Page 136 of What About Us

Don’t you dare.

Cooper holds Xander back, bless his heart, and the fight breaks up. One of the guys’ helmets came flying off.

“His helmet,” I murmur.

“A punch to the face is a punch to the face, helmet or not,” she reminds me. “These guys are strong.”

She’s right.

He doesn’t have to hit his head on the ice or the boards to be injured. It could be a punch, or he could accidentally take an elbow to the chin. For fuck’s sake, he could hit his head getting out of the car.

Anything could happen that would make him forget me.

“Hey, are you okay? You just went really pale.”

I shake myself out of my own thoughts and force a smile.

“Yeah, sorry. I get nervous. Must be the medical professional in me.”

But she doesn’t buy it. Brit’s eyes narrow. “Uh-huh.”

A whistle blows, and Xander skates off the ice, stopping in front of his coaches to talk.

“Looks like they’re going to wrap up,” Britney says. “I’ll head in to work. But I’ll see you tonight. Feel free to come early, and we can sample some of the food before everyone else gets there.”

With a grin, I nod at her. “Sounds good. I’ll text you when I’m on my way.”

Britney heads out, and I join the other medical staff as we talk to Xander.

“Any instability?” I ask him, watching his face closely.

“No, I felt good. Any hesitation was mental. The knee feels normal.”

“It’s your first practice, so that’s to be expected,” someone else says, and I let the others do the talking as I soak in all the information around me.

“Let’s go stretch,” I say at last. “And cool you down.”

Xander nods. “I’ll just go change and be right there.”

He winks at me before he walks into the locker room, and I turn around to find the head of the team medical staff, Dr. Watkins, smiling at me.

“Uh-oh. Are you smiling because I’m in trouble?”

He laughs and shakes his head. “Not at all. We’ve all been impressed with Xander’s progress, and the bulk of that has to do with the fact that he had you working with him.”

I feel the flush make its way through my cheeks, and I nod. “Thank you. He was eager to heal, and honestly, he’s my favorite player, so I want to see him back on the ice too.”

Dr. Watkins nods. “I’d like to offer you a job, Ivy.”

I blink at him, sure I’ve heard him wrong. “I’m sorry?”

“We’d like you to join the team permanently and work with any players that need you. We always try to keep injuries minimal, but there’s usually someone who needs to work out a sprained shoulder, tweaked ribs, and the occasional torn knee. You’re excellent and would be a valuable asset to the team.”

Holy shit.

This is literally my dream job.

“Sir, you need to know that Xander and I⁠—”