Page 35 of The Playmaker

My throat tightens at the somber way he’s looking at me. “It’s okay. I know Mom and Dad loved Cason and me, they were just busy with their careers. If I ever had kids, I’d want to be more involved on a daily basis, not just when they were sick. Not that I plan to have kids. I don’t, but still…”

There’s a strange hardness in Cole’s eyes as she stares at me, and I clamp my mouth shut, wishing I hadn’t just said that. Cole doesn’t need to know those kinds of details about me. Why is it I don’t seem to have any filters around him?

“Did they take care of you after your injury?” he asks, his voice a little rough.

“Jess mostly did. Maybe because I was older and they thought I could take care of myself.”

“I wish I could have been there,” he says quietly, and spreads the rag over his whole face, so I can’t see his expression.

I take deep breaths, fight against the way my heart is slamming in my chest. “When you were little, did your dad take care of you and your sister like this when you were sick?” I ask for lack of anything else.

“Yeah, something like that,” he answers.

I don’t miss the strain in his voice, and can’t help but think all this talk about my mom has him thinking of his own, and how she walked out on them when they were young? From what I know about his dad, he was very doting. Cason said he was at every single hockey practice and game, which makes me wonder why his dad isn’t helping him now when he really needs it. Cole might have a million fans, but in situations like this, he’s truly alone, and that guts me.

Deciding to change the subject, I say, “Next time we have sex, we need to take it easy.”

He slowly slides the cloth from his face, and his lips quirk at the corners. “There’s going to be a next time?”

“I think we have a lot of childhood hate issues to work though, don’t you?” I say.

“Yeah, tons.”

I nod and snuggle against him. “Good, then it’s settled. While you’re recuperating and I’m getting hockey lessons, we’ll keep doing this. But next time we need to set a slower pace.”

“Not sure that’s possible,” he murmurs softly, quietly, exhaustion clearly overtaking him

We go silent again, just sit in the dimly lit room for the next ten minutes, both comfortable enough with each other that we don’t need to fill the space with words. Odd, really. How did we get here so fast when it was just the other day I was telling Jess how much I hated him?

Every few minutes, I turn to check on him and when his body cools, I push to my feet and hold my hand out.

“Let’s get you back to bed. Get a few more hours’ rest before morning.”

He stares at my hand. “If you try to lift me, we’re both going to end up on our asses.”

“I’m stronger than I look, you know.”

“I know you are,” he says quietly, sadly, and I suddenly get the sense that’s he’s no longer talking about my physical strength.

He pushes to his feet, and I slide my arm around him to help him to the sink so he can brush his teeth and rinse his mouth. Once done, I guide him to the bed and my mind goes back to our childhood. Cole was at the house a lot, but I guess I never realized how much he’d been observing, knowing I had to do the bulk of the cooking and cleaning, while Cason took care of other chores, like the lawn and garbage. I didn’t even realize he could hear Jess and me in my bedroom. I never really thought the self-centered hockey player had paid that much attention to me. I always thought he was too much into himself to notice, but now I’m not so sure. Maybe he’s a little more complex than I ever realized.

I help him to the bed and he slides in. As I fix the blankets around his body, he tugs my hand. “If you keep taking care of me like this, I might start faking sick, too.”

I laugh. “I’m pathetic, aren’t I?”

“No, Nina. You’re actually all kinds of sweet.”

“You’re just saying that so I’ll take you to the doctor’s and make you your favorite soup tomorrow.”

He snuggles in. “Yeah, you’re probably right,” he says, and falls asleep just like that. I stare at him for a few minutes, and his hands slips from mine as his soft snoring sounds fill the room. I consider leaving, and going back to my room next to his, but decide against it. If he wakes up sick again, I’d hate for him to think I’d abandoned him.

I slide in beside him, careful not to wake him, and snuggle close, offering him my body heat.

The next thing I know, the light slanting in through the curtain pulls me awake.

I blink, rub the sleep from my eyes…and turn to find Cole watching me. He looks wide awake and his hair is wet from a shower. The fresh scent of soap reaches my nose.

“How long have you been awake?” I ask.

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