Page 13 of Blocking Her Love

That expectation puts a lot of pressure on building a relationship. Would it be worth the effort?

Sean and Maya move a few steps away giving me the opportunity to study him. Of course I do some solo work with the ball while I do, so it doesn’t look like he’s my focus. He’s handsome in a lean, sun-bleached, beach boy way. Have to admit I’ve always been partial to that look. More than his looks, I’m attracted to his intelligence, his sense of humor, his love of family. Every little thing that makes him who he is. Even if he does hate eating leftovers.

Maya returns to her place in the practice sand. Her half-hearted smile concerns me but she shades her eyes with her hand and says, “I’m ready.”

I toss the ball and she passes it back to me. Another pass and she sets the ball perfectly for the slash of my spike. Sean chases balls, tossing them into play and calling out possible game situations for our ball control. We fall into our comfortable, well-established rhythm until there’s a high pitched, “Seansy.”

Shit, I thought we were rid of Karol and her interruptions. Sean’s toss is off and Maya dives forward. With a yelp she landssideways on the hard sand and grabs her knee. Half sitting, she rocks, cradling her leg. Tears stream down her cheeks.

“Maya,” Sean and I shout in unison before running to her. Sean falls to his knees beside her, and wraps an arm around her shoulders, staring at her knee. I drop to her other side and lift a questioning gaze to Sean. His eyes go wide and he shakes his head.

Oh god. This could be bad.

“I’m sorry,” Maya cries. “I’m sorry. I didn’t… I’m… hurts.”

He shushes her and carefully encourages her to open her hands to expose her knee.

The sound of someone running across the sand draws my attention and I look up as Paxton joins us. “One of your fans alerted me. Nyla’s calling the paramedics. “Knee?” he asks, joining us on the sand.

Maya takes a deep breath and nods. “I heard it pop.” Her pain-filled gaze turns to me. “I’m sorry, Ellie. I didn’t mean?—”

“Lying down on the job, Maya?” Karol says as she joins us. “I’m not surprised. Workouts are tough for people like you.”

Sean surges to his feet. He takes Karol’s shoulders, turns her and makes her walk away. “Oh, Seansy, I love it when you’re rough.”

His hands jerk from her shoulders and he fists them at his side. “Go away. Now.”

“But—”

“I said go away.” He turns away and I cheer silently as Karol stomps off.

I focus on how gently Paxton is touching and observing Maya’s knee. “I’m no doctor but had to deal with all kinds of injuries when I was in the service. I’d say you’ve probably torn your ACL. Stay still, the paramedics should be here soon.”

Maya tries to be brave. “I don’t need paramedics. I’ll be fine in a few minutes. I just need to rest a moment.” She holds my gaze. “We can get back to practice soon.”

The only answer I will give her is an honest one. “I don’t think so. Even if this is just a sprain, you won’t be able to practice. Let alone compete. No,” I say, stopping the arguments before she voices them. “You know I’m right. Before we make any assumptions and plans, let’s see what the doctors say.”

Sean sits beside her and takes her hand. “This is all my fault. My toss was way off.”

“Listen, big bro,” Maya says then winces when she tries to move her leg. There’s still tears hovering on her lashes. “Diving for a ball is nothing new. We do it all the time. It’s not your fault.” She turns her attention to me. “And don’t you go blaming yourself either. I deserved to be called out for my sloppy play. No matter what’s going on off the court, it shouldn’t affect how we perform. Okay? Not your fault?”

She knows me well. I was well on my way to blame city. I can’t promise I won’t fall into that trap later though. To ease her mind I nod. “Not my fault.”

There’s shouts from our fans and a paramedic team jogs across the sand. They make quick work of checking Maya’s injury. She complains and tells them she can walk when they lift her onto a stretcher. Sean leans over her. “Let them do their job. We’ll follow to the hospital.”

Paxton eyes our scattered balls. “I’ll get this cleaned up and store your equipment until you can pick it up. Don’t worry about anything here.”

With a sigh Maya closes her eyes and waves one hand. “Okay. I’m ready to go.”

Since Maya’s injury isn’t life threatening or bleeding, the emergency room staff stick us in a three walled room and pull a curtain over the wide opening. To distract her from the painand possibilities, Sean and I keep up a continuous litany of inane topics. No volleyball talk allowed. Once a doctor finally examines her, she’s given pain medication and scheduled for an MRI.

I’m surprised how quickly everything happens after that and before long Sean and I are alone in the cubicle while Maya’s knee is being scanned. Lost in our own thoughts, we remain silent until he startles me. “So what now?” he asks.

The disappointment I’ve been holding at bay washes over me like a tsunami. “We’ll have to withdraw from the tournament. Maybe the whole season.”

He takes my hand and strokes my fingers. The gentle caress calms my disjointed thoughts. “How do you feel about that?”

“I hate it. We’ve worked so hard to get to this level. It sucks how one wrong fall can take all the planning and preparation away. I’m not blaming anyone. I know shit like this happens. No one plans for injuries. It just sucks.”

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