Page 105 of Gloves Off

Besides, he cancelled training. I doubt he does that often.

“Fine. Deal.” My mouth slides into a smile and he looks at my lips again. “Good luck, Coach Volkov.”

CHAPTER 50

ALEXEI

“Stop,”I yell while the girls run the drills Georgia briefed me on earlier that night. “Bring it in.”

The girls wander over to where I wait on the sidelines. It’s cold out tonight, and our breath puffs in the air.

“Cara, you’re on a low-impact plan. Why are you jumping?”

She shrugs. “I feel okay tonight. I can do it.”

I’ve noticed a few of them ignoring their limitations, pushing themselves hard during the exercises tonight.

“Just because you feel okay doesn’t mean you’re at your ability before you got injured. Coach Georgia knows what she’s doing. She’s a world expert. Do you think the NHL hires just anyone?”

They shake their heads.

“Do you think she’d limit you if she thought you were fully healed?”

More head shakes. The girls look guilty, some wear frowns like they’re pissed off or disappointed, and I feel a wrench of emotion in my chest.

“Look.” I swallow. “I know how it feels to be injured. All you want to do is get back to where you were before.”

“We want to play hard because we’ve always played hard,” one girl says.

“That’s how we got so good,” another says.

“I know. Two years ago, I was in the hospital from a concussionand wasn’t allowed to play for three months.” Even the memory makes me feel sick. Watching from the bench while my teammates did all the heavy lifting. “Being forced to do nothing was torture. I know how hard it is to sit out from your sport when it’s what you love. Rest isn’t nothing, though. Just because you aren’t pushing your body to the limit doesn’t mean it isn’t productive.” I wiggle my bad shoulder. “My shoulder didn’t heal properly and now it hurts most of the time.” I give them a sidelong glance. “Don’t tell Georgia that.”

A few of them smile.

“Rest is part of training, so commit to it. If you’re going to get better, do it right. Think of it like another hard thing. Another challenge. The better you heal, the better you’ll play when you return. Coach Georgia wants you to regain full ability, even if it takes longer. She’s rooting for you.” I make alet’s gogesture. “Let’s run the drill again.”

This time, they’re careful. They check their form, slow it down, frown with focus. Cara isn’t jumping. In the center of my chest, something squeezes.

“Good,” I yell. “Nice work.”

At the end of practice, the girls are tired. I can see it in their faces, in the way they move slower than before, and the way they laugh and smile less. I think back to Georgia and how much the girls like her. I think about how she was during practice, encouraging and fun, and the urge to impress her rises in me.

I don’t want the girls to tell her I did a bad job at this. This is practice, but they should enjoy it.

I glance at my watch—fifteen minutes left.

Georgia would do something to lift their spirits. Something to make them feel good about their skills and progress.

“Bring it in,” I call to them. “Drink some water and then line up in the middle of the field, single file, facing the goal.

“What are we doing?” one of them asks.

“Shoot-out.”

A buzz of interest rolls through them. They’re glancing at one another and smiling.

“Fuck yeah,”I hear one of them whisper.

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