Page 75 of Risky Move

Tom chuckled. “Neither of the above. What if I called you my girlfriend? Would that bother you?”

“Of course not! I just can’t see myself referring to you as aboy-friend…”

Tom’s cinnamon eyes teased her. “How about your personal physician?”

“That could work...” Cassie pretended to peruse the menu. “Don’t suppose you’d go along withmy hot, hunky, hockey doc?”

“That would be a hard no.” Tom laughed as he shook his head. “Objectifying men?”

“I’m not talking about every man—just you.” Cassie hid behind the menu. “Just forget I said anything…told you I was just pondering.”

Tom took the menu from her and reached across the table to take her hand. “Are you having doubts about us?”

“Not really…”

“We talked about an exclusive relationship, a commitment to see where the journey takes us. Second thoughts?”

“None, but what I feel for you scares me. What if we’re not on the same page?”

Tom kissed her palm. “If you knew my feelings, you might run in the opposite direction.”

Cassie looked at him with a small smile. “I know we agreed to see where our relationship takes us. I don’t want to get ahead of things, but I’m way past the Friendship Zone. I don’t want to set myself up for a broken heart.” Cassie bit her tongue, realizing she’d just admitted just how much she had fallen for this man.

“Cassie, I have no intention of breaking your heart. I know I want…us…”He pointed between them, “…to continue our journey.” He winked as he sipped his water. “I promise I’ll always be honest with you, babe, though, I suspect we’re on the same page right now. Would I scare you if I said I’m falling in love with you—if I’m not already there?”

Cassie didn’t expect the wave of emotions to crash over her. Her gaze blurred, and she pinched the bridge of her nose, but not before a single tear had escaped. She flicked it away and took a deep breath.

“No, those would be the happiest words I could ever hear.”

Tom squeezed her hand. “I think I’ve loved you since the first time I saw you at the airport. I love you, Cassie Johnson. You slipped your way into my heart, and I don’t want to let you go.” His cinnamon eyes locked with hers. She saw the promise, commitment, and love in his expression.

She shut her eyes tightly to hold back the tears. “You know I love you, Tom. I’ve been afraid I’d blurt it out sometime and send you running.”

She saw the flash of amusement flicker across his eyes. “Not. A. Chance. I love you; I love everything about you, Cassie. You’re a breath of fresh air in a world full of phonies.”

40

Cassie floated in a bubble of happiness, determined to savor every moment while praying that she’d never awaken from this dream. She didn’t mention Tom when she called her mother to wish her a Happy New Year.Not listening to her snarky comments about men or questions about how a neurologist could love me. Definitely don’t need her telling me how much I’m risking by putting myself in this situation. Risk? What risk… that I might actually find happiness with a man? Risk a broken heart? Maybe… But I trust Tom—no matter what Mom thinks about men. He never pushes, lets me set the pace. If he’d just wanted a quick hookup, I probably would have been happy…but now, he says he loves me and wants to make plans for the future. Where I enroll in college. Career goals. But Mom would never believe that…I’m still just a kid in her eyes. An irresponsible, impulsive kid. And Tom’s like every other man.

She refused to give her mother a chance to dump cold water over her bubble.

No raised eyebrows greeted Tom and Cassie when they began spending their free time together. Cassie loved when Lauren spoke of them as a couple. Her heart soared every time Caryn, Terri, or Kelly referred to them as “Tom-and-Cassie”—like a single entity. She’d taken the job in Tampa hoping to decide a path for the future—and maybe date a professional hockey star. Instead, she’d discovered someone she wanted in her future and now tried to plan an educational path that would enable her to stay in Tampa.

Tom suggested she explore local community colleges for the core curriculum she’d need no matter what career she followed. Some even offered online courses that would mesh seamlessly with her schedule. She told Lauren and Dave and the Chadwicks when she applied for the upcoming semester, but hoped to surprise her parents when she presented her post-gap-year plan. With her twenty-first birthday in sight, Cassie felt a new resolve to show her independence.

Tom offered the use of the office in the apartment that he’d set up during his residency. Cassie thought her basic textbooks looked out of place surrounded by the medical tomes and journals, but she gratefully accepted the invitation. So far, her schoolwork coordinated smoothly with the evenings that Tom had to work or during the twins’ afternoon naps. Her days were full, but Cassie had never felt happier.

* * *

Tom’s part-time job as the Suns’ concussion specialist had resulted in few mandatory removals from games, with only a handful of players referred to the hospital for further evaluation. Occasionally, an opposing team’s coach or player argued the necessity of Tom’s decisions. Still, with the backing of the front office and buy-in from each team’s training staff, contested decisions quickly reached a resolution.

During the third period of a mid-January home game, Tom watched Andrew take a hard hit against the boards. He observed Andrew hit the glass head-first, then moved closer to the monitor to determine if his head bounced against the ice as he fell. Tom ignored the players squaring off around the boards, and scrutinized Andrew, waiting for him to move.

Andrew had pushed himself to his knees by the time Pettit reached his side. He shook his head when Jim Pettit spoke, and Tom guessed his brother would try to convince the trainer he could stay on the ice.No surprise—he’ll insist he’s okay.After watching his brother skate a few feet away from Pettit, Tom knew Andrew needed further evaluation.

Andrew resisted Pettit’s attempt to skate him toward the bench until Steve Rogers and John Peterson quickly escorted him off the ice and down the tunnel to the training room.

“Where do you want him?” John asked when he saw Tom. Andrew shook off the hands helping him and entered the darkened room before Tom could respond.

---