Page 83 of Slap Shot

“Delicious dinners. My favorite cookies. You’re too good to me.” My tongue sneaks between my teeth as I wrap the bandage around her finger. She winces in pain, and I gently smooth over the area with my thumb. “Almost done. You’re doing so well.”

She inhales sharply. Her throat bobs, and her eyes meet mine. I’m afraid I’ve hurt her even more, but then she whispers, “Thank you for doing this for me,” and all is right in the world.

“Of course,” I rasp. My head feels like it’s swimming. The adrenaline from the game is wearing off. The injury is catching up to me, and seeing her hurting isn’t making things any better. There’s this… thisneedpulsing through me. It’s something I’ve never experienced before. I want to make sure she’s okay. I want to help and take care of her. “Last step.”

“If hockey doesn’t pan out, you might have a future in medicine.”

“Might be a few years late with that one, and I doubt all my patients would be as good as you.” I unravel a generous wad of gauze and rip it with my teeth while Madeline watches me. “Are you doing okay?”

“Yes. Areyoudoing okay?”

“Honestly? No. I could use some more drugs. Everything hurts. This is the worst I’ve been injured since—” I roll my lips together and wrap the gauze around her finger and across her palm so the bandage stays in place. I lift her wrist and check to make sure everything is secure before setting her hand on her thigh. “I’ll be okay. That’s the best I can do with putting you back together.”

“It already feels so much better.” Madeline pauses and looks up at me. “Will you please let me take care of you like you took care of me? You’re in pain, Hudson, and I’m sure you exacerbated it by patching me up. What can I do?”

The idea of someone else taking care of me like Mom did makes me instantly feel better. My mouth curves into a smile. “Okay,” I say. “I could use the help.”

TWENTY-FOUR

HUDSON

AcceptingMadeline’s offer snaps her into gear.

She springs to her feet and tosses all the items from the first aid kit back in the plastic box. She throws away the Band-Aid wrapper and moves around me.

“Tell me what I can do,” she says.

“I have limited movement with this sling.” I try to lift my arm, but I end up wincing in pain. “I promise this isn’t a line, but I, ah, could use some help getting out of this suit. My shirt more specifically. And there are pain meds in the kitchen cabinet. I could use two of those and a glass of water so I can take them in a few hours.”

“Are you sure you don’t use that suit line regularly?” Madeline smiles. “It wasverysmooth, Hayes.”

“First time, if you can believe it.” I watch her unbuckle the sling and ease it away from my shoulder and arm. “Has Lucy ever broken a bone?”

“No. She sprained her ankle after a rough game of recess kickball when she was in kindergarten, but she recovered just fine. This is my first time helping with a big injury.”

“I’m honored I’m your first.”

“On a scale of one to ten, how badly are you hurting right now?” she asks.

“A seven? Eight? I’m getting tired. That’s amplifying the pain, but I hurt less than I did after the initial hit. Guess that’s encouraging.”

“Can you straighten your arm?”

“No, so we’re going to have to get creative with my stripping. You can cut the jacket if you need to,” I tell her.

“Your suit looks like it cost a lot of money. I’m not going to cut it.”

“I can buy a new one.”

Madeline hums and easily takes off the left side of my jacket. She moves to my right arm and gently tugs on the end of my sleeve, successfully removing the clothing and dropping it to the floor. “Step one is done.”

“Next up are a ton of buttons.”

“It’s a shame you didn’t show up to the arena shirtless tonight.” She starts at the top of my shirt, unfastening the buttons one by one. “Would’ve solved a lot of your problems.”

I grip the vanity when she has to give the cuff of my shirt a firm yank to slip it over my wrist. “I’ll keep that in mind for my next game,” I grit out.

“Shit. That was too rough of me. I’m sorry I’m hurting you.”

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