in the water really helps them recover, especially muscle damage. The Syliran Knights believe a clean population is a healthy one too. I think its a good principle, don't you?" The girl asked, then moved on to talk about the water casually, then about the state of business currently in Syliras.
In fact, it was odd. She seemed so comfortable around Jaeden that he was almost convinced by her actions that they had talked before, that she did know him, that there was some sort of 'old friends' history there even though he knew they had never met. And she was causal about touching him, hesitating nowhere, and flinching away from nothing. By the time she had completed the rise, her hair had damped to a dark golden brown and she was ready to lead him over to the bath.