Damn.
Though he’s such a pain in my ass, I can’t pretend the guy isn’t hot as fuck. With his broad shoulders and trim waist and his big brown eyes and that slight bend in his nose that speaks of it being broken once adding character to his face…Not that I would ever let myself go there. I’m sure Jack has a revolving door of women, as much as he flirts with anything that moves.
“Hey,” he says, wincing a little when he sees me on the couch, like he’s slightly embarrassed I’m still here.
I nod back at him. “Hey.”
“I’m sorry about…all that,” he says with his eyes downcast. “Not exactly something I wanted you to see.”
I shake my head. “I probably shouldn’t have barged in, but you sounded so…”
“I sounded…how?”
“Lost,” I decide on. “It’s not something I’m used to hearing from you. Kind of freaked me out.”
He laughs, but it’s a scornful sound. He drops the towel on the back of the couch, moving around to plop down on the other end. “I try not to let anyone see that shit.”
“You mean to tell me this happens often?”
“It’s not so bad anymore,” he tells me. “But lately…with everything that’s been happening…”
“When did it start?”
His brow arches. “Are you playing psych on me right now?”
“Or just being friendly,” I say with a roll of my eyes.
“I didn’t think we did that,” he points out.
I feign shock, pressing my hand to my chest. “After our BFF nachos?”
That gets a real laugh out of him, and there’s a strange sense of relief that courses through me at hearing it. I realize at that moment I don’tlikeseeing this morose version of Jack. It just…doesn’t fit him.
“You probably just want to use me for a term paper,” he teases. “I’m sure an unhinged hockey player would make for a great subject.”
“Stop doing that,” I say with a huff. “You don’t have to make it a joke. I know you were upset in there, okay?”
His face does something funny, like it’s going for a smile but morphs into a grimace beyond his control, and his head hangs down as his fingers lace together in his lap.
“Yeah,” he says softly. “I was.”
“I told you we can talk about it.”
“I don’t even know where to start really.”
“How about the beginning? What happened to trigger that episode?”
“Coach found out about my injury,” he tells me.
I wince on his behalf. I don’t know a lot about hockey, but I can imagine that’s not good.
“I take it he had things to say.”
Jack nods. “He’s basically benching me for half the games. Ican play a period, maybe two depending on my performance, but I had to agree to let our second-line right winger pick up the slack. And that’sifI don’t show any signs of hurting. Coach is going to be watching me like a hawk now.”
“Has it still been hurting?”
He nods. “It was aching after the first period today.”
