Page 36 of Cross Check Hearts

Something protective stirs in my chest at that, some little impulse to defend her. I don’t see why the two things have to be mutually exclusive, especially if Hannah enjoys and is good at them both, but I try my best not to let my thoughts show on my face.

“Anyway, don’t let me keep you, Murray. I can talk all day long, but I’m sure you’ve got better things to do.”

“Thanks for the talk, Coach. I appreciate it.”

“Anytime. But remember what I said.”

“I will. I actually have a session with Hannah in a bit, so I’d better get cleaned up.”

Dunaway raises his eyebrows. “Oh, good. I’ll have to tell her to keep up the good work. If the pivot I just saw you do is any indication of your progress, you’re going to be a real killer after another few sessions.”

“I’ll try. See you later, Coach.”

Dunaway waves as I turn and skate across the ice to go to the locker room, but his words follow me.

I know I’m good at hockey—I wouldn’t have ended up on the Aces if I weren’t—but hearing that Dunaway believes in me this much makes me realize there’s a lot more riding on me and my performance than just my reputation. He’s putting his on the line too by giving me one hell of a big break with the Aces like this, so I don’t want to let him down or disappoint him by being reckless and overdoing it.

That makes me feel even more guilty about keeping whatever is going on between me and Hannah a secret from him, but I don’t really have a choice. They’d probably both stop talking to me—or worse—if I came clean with him. And both Hannah and hockey have become essential to me in different ways.

He’s right, the yoga practice is good for me, and not just for making me better on the ice. It’s good for my mental health too, which is just as important. And there’s no one else I’d rather be learning from than Hannah.

But I don’t know how I’m going to be able to keep seeing her for lessons without something eventually getting out about us. Because the attraction I feel to her is only getting stronger the more time we spend together, and it’s making me lose it a little bit. I mean, we made out in a very public parking lot last week where her not-quite-boyfriend or anyone else she knows easily could’ve seen us and told Dunaway. I wouldn’t put it past that Aaron guy to do exactly that if he ever got the chance.

So we’re going to have to be careful going forward.Extremelycareful. And I’m going to have to do my best not to do anything that would get either one of us in trouble. It sounds like Hannah already has so much on her plate between her teaching and law school, and I don’t want to do anything that might ruin either one of those things for her. Or that might put my spot on the Aces in question.

But resisting her is like trying to fight gravity—theoretically possible but practically impossible.

I shake my head and hit the showers, hoping it’ll help quiet my thoughts… but it only offers a temporary reprieve.

Because as soon as I park my bike outside the yoga studio half an hour later, every nerve ending in my body comes alive, anticipating seeing Hannah.

Keep it together, Murray. This doesn’t have to be complicated.

I take a few deep breaths to prepare myself after I slide my helmet off and fasten it to my bike, then put on my best nonchalant smile and stride right through the front door. Hannah’s already on her mat in the middle of what is probably the wildest yoga pose I’ve ever seen.

She has her back to me, but she’s standing on her head and hands with her legs extended in a perfectly straight line above her. A grin splits my face—and all my resolve drains right out of me at the sight of her like this, her muscles flexed and engaged, her body demonstrating a strength and control that’s mesmerizing.

“I knew you were flexible, but this is something else,” I say, speaking quietly so that I won’t startle her.

Her gaze shoots to mine in the mirrors that line the wall in front of her, and she smiles, but it looks like a frown since she’s upside down. She lowers her knees down to her elbows for balance, then shifts her feet back to the ground and rights herself, flipping her beautiful dark ponytail out of her face.

“It’s a headstand. It’s advanced, but I can teach you if you want.”

“I might be a hockey player, but I’m in no hurry to break my nose, so I’m gonna pass,” I tell her, and she laughs and shrugs.

“Suit yourself. But for a hotshot like you, it’s bound to happen sooner or later. Assuming you’re telling the truth about it never being broken,” she says and steps closer to take my nose in her fingers, inspecting it.

My pulse quickens at her unexpected touch, innocent as it is, and my eyes instantly snap to hers. With her hand on my nose like this, I know she can feel how hard I’m breathing, but that’s good. I want her to know what she does to me.

“Looks like your nose is straight,” she says, her voice sounding a little strained as she lets go of me. But then her expression changes, like a switch has flipped in her brain and she’s back to business. “Ready to get started?”

I shrug. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”

“Love the enthusiasm,” she says with a smirk. “Do you remember the poses from last time?”

“I think so?”

“Alright, then let’s see what you’ve got,” she says and waves a hand above one of the mats, inviting me to prove it. The poses weren’t that complicated, so I do my best to recreate them from memory, and when I’m finished, she nods at me. “Not bad. I’m impressed.”

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