Page 189 of Wrong Pucking Player

“Kenzie Andrews.” No point in hiding it from him now. “Now, can we get back to worrying about you? You’re the one who was knocked out in the middle of the hall.”

“You were there before that,” he argues. “You thought I was Leo.”

“Because Leo’s the only spontaneous fool who would think carrying a tower of twenty towels in one go is a smart idea,” I point out. “Guess I was wrong.”

“Your insults hurt my pride,” he grumbles and tries to sit up again.

“Cyru—”

“Kenzie, please.” I pause in my argument at the quietness in his pleading voice. “Just…for now, can you call me Wyatt?”

He is trying to recover. From a nursing perspective, it would only be respectful to honor such a simple request.

“Fine,” I agree. “For now.”

“Much appreciated,” he concludes and puts his hands against his face before rubbing his eyes. “Fuck. I can’t keep hiding this.”

“Your vertigo?” I ask, but he doesn’t answer.

It’s as though he’s in his own world and can’t possibly fathom expressing what’s troubling him to anyone outside of that makeshift bubble.

His quietness that follows only further worries me, enough that I’m moving from the bench just so I can sit on the other side and face him.He seems shocked when I’m now inches from his face, but I don’t make any physical contact.

Just our eyes boring into one another.

“Wyatt. What’s going on?” I want to help him, but I can’t do anything if he doesn’t talk to me. “Let me help you.”

“You can’t help me, Xand… Kenzie,” he corrects himself and shakes his head. “Fuck. I can’t even help myself, and I’m a doctor.”

“You’re dealing with vertigo. There’s treatment for that.”

“I can’t let it go on my record that I have vertigo, Kenzie,” he reasons and meets my confused gaze with a pleading one.

Blue eyes that are begging for more than just one’s aid.

They’re seeking more.

Diving deeper into the root of the problem between us.

Seeking for what I’m sure his heart is yearning for.

Redemption.

“Reporting I have unpredictable vertigo will ruin me. My driver’s license will be taken away. I can’t bear to lose that living in Strattonville. I got away with not driving in New York and other countries in America and busy provinces like Toronto or Vancouver, but here? In this small ass town where a car is a necessity? There’s no way I can lose my independence like that,” he confesses.

“Then there’s any possibility of playing hockey professionally again. If it’s reported I have vertigo with no treatment options available, my future outside of being a damn equipment manager goes out the window. Mr. Champion gave me this opportunity so I can have some leeway in case a position on one of the teams opens up. Admitting my problem will sever that chance. I’ll be stuck as an equipment manager forever.”He shakes his head at the idea before he sighs into his hands.

“I can’t do this forever, Xandra. This isn’t my passion. Being on the ice is.”

I let him off the hook with the name thing because I know he’s going through a difficult situation. Now that he’s explained what he’s dealing with and the consequences of sharing his medical status, I can see why he’s been stressed.

Adding us breaking up recently, he must not be sleeping well and working more, which further aggravates these conditions, making him prone to more dizzy spells.

“Have you been sleeping?” I ask.

“Barely.”

“Since when?”

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