Page 76 of Offside for Christmas
The door opened and Coach Davis came back in, looking distinctly satisfied. "Matthews is in his rental car headed back to Boston. And I just got off the phone with the board. Told them in no uncertain terms that Ellie Winters is this team's physical therapist, and if they want to second-guess my personnel decisions, they can find a new coach."
Ellie's eyes widened. "Coach, you didn't have to—"
"Yes, I did. You were right. He was wrong. And more importantly, you've spent weeks doing everything right, and I'll be damned if some hotshot with a fancy tablet is going to undermine that." He looked at Cole. "How's the shoulder?"
"Minor strain. Week or so of rest."
Coach sighed. "So no Saturday game."
"No Saturday game," Ellie confirmed. "But he'll be ready for the home game next week. For real this time."
"Good enough." Coach headed for the door, then paused. "Ellie? Nice work. Both with Cole's shoulder and with putting Matthews in his place."
After he left, Ellie and Cole sat in silence for a moment. The adrenaline was fading, leaving her exhausted and oddly lighter.
"So," Cole said eventually. "That was fun."
"That was a disaster."
"But you won."
"You got hurt."
"Barely. Minor deltoid strain." He grinned slightly. "My physical therapist is really good. I'm sure she'll fix it."
Despite herself, Ellie laughed. "Your physical therapist is going to kill you if you ever pull something like that again."
"Noted."
She finished wrapping his shoulder, her hands steady and sure. When she was done, she stepped back, assessing her work.
Then, without really planning to, she started humming.
"Are you..." Cole blinked. "Are you humming a Christmas song?"
"Deck the Halls." Ellie couldn't help the small smile. "The winter festival is tomorrow. I'm allowed to be festive."
"You just put your career on the line and sent a guy packing, and now you're humming Christmas carols."
"I multi-task." She packed up her equipment, feeling genuinely good for the first time since Matthews had arrived. "Besides, I was right. My protocol was perfect. He was an arrogant jerk who got what he deserved."
"You're kind of scary when you're vindicated."
"Good. Remember that the next time you want to do something stupid to defend my honor." But she was smiling.
Cole stood carefully, testing his shoulder with a wince. "So. Tomorrow. Kids' skating event. I'll be there."
"Because you promised a kid?"
"Kid's got heart. Reminds me of why I loved hockey before it became a job."
"That's really sweet, Cole."
"It's not sweet. I'm just—" He stopped, seemed to realize he couldn't finish that sentence without admitting something. "Fine. Maybe it's a little sweet."
Ellie walked him to the door, her hand light on his good shoulder. "Go home. Rest. Ice every two hours. I'll see you later."
"Yes, ma'am."
