He makes a pained sound when my body traps his arm against the edge of the counter, hissing through his teeth as he jerks hisbody away from me. I notice immediately that he’s cradling his bad arm, and my heart begins to thump harder against my ribs with worry.
“Are you okay?”
His tight expression tells me his answer, so I know it’s a lie when he says, “I’m fine.”
“You’re not fine,” I say. “Let me see.”
His jaw tics as he tries to stretch out his arm. “I’m really fine, Abby.”
“I know it hurts, Jack. Just let me see.”
“Seriously, it’s okay.”
“If it hurts that bad, maybe you should sit out today. You don’t want to make it worse—”
“I said I’mfine,” he all but shouts, the harshness of his tone leaving me reeling like a slap to the face.
I tug my hands away from where they’d been reaching toward him, pulling them closer to my body as hurt flashes through me. Jack looks immediately surprised by his own outburst, his eyes widening even as he continues to cradle his arm.
“I’m sorry,” he says immediately. “I didn’t mean to—” His lips press together in a tight line, his eyes averting to the floor. “I’m really sorry.”
I swallow thickly, trying to remind myself of how much stress his injury causes him. Deep down, I know it’s not me he’s angry at, just the situation.
“It’s okay,” I say finally.
He shakes his head. “No it isn’t,” he tells me. “You don’t deserve to be talked to like that. It isn’t your fault.”
“I just worry about you,” I say quietly.
He nods, peeking back up at me. “I know.”
“You’ll be careful today, right?”
Another slow nod. “I promise.”
I can’t help it then—the urge to hug him is so strong that I find myself reaching for him instinctually, pulling him closer to me as I wrap my arms around him.
“It’s okay to admit that you’re hurting, remember?”
He nods into my shoulder. “I know.”
“Good,” I tell him. “You don’t have to hide it. Not from me.”
His arms move around me then to hold me tighter, and I close my eyes as I bury my face in his throat. I press a kiss there, feeling his big body relax against me, and at this moment, I feel something swelling and warm in my chest.
“If you get hurt out there today,” I say, “I’ll kick your ass.”
I can practically feel his smile. “You really are worried about me, huh?”
I laugh as I pull him closer, shaking my head as I close my eyes.
“I plead the Fifth,” I murmur.
His answering laugh only makes me smile harder.
“He’s benching Jack again,” Lilamutters beside me.
I crane my neck to look down at the ice, watching as Jack skates over to the bench with a scowl on his face. There’s a tension to his jaw and a haunted look in his eyes as he takes a seat and rips off his helmet, and my heart hurts for him so much in that moment that it makes me wish Ididunderstand more about this game. Even if only to understand better how much this all means to him.
