“You look like shit.” Rusty wanted to smack his mouth a moment later.Way to make a guy feel better.
But Cross laughed hoarsely. Goldie leaned past Scott to look at Cross. “The kid’s right. And we’ve got another game tonight. We should get out of here and let you rest.” He stepped over toCross’s bedside and held out a fist for a bump. “Gonna miss you out there tonight. We’ll win it for you, though.”
Cross mock-glared as he completed the bump. “Don’t act like I’m dying or something.”
“Nah. This is a one-time thing. For that spectacular dive.”
“Fuck you.”
Goldie chuckled and headed for the door.
Zykov, Axel and Koskinen followed suit, with a fist bump and a few words before filing out. Scott paused to say, “You let us know what we can do, right, Cross? Anything. Don’t be a stranger. I’ll drop by tomorrow before we have to get on the plane.” He eyed Rusty. “Are you off tonight?”
“Nah. Game’s not till seven, though.”
Scott’s gaze sharpened, but he just said, “Okay. Good luck, then.”
“You guys too.”
The room felt a lot bigger with the Rafters players gone. Rusty hovered by the door. “You do look beat. Do you want me to leave?”
“No way. Grab a chair and sit.” Cross waved in the direction of a fairly comfy-looking armchair. “I’m going to lower this bed a bit, though.”
“Sore?” Rusty dragged the chair to where Cross could easily see him.
Cross chuckled. “You could say that.” He pressed a button and eased himself down to a low recline. “I’m surprised you’re here. Game and all.”
Well, if you answered my texts I might not be.Although who was he kidding? He’d no doubt have come anyway. “Let me know if you want some water or whatever.” He glanced around the room. “Nursing’s not my strong point.”
“Good thing you’re a hockey player, then.” Cross shifted around in the bed like he was trying to get comfortable. “Hey, any idea what you’re doing this summer?”
Rusty, who’d been trying to figure out how to ask about Cross’s injury without sounding nosy, took the hint. “Not sure. I have to be out of the apartment by May, so I need to make up my mind. Scott and his guys invited me back to the ranch for the summer. Housing, three squares, and a bit of money on top. That’s probably the best deal I’ll get.”
“And Scott around to practice with, at least part of the summer. You don’t want that?”
“He’s not as good a coach as you are,” Rusty said, instead of“I don’t want to spend four months two thousand miles from you.”
“I’m not going to be worth shit for a long time.” Cross glared off into space.
“Uh, what did the doctors say?”Okay, maybe I didn’t take the hint.“No, wait, you don’t have to tell me anything. Sorry, never mind.”
“It’s okay.” Cross tipped his chin up, staring at the ceiling. “My left leg’s a simple fracture and soft tissue bruising. I’ll need surgery, but it should heal.”
“Well, that’s good news, right?”
“But then there’s my right ankle. I guess when Vicki and the D-man landed on me, they twisted my right foot sideways. Tore some ligaments, broke three small bones, and cracked the end ofmy tibia. I’m going to get surgery on that tomorrow, but…” Cross took a rough breath. “Anyhow, my summer’s not looking as fun as yours. A couple of months of healing, at least, then a long rehab.”
“Dude.” Rusty wanted to touch Cross, hug him or put a hand on his shoulder or something, but he didn’t want to hurt him worse. “That really sucks.”
Cross pressed his lips together and nodded. “I had thought, maybe you’d stick around after the season, and we could work together, get you leveled up. Not gonna happen this summer.”
“Well, you could still sit on the side of the rink and critique, right?” Rusty tried to pitch his voice similar to Cross’s. “Come on, Rusty, you’re not dictating with your stick. You need to change that angle.”
“I don’t sound like that.”
“Sometimes you do.” He forced a smile. “I like it.”
“I’m going to be shitty company for a long time.”
