Walker sat on the bottom row of the bleachers, waiting for Maddie later that afternoon. He had no idea what to expect, but he was pretty sure she was going to be mad. He knew that messing with her education was overstepping a bit, but in the long run, it would only help her, and if he got something back in return, that would be just a bonus. At least that’s what he told himself as he sat there pretending his knee was still messed up and watching the guys trickle in for practice.
He wasn’t sure exactly what he was going to gain by making her lead his physical therapy, but once the idea had popped into his head in the emergency room, there was no going back. The dragon inside him was most likely to blame for the crazy idea, but he’d gone forward with the plan, the memory of the look in Maddie’s eyes when he’d been injured fueling the driving need inside him to change things between them before it was too late. Getting hurt had opened his eyes to what a fool he was being. He wasn’t that scared kid anymore, he was a grown man, and if certain parts of his life were still a mess, that didn’t mean he couldn’t follow his heart and what it was telling him.
A bit breathless at the thought of what he was about to do, he forced himself to take several deep breaths. He wasn’t making any kind of a commitment, he was just going to try and fix his relationship with Maddie. It didn’t mean they were getting married, it didn’t mean they were going to have the happily ever after, he just didn’t want to fight his feelings for her anymore. He was tired of wasting his energy holding back when she was around. It was time to test what he was feeling and see if it was real or just the leftover emotion of the young man that he used to be.
A few minutes later, Maddie walked into the gym, her cheeks pink from the cold, and his heart gave a huge leap, then warmth spread through him. He knew instantly that what he was feeling was the real thing, and nothing, not even time or distance, would ever change that. He was going to love Maddie for the rest of his life. Almost overwhelmed by the onslaught of emotion that thought brought, he could only watch as she walked toward him, a frown on her face.
“I just want to know what you think you’re up to,” Maddie said, putting her hands on her hips. “This is a rotten idea, and you know it. We can’t even go a few minutes without fighting. I don’t know what you were thinking.”
“It seemed like a good idea at the time,” he said, struggling to his feet. “But I did hit my head really hard, so maybe I wasn’t thinking right, but it’s too late to change things now, so we’ll just have to suffer through.”
He started toward the training room but Maddie put her hand on his arm and stopped him. “Walker, I’ve never done this before,” she said, then hesitated. “I don’t want to make your injury worse or something, I’m supposed to be here to help, but…I’m not sure I know what I’m doing.”
“Of course you do, you’re the most competent woman I know,” he said. “I trust you, Maddie, and if something comes up that you don’t know how to handle, we’ll figure it out together.”
“You are up to something, you’re being way too nice,” she said, narrowing her eyes at him. “I’m not going to sleep with you if that’s what you’re thinking, those days are over and long gone.”
“That’s not what I was thinking. I was just hoping we could be friends,” he said. “But if sleeping with you is on the table, I wouldn’t say no, that’s for sure.”
Maddie gasped, her cheeks turned an adorable shade of pink and he was sure that he saw a spark of desire in her eyes. “It’s not on the table, so don’t even go there,” she said. “I was just hoping to talk you out of this, that’s all.”
“Well, you can’t,” he said, then started for the training room again. “We should get started unless there’s something else you want to discuss.”
She gave him a dirty look but followed behind him, grumbling under her breath, and he couldn’t help but smile. It was amazing how much better he felt now that he’d stopped fighting. In fact, he might even have some fun before Maddie was willing to admit that they were meant to be together, although he might have to do a little groveling before that happened. He hadn’t forgotten what he’d done to her freshman year; he knew that it couldn’t be ignored. However, explaining why he’d done it would mean revealing his feelings, and he was sure she wasn’t ready to hear the truth.
There was also the tricky little fact that he had a dragon living inside him. He wasn’t sure how to share that news with her, but hoped the right situation would present itself with time. All in all, he had his work cut out for him, not to mention an injury to fake. It was going to be an interesting three weeks, but he was sure that he was up to the challenge, especially when he watchedMaddie push her way past him, chin in the air, hips swaying as she walked.
“What do you want to do first?” she asked. “Your doctor prescribed mild exercise, ice baths, and lots of stretching.”
“You’re the boss,” he said, grinning at her. “I’m just a poor wounded athlete who desperately needs your help.”
“I’m not buying that act for a second,” she said, rolling her eyes at him. “Let’s start with the stationary bike, then we’ll move on to some yoga and finish with a nice long walk. You’d better change into some workout clothes before we get started.”
“Hold on, I thought I’d be sitting in the hot tub, doing some stretches, stuff like that,” he said, then started shaking his head. “I don’t do yoga, the guys will all make fun of me if they see that.”
“You said I was in charge,” Maddie said, shrugging her shoulders. “But if you’re scared, we can start with something easier.”
“I’m not scared…I’m just…” he trailed off. “Fine, we’ll try it your way, but if I make a fool of myself, I’ll never forgive you.”
***Maddie***
A little wary of the new Walker, Maddie set him up on a stationary bike, then grabbed her computer and got to work on all the paperwork that Dr. Abbot had sent her. She still wasn’t sure how she’d managed to let Walker talk her into helping with his physical therapy, but it looked like she was stuck whether she liked it or not. The problem was that the longer she was around Walker, the closer she came to forgiving him for what he did to her all those years ago, and once that happened, the next step was telling him about Justin.
Her only hope was to maintain some distance between them and interact with him on a strictly professional level, eliminatingany possibility of things getting personal. It was the only way to keep her secret and her heart safe. If she felt a pang of guilt when she thought about Justin growing up without a father, all she had to do was remember what a jerk his father really was and it disappeared, or at least it used to. Now not so much.
Looking over at Walker pedaling away, for the first time she wondered if she was making a mistake, if he really had changed, if he’d become the man she’d always thought he would be. A second later, he looked over at her, made a goofy face at her, then began pedaling faster and acting like someone was chasing him. She couldn’t help but laugh, then felt a wave of warmth spread through her and let out a long sigh, wishing the man didn’t affect her that way, as it would make her life so much easier.
By the time she finished her paperwork and put the computer away, Walker had worked up a good sweat and was more than happy to get off the bike. “I could do without the stationary bike, that thing is uncomfortable. I won’t go into details, but it’s going to hurt to sit down tonight,” he said. “Maybe you could torture me with something else tomorrow.”
“Well, there’s swimming, but we’d have to walk across campus,” she said. “I think you should give the bike another try, maybe it will be better tomorrow.”
“I will if you will,” he said, hobbling over to her as if his knee hurt. “Have you tried one of those things?”
“No, but…” she trailed off when she saw the look on his face. “Fine, I’ll try one.”
She climbed up on the seat, all too aware that it was still warm from Walker riding it, then began to pedal. Her butt instantly began to hurt. “Okay, you win,” she said, jumping down. “That was pretty bad.”
Walker grinned at her. “Cool, I get to see you in a bathing suit,” he said. “That’s a bonus.”
