Page 67 of Offside for Christmas
Cole read it over her shoulder. "Good. Send it."
She hit send. A minute later, a reply popped up.
MATTHEWS:That won't be necessary, Ms. Winters. I have your notes. I'll conduct my own assessment.
Ellie’s heart sank, but then another bubble appeared.
COACH DAVIES:Yes, it is necessary. See you both at Friday 8 AM.
Ellie let out a breath she didn’t know she’d been holding. "Coach has my back."
"We both do." Cole wrapped an arm around her, pulling her into his side. They sat there for a moment, the crisis temporarily managed, the quiet of the apartment settling around them.
He rolled his shoulder experimentally, bracing for the pain that didn't come. A little more than a week since he'd needed the pills, since the grinding ache had dimmed to nothing. Ellie had fixed more than just his rotator cuff—she'd fixed the part of him that thought he needed to hurt to feel alive.
"This is nice," Ellie murmured, curling closer to him.
"Yeah?"
"Being with you. Without overthinking everything."
"Are you still overthinking?" Cole's hand played with her hair, the gesture absent and affectionate.
"A little. But less than before."
"What are you thinking about?"
Ellie shifted to look up at him, the professional fears fading to make room for deeper, more personal ones. "How much I like you. And how much that scares me."
"You think you're the only one scared?"
"Aren't you always scared?"
"Not of the same things." Cole's expression was serious now. "I'm not scared of getting hurt. I'm used to that—comes with the sport. I'm scared of hurting you."
"So don't."
"What if I can't help it?" His voice was rough. "My track record isn't exactly great. Every team I've been on, every relationship—I walk away before things get complicated."
"What if I screw it up?"
"Then we'll deal with it. Together. Just like we’re dealing with Matthews the day after tomorrow."
Cole looked at her like she was offering him something he'd never had before. "You have a lot of faith in me."
"I do. Maybe you should try having some faith in yourself."
Later, as they were cleaning up dinner, Cole asked: "Stay tonight?"
Ellie laughed, the sound lighter now than it had been all day. "I live here."
"You know what I mean. Let me stay."
She studied his face—this man who had spent weeks keeping everyone at arm's length, who was now ready to fight her battles with her and asking to just be close.
"Yeah," she said softly. "Stay."
They ended up falling asleep on her couch, some Netflix show still playing, wrapped around each other like they'd been doing this for years instead of days. Outside, snow began to fall again, dusting Main Street in fresh white. They were facing their first real storm together—professional and personal—and for the first time, they both felt ready for it.
