Pretend your fingers are gently stirring soup
MY ENTIRE BODY IS BUZZING WITH ANTICIPATION AS I STEP THROUGH THE heavy door into the locker room. The familiar scent of sweat and equipment greets my nostrils, but there’s something else in the air. Faces light up when I enter, a few cheers erupting at the sight of me.
“Lindley!” Colson exclaims, coming up to greet me. “It’s about fuckin’ time.”
Trager, Patrick, Austin, and a few others wander over, giving me manly side hugs and smacking my arm, welcoming me back. A lot of fanfare considering it’s just a regular morning practice.
I grin, genuinely touched by the reception. I make my way to my locker, where I’m joined by Ryder and Beckett.
“Good to have you back,” Ryder says gruffly.
“Glad to be back.”
Beckett’s already in his practice jersey and gear, so he sits on the bench while we get ready. “How’s Diana?” he asks somberly.
“Better.” My smile falters for a moment, because every time I think about my girlfriend lying in that hospital room, I feel sick to my stomach. “It’s been tough, but we’re getting through it.”
My friends nod in understanding, a mixture of sympathy and support in their eyes.
“Let us know if she needs anything, mate,” Beck says, his tone sincere.
“Thanks, man.”
My chest is tight with emotion, so I twist toward my locker, pretending to search for something while I blink through my suddenly misty eyes. Jesus Christ. I’m not going to cry in front of a room full of hockey players. I’ve already cried enough in front of Diana since I returned to Hastings.
But knowing my friends are here for me is soul soothing. This locker room is a brotherhood, and I feel that bond every time I walk in here. I know I can always lean on these guys, even obnoxious Trager, when times get tough.
“She’s dying to get home,” I say.
“When is she being discharged?” Will asks from his locker.
“Tomorrow morning, I think. The doctors are finally satisfied her kidney isn’t going to explode or something.”
Ryder chuckles.
We finish dressing for practice, but before I can walk out into the tunnel, Coach Jensen intercepts me. He toys with the whistle dangling around his neck as he pulls me aside.
A mix of nerves and gratitude swirls in my gut as I wait for him to speak.
“Welcome back, Lindley,” he says briskly. “I just wanted to check how your girl is doing.”
“She’s good. Thank you for asking.”
“And the asshole who did that to her?”
“They arrested him the night it happened, but he’s out on bail.”
Jensen’s eyes flash.
“I know,” I say with a sigh. “But he’s in Indiana now. His parents came to get him, and he was given permission to leave the state with them so long as he wore an ankle bracelet. But he was booked for the latest assault. He almost killed her, Coach. Nobody’s letting him off easy. The DA says he’ll do time.”
“They oughta throw away that key,” Coach mutters. “Any man who raises his hand to a woman doesn’t deserve to see daylight.”
I nod in agreement.
“Anyway. Go join the men.”
“Coach, wait. I just wanted to say…” I offer a sincere look. “I appreciate you giving me the time off to handle things.”
To my shock, Jensen does something very un-Jensen-like. He places a hand on my shoulder in a comforting touch.
“Hockey’s important, Lindley, but so is life. I’m here for you, and the team’s here for you. You ever need to talk, come find me.”
I swallow the lump in my throat, feeling the weight of my coach’s words. As I make my way down the tunnel, listening to the familiar sounds of my teammates warming up, I feel a renewed sense of purpose, and I know that wherever he is, my dad is watching over me.
After practice, I drive right back to the hospital to see Diana. I come armed with snacks and my laptop, so we can watch something better than the hospital channels. I’ve stayed true to my word—I don’t plan on leaving her side until she’s home.
Her face lights up the moment I walk into her room. She’s sitting up, wearing a white cardigan with green flowers, her blond hair around her shoulders. Despite the cut on her lip and the row of stitches on her temple, her cheeks have a healthy glow, and her eyes are bright.
Christ, I love this woman with all my heart. Being with Diana is like discovering a piece of myself that I never knew was missing. She makes me want to be the best version of myself, not because I feel like I have to impress her but because she inspires me to be better.
I don’t regret my time with Lynsey. I needed it in order to grow into who I am today. But man, I see the difference now. I see the importance of picking the right woman to do life with. Preferably someone who can make you laugh your ass off.
“Hey,” I say thickly.
She smiles. “Hey.”
“Where’s your mom?” I ask.
Diana’s mom flew in from New York the morning after the assault and has spent the past three mornings at her daughter’s bedside. Diana wasn’t wrong about her mother’s attitude—I definitely see the pretentious side. But I can also tell she truly loves her daughter and is genuinely trying to connect with her. That’s all that matters.
“You won’t believe this,” Diana answers. “She went out for lunch with Dad and Larissa.”
“Wow.”
Even I know that’s progress. Diana’s parents have barely spent two hours in the same room since they divorced ten years ago. But I’ve seen them chatting in the hospital cafeteria more than once since Diana was admitted. Her brother wanted to fly in as well, but Diana put her foot down and ordered him to stay in Peru.
I drag my usual chair over to her bedside. She’s allowed to leave tomorrow. Until then, I’m spending yet another night in this hospital room. The nurses know better than to kick me out. Although I do plan on getting Adeline and Marge a nice gift basket for their patience and kindness. And maybe an extra-large basket for Dr. Lamina, the psychiatrist who’s been seeing Diana every morning to help her work through the lingering anxiety over the assault.
“How was practice?” Diana asks.
“It was good. Beckett was on fire. Can’t wait to see him unleash his inner goon on Yale this weekend.”
I open the bag of snacks, reaching in for the bag of plain potato chips she requested. I hand them to her, and she smiles happily.
“Any updates about him and Will?” she asks.
I roll my eyes. “Babe. Neither of them provides me with updates about their sex lives.”
“Well, they should. I’m curious.”
“I’ll be sure to interrogate them tomorrow at practice about whether they’ve seen each other’s penises lately,” I promise.
“Thank you.”
I steal a handful of potato chips. “How’s your pee?”
“Barely pink!” She’s jubilant.
I snicker.
“Hopefully the doctor clears me to return to practice soon.”
That summons a grin.
“What?” she says defensively.
“My beautiful optimist.”
“It can’t take that long for a bruised kidney to recover,” she argues. “Two weeks, max.”
“Your doctor said a month to be safe,” I remind her.
“I don’t have a month. We’re training for nationals. They’re in April!”
“It’s only January.” I set the bag of chips aside and climb onto the bed, stretching out beside her. “Focus on recovery. The squad will be there next month. And in the meantime, we can focus on the next project. Wanna practice our Spanish?”
Yup, I’ve been recruited into learning it with her. So far, I know how to say, “I want to fuck you in the ass.” Diana saw it in a Spanish porno once, so it was the first item on our vocab list. Which is ironic, considering we’re not even into anal. Hell, I don’t think she could handle my size even if we were.
“Later,” Diana says, waving off the suggestion. “I want to give our other project another shot first.”
I firmly shake my head. “No way. We tried last night, and it hurt you.”
“Just don’t be so vigorous this time.”
It’s true. I might have gotten a bit overexcited when I fingered her in this bed last night. I ended up jostling her side pretty hard, and her resulting pain forced us to stop.
“Pretend your fingers are gently stirring soup.”
I howl with laughter.
“Quiet,” Diana chides. “Otherwise, Marge will pop in and lecture us for being too loud. We already have one Niall in our lives. I can’t deal with a second one.”
“I still think we should set them up. Imagine the beautiful, silent life they’d lead.”
“Do we have to talk about this right now? I want to come,” she whines, twisting her head to kiss my neck.
I gently roll her onto her back. “Fine. I’ll pretend I’m stirring soup. But only if I can grind against your leg and come in my pants.”
“You’re so romantic. Stop being so romantic.”
I brush a kiss over her lips. “I’m obsessed with you, Dixon. I hope you know that. And not just because I’ve been sucked into your pussysand.”
“My pussy is powerful,” she agrees.
I bring my mouth to her neck and suck gently. She shivers in response.
“Wait, did you lock the door?”
“Shit, no. One second.”
I hop up to take care of it, and I’m walking back to the bed when Diana’s phone dings with an alert. She gasps the second she reads it.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, instantly on guard.
“I have devastating news. Brace yourself, Lindley.”
“I’m braced.”
“According to this, Zoey and the Connor broke up.”
My eyebrows fly up. “Wow. They only lasted, what, four months outside of the hacienda?”
“I know,” Diana moans. “It’s official. True love doesn’t exist.”
I lie down beside her and bring her hand to my lips, brushing a kiss on her knuckles. “You’re wrong,” I say, my voice thick with emotion. “It does.”
