I stood up and followed the short, curvy woman with poker-straight black hair to the middle of her back, down the long hallway to exam room five.
“He’ll just be a few minutes.”
I climbed up onto the exam table.“Thanks.”
She left me there and closed the door.I pivoted from the waist to both sides, checking on my spine rotation.No twinges or pops.I’d been a good boy following not only doctor’s orders, but Maz’s orders too.I did my stretches, I rode the recumbent bike, and besides rigorous sex with a certain uptight single mom, I took it easy.
Dr.Avery took more than “a few minutes.”So, like any addicted-to-their-phone-adult, I found myself scrolling through all the various news articles doing the customary deep dive into Raleigh Franks and his sordid ways.What I didn’t expect was that it was his wife who actually turned him in.She found a Bingo card on his phone with various physical descriptions of women he needed to sleep with, as well as a group chat with other men discussing which ones they’d successfully conquered.
It made me sick to my stomach.
No where though, did it list the names of the other men.So either that was going to come out later, and the media was just checking their facts and sources, or Franks hid his partners in crime better than he did his Bingo card.
Shaking my head as I read through the different spots on the Bingo card—because yes, that was included in some of the images—I felt more convinced, more vindicated than ever that the podcast I was starting was the right thing to do.We couldn’t continue to let this kind of misogyny go on.Not in the league, not in schools, not anywhere.
The door opened, and I set my phone, screen down, on the table.“Sorry to keep you waiting, Mr.Roy,” Dr.Avery said, setting my file on the counter before washing his hands.“How are you feeling?”
“Feeling great.I’ve been seeing Rolph Mazurenko, doing my stretches, and taking it easy.I can’t remember the last time I’ve gone this long without having to take any painkillers, or without feeling stiff when I go to bed.”
He dried his hands.“That’s fantastic.”Grabbing the file again, he flipped it open and set it on the table beside me.My scans were there, but like hell if I could interpret them.“Shirt off, please.”
I tore my Henley over my head and set it to the side as he gently poked and prodded my back, my hips, and along my spine.“Well, I hate to say this, but …”
I held my breath.
“Judging by your scans, Rolph’s assessment that he sent over on Friday, and what I’m seeing here, you’ve made a remarkably fast recovery.There’s no sign of fracture in your L3 or L4.”
My jaw dropped, and I exhaled.“Youhateto say this?What the hell, doc?”
He huffed a small laugh.“I mean, it’s great news.I just hoped you’d give yourself a bit more time to rest and recover.But medically speaking, you … you’re free to return to the game.”A sadness flickered in his blue eyes.“Know though, that you still have degenerating osteoarthritis.That is not something we can fix with bone cement and rehab.It’s just part of your genetic makeup.A casualty of working in a high-contact sport with a grueling training regime.Which means that this could, and probably will, happen again.That part of your spine is simply weaker.”His lips twisted regretfully.“I’m advising you to, at the very least, take the rest of the season and the summer to heal.If not, consider retiring.You’re twenty-six years old, Maverick.You have so much life ahead of you—if you don’t cause irreparable damage first.Is hockey really worth a diminished quality of life?”
I blinked at him.
“You can put your shirt back on now.”
Nodding, I tugged my Henley over my head and shoved my arms through the sleeves.When I poked my head through the neck, I was met with the doctor’s concerned, almost fatherly expression.Certainly more fatherly an expression than my own father ever gave me.
“I’m going to say this one more time, Maverick.”He reached out and rested his hand on my shoulder.“You have more money than most people will ever have in a lifetime.You’ve played the game.Now, I think you need to decide whatelseyou want out of life.A wife?A family?To live into your eightiesnotbed-ridden or in a wheelchair?Is the game really worth giving up all that youcouldhave?”
I couldn’t speak.My tongue was tied into a million knots and my throat grew tighter than a drum.I swallowed as best I could as my body heated up and my palms grew sweaty where they clutched my knees.
Dr.Avery’s mouth dipped into a frown.“Take the season off, Maverick.Your body might be healed, but there’s something going on behind your eyes that tells me maybe there are other things that need to heal too?”
I clenched my molars tight, my nostrils flaring as I maintained eye contact with the doctor.
“I’m happy to delay sending my recommendation to the team doctor if you’d like?”
I barely managed a nod, and after one final look of concern from the blue-eyed man in a white physician’s coat, he released my shoulder and left.
I sat there for a little while longer, letting his words roll around my brain until I thought it might explode.I needed to talk to someone about this.I couldn’t make this decision on my own.I wasn’t the only person at play here anymore.I had people in my world that I cared deeply for, and I needed to consider them.
I needed to talk to Gabrielle.
No way could I wait until I got back to the island to talk to her.I was a jittery mess and not sure I’d even be able to drive until I hashed this out with the person who meant more to me in the world than anyone else.
Sitting in my truck, I dialed her number, my hand shaking as I put the phone to my ear.
Luckily, she picked up on the third ring.“Hey.How’d it go?”
