“If I find someone willing to rent it, will you keep Elliot’s rent the same?”
“Definitely.” His hands shake a little as he digs into his jacket pocket, finally producing a crumpled card. “She really is a great tenant.”
Of course she is. She’s great at everything. A great physio. A great mom. A great person.
I take the card, slip it into my joggers, and finally pull out the resistance band. “I’ll be in touch.” I close the car door, then pause.
“One more thing, Glen.”
He smiles at me, like the last twenty seconds has turned us into friends. “Yeah?”
I step closer until I can see the bloodshot whites of his eyes. My voice is conversational, but there is an undertone of menace that is very intentional. “If you ever enter Elliot’s home without invitation or raise your voice to her again”—I hold his gaze, letting the silence stretch, ensuring the words land—“I will find you.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
ELLIOT
“Oh my god!That thing is huge.” I take a step back and resist the urge to shield my eyes with my hand.
“If you think that’s huge, you should see my?—”
“Austin!” My voice comes out sharp, but honestly, the man leaves me no choice.
Austin Crawford flashes a grin so wide it could split his face into two handsome halves. “My other one. Gosh, Elliot. Get your mind out of the gutter.” With dramatic flair, he pivots, tugging at the hem of his shirt to reveal another bruise sprawled across his ribs. This one is even worse—angry purple, edged with sickly yellow, clearly a couple of days older than the first.
I exhale through my nose, half exasperated, half concerned. “You are the most injury-prone of all my patients.”
He winks, settling back onto the treatment table like it’s his throne. “I’m also your favourite, right?”
“I don’t have favourites.” My tone is firm and professional. Mostly. In truth, Will Oliver wins the spot for being the most impossibly lovable person on the planet—but that’s information I’ll take to my grave. “How did these happen?”
“If you can believe it, our young Austin was running his mouth on the ice. Again,” Ben’s dry baritone cuts across the room. He doesn’t look up from where Cal is guiding him through resistance band work, but the smirk in his voice is unmistakable.
Austin grabs the nearest towel and flings it in Ben’s direction. It flops pathetically to the floor halfway across the room. He groans and clutches his side, his bravado cracking under the flare of pain.
“Don’t believe everything you hear, Elliot.” He tilts his head toward me with exaggerated innocence, his lower lip pushed out to mimic a sad puppy. It would work, too, if I didn’t know exactly how much of a scamp he is.
“What I believe is that you love trouble.”
“I don’t,” he says, smiling that crooked smile his female fan base loves. “But trouble’s obsessed with me and has been for years. I can’t help if I’m the most popular player on the team.”
Every player in the room scoffs in perfect harmony.
“You mispronounced ‘delusional,’ bud,” Ben calls back.
“Just stating the facts. Let’s do a poll. Cal—who do you like better? Michaels or me?”
“I think you’re both morons,” Cal replies without looking away from Ben’s progress.
“I respect your honesty.” Ben grins. “Austin, as your captain, I’m telling you to stop distracting everyone and do your damn exercises.”
Austin rolls his eyes and gives him a mock salute.
I decide to keep Austin’s session light, considering what his body has already endured. His bruises are bad enough without me adding to them. I guide him gently through a series of stretches, watching the way his muscles respond and making sure not to push him beyond what he can handle. His flexibility is decent, but his winces tell me exactly where thelimits are. I finish with a massage, working my thumbs slowly into the knots in his shoulders. He’s been carrying his tension there, the kind that sits deep in the muscle and refuses to let go.
Austin talks through nearly the entire session. His mouth moves as fast as his legs do on the ice. He tosses playful insults across the room at his teammates, waiting for their groans or laughter to come back to him. It is easy to picture him as the class clown who just can’t help himself even though he knows the act will land him in detention or standing in front of the principal. The type who thrives on any attention. Requires it. Negative or positive.
I don’t mind. If anything, the noise is a relief. Austin is a flirt, and a bold one, but there is nothing threatening about it. He flirts with everyone in equal measure. The other physios, the trainers, even the team doctor. It never crosses a line, never comes with a leer. His charm is exaggerated and ridiculous enough that it feels like part of his persona rather than anything serious.
