I nodded, pressing my lips to hers. “Your father is going to kill me.”
“My father respects you; otherwise, I wouldn’t ever have been staying in your apartment. Trust me when I say he wants you healthy more than he’d ever want you playing hurt.”
I nodded. “Okay.”
“Okay?”
“Okay, I will do it. Call the ambulance. Although you should know, I am going to be a terrible patient. I’ll probably fight you, get frustrated and probably be an asshole during the entire thing.”
“I know. It’s okay though. I can handle it,” she said, dropping two pain pills in my hand and handing me a glass of water.
“You’re sure?” I asked, popping the pills in my mouth.
“Evan. I’ve handled you for months, even the difficult side of you while you were busy destroying your shoulder. I don’t think it will be a problem.”
I couldn’t help but let out a chuckle. “You’re terrifying, you know that?”
“Well, you will need someone who isn’t afraid of you,” she said, winking.
“I need you. I’ve needed you for months. I was just too afraid to admit it.”
“Well, now you don’t have to be afraid. Now, let’s get some ice on this while we wait for an ambulance and give you a little more pain medication.”
I didn’t want to let her go. I wanted to feel her hands on me, in my hair, her hand resting in the center of my chest, her touch making my pain feel more manageable already.
“Just give me a minute, okay? Let me hold you.”
“Fine,” she said, while she typed away on her phone.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Letting my father know, so you’ve got about ten minutes, then the ambulance will be here.” She laughed, placing a kiss on my cheek.
Chapter 13
Bianca - One Week Later
I stoodin front of the mirror, looking at my outfit while fixing my hair and makeup. I really didn’t want to go to dinner. It had been a highly emotional week after the away game and the hospital trip. After we returned from Boston, Evan had gone to see my father, it was exactly what I’d suspected. My father was furious, not about the injury, but about the fact Evan had mentioned nothing. He was even angrier that no one had even checked Evan after the hit at the end of last season. Then, when he asked Evan why I hadn’t pursued him getting an examination after I’d noted the inflammation I’d found the first time, he concluded I’d covered for him. Immediately, he called me to his office to speak with him. My father immediately put me on review, assigned me straight to Evan, and told me he would follow up with me later once the team decided whether to keep me. I was dismissed from his office and sent home.
I let out a sigh and pulled my hair back. All I wanted to do was curl up on the couch with Evan and watch TV, but the team and my father had other plans.
“Bianca, this dinner isn’t optional for either you or Evan, it’s mandatory. It’s about team unity, before Friday,”he’d said when I’d told him it would probably be best if I didn’t show up.
Evan’s surgery was tomorrow morning. My father and I had announced this to the entire team, and they wanted to get together before he went in for surgery to wish him well.
I’d spent today going over his recovery timeline, making sure he knew that at this time we were uncertain about when or if he’d return to the ice this year or next, if ever at all. I’d seen the fear in his eyes, but I knew he had a wonderful support system, especially with Nightly, Kells, and Cromwell, but I could also see the other players. They were calculating and assessing who would step up. Who would take his place, and that made me feel ill, because while nothing was for sure, I prayed he’d be back to playing soon.
Evan had gone to hang out with Nightly, Kells, and Cromwell, leaving me to arrive at the team dinner alone. Since we still hadn’t announced our involvement to my father, I figured this was a better option anyway. Plus, it would give him some time to hang out with the boys.
When I walked into the restaurant, I saw the entire coaching staff and the trainers scattered among the players, talking and laughing, and then I noticed Evan standing over by the bar, jaw tight and shoulders rigid, alone. He looked as if he were holding himself together by sheer force of will. Anger flooded me. My father had said this was supposed to be about rallying around one of their own, and the one who needed to be rallied around was by himself.
I started making my way to the bar when Tate lifted his arm, waving me over.
“Hey, Bianca, come sit with us.”
I glanced over to see him sitting with Matt and Lucas, all of them looking my way. There was no way I could ignore them, so I made my way to their table, smiled, and said hello. They started asking me questions about Evan, which I did my best to answer, all the while I could feel a prickling sensation at the back of my neck, which I tried to ignore.
Soon the conversation turned to lighter topics, each one of us laughing, and when Lucas leaned in to say something to me, his hand accidentally brushed my knee. I laughed at what he said and was about to excuse myself when I felt a hand on my shoulder.
