Page 20
My new physiotherapist’s office was located less than ten minutes from the ballpark. Of course, in a town this size, almost everything was within ten minutes of everywhere else. As I drove through the business district, I passed Jane’s bakery. The shop had a large white baseball painted on the picture window with “Batter Up!” in red. Everything about it reflected her love of baseball. No wonder the Fliers had chosen her to be one of their vendors.
What was she doing right now? Did she have a smudge of flour on her cheek, like she always had whenever she baked for Brooke and Ethan back in Texas? No matter how hard she tried, she had always wound up with a little smudge somewhere on her face. It had been adorable.
I pulled into the lot of the strip mall where my physiotherapist’s office was located. It seemed like a typical small-town clinic, and that didn’t bode well for the services offered. My therapy needs since the accident were complex. I didn’t want to drive to Calgary to get the treatment I needed, but in order to recover, I would do anything. I’d gone through a few therapists in Seattle before finding one I could work with. Today was a trial run.
When I walked in, I found that this was not the typical bland medical office. The walls were decorated with signed baseball and hockey jerseys, some from players whose names I recognized easily. A few were still playing professionally. Clearly, this place specialized in sports medicine. Team management had promised me that the owners were experts, but I hadn’t held out a lot of hope for true sports medicine in a town as small as Red Rock. It was good to be wrong.
A tall woman with red hair tied back in a ponytail came around a corner and smiled. “Hi, I’m Ari. You must be Carter.”
“I am. Looks like you have some experience with athletes.” I waved at the framed jerseys.
“My brother plays in the NHL.” She pointed at a jersey with the name White inscribed on the back.
“When he comes home for the offseason, he often brings friends with him. I’ve treated a few of them. The baseball jerseys are mostly from Fliers players, but a couple made it to the majors and sent me signed jerseys once they got called up to a big-league club. I’m pretty good at what I do.” Pride and self-confidence rang in every word.
“Excellent, because I still need all the help I can get,” I said.
She led me down a hall to the treatment rooms. The rooms were spacious, no cubicles separated by curtains here. It was as well designed as the office I had been going to in Seattle, which was one of the best. Once we were inside, she had me sit while she opened up her laptop.
“The club sent over your medical records for me to review before our appointment. Your accident required a lot of reconstructive surgery. I saw the treatment plan your therapist in Seattle gave you. Why don’t you tell me how it’s working, and what areas you think might need modifications? I’ve got some ideas, but it’s your body.” Ari looked at me expectantly.
I liked her already. She’d done her homework and was willing to listen rather than dictate. We were off to a good start.
After talking about options, Ari started working on what was bothering me most right now: a tight hip flexor. She worked silently on it, and I let my mind drift.
What would have happened if I had kissed Jane last night? Her lips had looked so soft, so enticing. Would she have stopped me, or wanted more?
I winced as Ari dug into a particularly painful spot, bringing me back to the present. I had to distract myself a little, and thinking about Jane was not helping.
“Do you run your practice alone?” The office had a few rooms but was super quiet today. I hadn’t heard a single other person moving around.
“I share it with my sister, who is a massage therapist. She’s on vacation this week, so today it’s just me.”
Ari hit another painful spot, and I let out an involuntary groan. It had been a couple of weeks since I had been to a therapist, and my body was reminding me why I couldn’t wait that long next time.
“Too much?” Her hands kept the pressure on even as she asked.
“No, it’s fine.” It was. My hip was already feeling better than it had before she started.
“Do both of you work with the Fliers?”
“We do. As you can tell, we specialize in sports medicine. My brother wasn’t the only athlete in the family. I played volleyball all through school. I even played on the national team a few years before coming back to Red Rock for good. My sister played hockey. We all spent a lot of time in physio and massage offices trying to stay healthy or rehab injuries. I wanted a way to stay connected with sport, and this seemed like a career I would enjoy. Our practice has been going strong for almost ten years now.”
“I’m sure I’ll be seeing a lot of you, and probably your sister too.” Regular treatments were the only thing that would keep me healthy and flexible enough to keep playing at a high level.
“I hope so. We were thrilled when the Fliers told us they would keep us on as their preferred therapy team after being converted to a Triple-A club. Most clubs have their own people on staff, but Wally fought for us. We will always prioritize Fliers players, but this allows us to keep our other clients too.”
I tried to stay focused on what Ari was saying, what her hands were doing to ease the pain in my hip. Anything to keep my mind off Jane and our near-miss kiss.
Chapter 12
Jane
Carter’s Jeep wasn’t out front when I got home from work. I’d been on edge all day, needing to talk to Carter about last night. He’d been about to kiss me when my phone rang—and I’d have kissed him back. Which was such a bad idea. We were friends, and I wanted us to stay that way.
Kissing Carter would complicate things. If we went any further, there was a strong possibility someone would end up getting hurt. His only reason for being here was to get called back up to the majors. He’d be gone as soon as his phone rang.
My life was here. I’d rebuilt it after divorcing Chad, and leaving Red Rock was not in the cards. This was Brooke and Ethan’s home, and my bakery was about to take off.
