Page 86 of Slap Shot
Groaning, I throw the sheets off my legs. Gus and Millie don’t budge from the end of the bed when I climb off the mattress and stand, and I’m jealous of the cute fuckers.
I roll my arm back, seeing how much movement my body has. My muscles are stiff as hell, and I know the exercises Lexi is going to put me through at practice in the morning are going to make me hurt even more.
Grabbing a Stars sweatshirt, I slowly pull the hoodie over my head and open the door out to the balcony. Some fresh air sounds nice, even if the December air is biting cold, and I shiver when I look out at the quiet city.
“Can’t sleep?” a soft voice asks from a few feet away, and I jump.
“Holy shit.” I put my hand over my heart and turn to find Madeline smiling my way. “You scared the hell out of me. Are you a fucking ninja?”
“To be fair, you didn’t look around when you came out here.Youstartledme, hockey guy.”
“My sincerest apologies, KG. I thought I’d be the only one wide awake at three in the morning.”
“I couldn’t sleep.” She pulls on the strands of her robe and folds her arms across her chest. Her hair is up in a messy bun, and a few rogue dark brown pieces fall out of the knot on top of her head. Her socks are pink, and I spy a pair of plaid pajama pants under her robe. “Would you mind some company?”
“Course I wouldn’t mind. This is shared space.”
“I didn’t see your name anywhere, but I wanted to make sure.”
“Ah. You should’ve looked harder.” I tap my knuckles on the metal ledge. “Some of the guys and I added our signatures when I bought the place.”
“I don’t believe you.” Madeline bends down, tilting her head so she can see under the railing. “No shit.”
“I wouldn’t lie about something like that.”
“Someone could saw this off and sell it for a lot of money.”
“Talk about a safety hazard. And you think my teammates and I are more famous than we probably are.”
She laughs and shuffles backward so she can rest her elbows on the railing, leaning against it. When she looks at me, she frowns. “Is your shoulder still hurting?”
“Yeah.” I drag a loveseat over to us with my one good arm and sit. “I’ve taken some hits in the past, but this one was brutal.”
“Are you ever scared when you’re playing?”
“No.” I flex my fingers and roll my wrist. “I know accidents happen. Add in the fact we play on blades, and that’s another element of safety. But I trust the guys in the league to not do stupid shit. I trust our medical staff to take care of me ifsomething does go wrong. Tonight was a one off because the guy is a dick.”
“A total dick,” Madeline agrees, and I smile.
“How’s your hand?”
“Better. I wasn’t kidding when I said I’ve had worse.”
“Worse thanthat? There was blood on my counter.”
“Like, a drop. It’s not going to scar, and I’ll be able to hold a knife correctly tomorrow. And if not, I guess you’ll be eating some of my fingertip with breakfast.”
“Kinky. Scrambled eggs always taste better with pieces of human in them.”
“Now I never want to eat again.” It’s her turn to laugh, and she giggles before letting out a sigh. “I know it’s part of your job, but I’m sorry you got hurt. That can’t be very fun for your body.”
“What are you talking about? Getting slammed into things for the last twenty-five years is a hell of a time. At least I still have all my teeth.” I grin at her. “Is your hand keeping you up? Is it Lucy?”
“She was out like a light when I put her to bed around eight. They had a book fair at school yesterday, and the excitement wore her out.” Madeline pauses. “There are some things on my mind.”
“If you want to talk about it, I know a guy.”
“I need a minute,” she says.
