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“Why are you sorry? You didn’t hurt me.”

“Not directly. I should have never let you play.”

I look around. We’re alone in the hallway, but you never know if there’s someone around the corner who could overhear our conversation.

“Does it hurt a lot?” Bobbi asks.

“Only when I breathe.” I crack a smile.

“Let’s get you home, then,” he says.

“She needs to go to the ER for further testing.”

I grimace. The physician did say that, but I was hoping I didn’t have to. “Can’t we do that tomorrow?”

Keanu shakes his head. “No. You could have a concussion, and they need to take X-rays. Didn’t the physician tell you that?”

“Yeah, I think he did. Sorry. I’m a little loopy right now. He gave me pretty strong painkillers.”

“Oh dear,” Bobbi mutters.

“What?” Keanu turns to him.

“If those painkillers are anything like what she got when she had her molars removed, you’re in for a show.”

I expect Keanu’s eyes to light up with mischief, but his expression remains somber. Boy, he’s really worried about me, and it gives me all kinds of fuzzy feelings. I want to shower him with kisses. If I had been myself, I would refrain from doing it in front of Bobbi, but the drugs have already taken effect, because I step into Keanu’s space and press my lips to his.

“What are you doing?” Bobbi blurts out, the disgust obvious in his tone.

I ignore him and don’t break the kiss. Keanu is more than happy to reciprocate, and now we’re really making out like teenagers. The drug-infused feeling of euphoria leaves my body in a whoosh, and so does the pain. It takes me a moment to realize I’m back in my body, and Keanu is kissing me now in his. I don’t step back, allowing myself to enjoy the moment before everything comes crashing down again. I throw my arms around his neck, forgetting that he got hurt. He hisses and pulls away. I zap back into his body and grunt as I ride the pain that I just caused.

“I’m sorry,” Keanu says.

“It’s okay,” I grit out. “It was my fault.”

“I so didn’t need to see that.” Bobbi turns around and starts to walk toward the exit. “Come on. Let’s take Keanu to the ER.”

KEANU

By the time we finally make it home, it’s past one in the morning. The amount of waiting around in the hospital was insane. I haven’t gotten hurt in a game in a long time, but it seems tonight the wait between examinations was longer than usual. Or maybe it was the fact that I kept getting stares from strangers. I’m glad Bobbi was around to prevent people from coming over to pester Leigh—aka me—for a selfie or autograph.

“You’re not coming in?” I ask Bobbi.

“No. I have to go home. I trust you’ll take care of Leigh well.”

“Yes, you don’t have to worry about that.”

He doesn’t say it out loud, but I know he’s still freaked out to see Leigh in my body and vice versa. I think Simon took things in stride much faster.

I find Leigh on the couch, already sleeping. A concussion was ruled out, so I don’t need to wake her, but I wish she hadn’t fallen asleep on the couch. Her bed is much more comfortable. I can’t carry her, so I grab a couple of blankets and pillows from her room and bring them back to the living room.

I make sure she’s comfortable first before I make a bed for myself on the floor. There’s no way I’m going to sleep in a different room than her. I need to be close in case she needs me, but I’m also unable to stay away from her. She’s hurt because of me. If her injury had been more serious, I wouldn’t have forgiven myself.

I rub my face. I really didn’t need to let her play tonight. But I was so worried about not pissing off Coach Edwards and screwing up my career that I allowed myself to believe Leigh could pull off playing pro hockey. That’s a mistake I won’t make again. If after six weeks we’re still in this situation, I’ll walk away from my career. I can’t let Leigh get hurt again. I care about her too much.

My heart seems to skip a beat. I recognize the feeling that’s making me react this way, but can I trust it?

29 LEIGH