Page 13 of Necessary Roughness

She hurried into the physical therapy area of the rehab facility. Tanner was already there. He raised one eyebrow.

“We meet again,” he said. His lips twitched into a smile. “You looked at me like you wanted to call me something that was not G-rated.”

“I don’t want to scare the old people,” she said.

“Seriously? All of them have probably heard those words before.”

“They don’t need to hear them from me.”

“Come on, DP,” he said. “Live a little.” She wasn’t sure what “DP” referred to, but she was betting it wasn’t especially complimentary.

He was being especially irritating today. He must have been in a lot of pain. She had PT tricks up her sleeve that he couldn’t imagine. They’d leave him with aching muscles and wishing he’d never tangled with her.

“Brace yourself,” she said. “I have some new exercises for you.” She rubbed her hands together. She probably looked about as evil as Elsa. He looked like he was about to burst into laughter.

“I hardly felt it last week.”

She gave him an angelic smile. “You’ll feel it in a few short hours.”

“Promise?”

She put him through the exercise routine she kept refining as she noted his progress.

“A few more reps,” she said. “Watch your form.”

“Do you say that to all the guys, or just me?”

“What guys? You’re the only one in here right now.”

He let out a laugh. “I’m sure we could find some other men who would enjoy having you twist them into a pretzel.”

“I only do that with men I really like.” She tapped him on the forearm. “How does your knee feel right now?”

“Awesome,” he said. “Never felt better.” He was lying, but this did not mean she was going to back off.

“Glad to hear it, Tanner,” she said. “Let’s keep going. If you need a break, let me know.”

He gave her a sly grin. “You like me, huh?”

“What?”

“You only torture the guys you really like.” He let out a breath and mopped at the sweat running down his face with the towel he’d draped around his neck. “You must be in love with me or something, DP.”

Her heart skipped a beat.

“You’re not crying yet,” she said. “I’ll have to try harder.”

He laughed out loud.

***

AN HOUR LATER she’d meted out the equivalent of finding oneself in a heavyweight prize fight or a car accident, whichever was more painful. He wasn’t sure. He would never admit being in pain to her, though. He wanted to maintain a shred of male pride.

“You might want to talk someone into picking up an Icy Hot roll-on that’s big enough to use all over your body,” she said. “A massage might be a good idea too.”

He waved one hand. “I’m fine.”

She grabbed the tablet he’d seen her use for client notes. “Happy to hear it. I’ll see you in a couple of days.”

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