Pucking Around: Chapter 20

Caleb and I part ways at the coffee cart in the lobby. After swearing on his life to let me and Sy have another sleepover soon, he and the dog wander off towards the locker rooms. I find my way to the gym, only taking a wrong turn once.

Am I embarrassed about what happened? I mean, yeah. At this point, I’m just keeping a mental list. If there’s an embarrassing moment to be had, odds are Caleb Sanford is going to find a way to witness it. I really hope the cosmic wheel finds a way to balance this relationship soon. I’d love to feel like I was the one helping him for once.

I step into the gym to find the weight-lifting floor packed and the music pumping. There has to be twenty guys in here already. Several of them wave and call out hellos to me as I weave between the equipment.

“Morning, Doc!” calls the cute, boyish blond.

I spent some time yesterday going through the roster to try and put as many names to faces. His name is Langley, and he’s on my list for a physical today. “Morning, Langley,” I reply with an awkward wave, still juggling all my crap.

He beams at me, his chest puffed out like I just gave him a gold star on his homework. “You remembered my name.”

“Of course,” I reply brightly.

Good thing most of the guys go by their last names. Between first names, last names, and the hordes of nicknames they give each other, I expect I’ll be confused for a while.

I shuffle into my tiny office. I barely have a chance to set my stuff down before I feel him. I spin around in my swivel chair, whacking my elbow against the wall. “Ow—shit—” I rub at it, looking up to take in the massive frame of Jake Compton.

He’s smiling at me and I feel it all the way down to my toes. “Good morning, Doctor Price.”

I roll my eyes, snatching up my travel cup. “Okay, champ, dial it back a little.”

“What? I can’t call you Doctor Price?”

“No, you can call me Doctor Price,” I say, taking a sip of my coffee. “I meant dial back the eyes.”

He leans against my doorway, arms crossed. “My eyes?”

“Yeah, they give you away.”

“Oh, yeah? And what are my eyes saying this morning?” He flutters his lashes like a total flirt.

I get up from my chair, which does very little to make me feel like I’m taking back my space. He still stands head and shoulders taller than me. “They’re saying they watched me come last night.”

He feigns a gasp. “Why, Doc, I have no idea what you’re talking about. My eyes were with me all night. You can ask Caleb. He’ll tell you that at no point did I watch you ride a toy to climax.”

I stand right in front of him, clutching my coffee and my tablet. “You gonna move?”

“Huh?”

“You make a better door than my actual door, Jake. Move your body.”

“Oh—” He laughs, stepping out of my doorway.

“Hey, Doc, if Compton gives you a hard time, you let us know!” one of the guys shouts. “We’ll set him straight!”

Some of the other guys laugh and shout too, the noises layering with the thumping music.

I open the exam room door and he winks as he walks past, turning to hop dutifully up onto the exam table. This room is a much better size, with enough space for a small sink and cupboard, an exam table. There are a few pieces of equipment I can use to test flexibility and range of motion too.

I set my coffee on the counter by the sink and wake up my tablet. I lean against the wall by the open door and pull up his electronic medical files. “So…let’s see what we’ve got here.”

Jake crosses his arms over his broad chest, still giving me the I’ve-seen-you-naked eyes. I wish they weren’t so damn pretty. They’re a caramel brown at the outside, fading to apple green at his iris. “You gonna shut the door, Seattle?”

I glance up over the tablet. “Hmm?” My gaze darts to the open door. “I don’t think we need the door shut for this exam. It’s not like I’ll have you taking off any clothing. This is more of a formality. I’m just gonna poke and prod at your knees a bit.”

“Yeah, well, I’m a pretty shy guy,” he says with a shrug and that sultry grin. “I prefer to know my doctor-patient confidentiality can’t be breached by some nosy rookie. These guys look for weaknesses, like sharks chasing chum in the water.”

I pause in my skimming to look up at him again. “If I close that door, are you gonna behave?”

He nods, raising the two fingers of his right hand. “Scout’s honor.”

Oh, goddamn it. He did that cutesy little move in Seattle too…right before he fucked me bare and made me scream with my ankles on his shoulders. I can tell from the look on his face right now that he’s picturing it too.

“Compton, I swear to god—”

He barks out a laugh, raising both hands in surrender. “Alright, alright, I’ll behave. Look, I’m totally behaving. Ask your questions, Doc. This is about hips and knees, right? No word of a lie, I’m in the best shape of my life. I had some issues with my meniscus about two years ago. Had a minor surgery. I’ve been playing great since.”

I narrow my eyes at him. “Mmhmm. Did you know I have a magic talent?”

He raises a brow. “Making a man hard with just a look?”

I shake my head. “Nope. I’m basically a human lie detector. So, I’m gonna review this file, and I will do an exam, and I will ask you questions, Compton. And if I think you’re lying to me, I’ll ask more questions. I’ll do more exams. I will poke and prod and X-ray and scan until your records are thick as a phone book.”

His cocky smile falters a bit. There’s nothing pro athletes hate worse than the threat of medical testing. And I bet you any money Jake Compton is afraid of needles. I’ll be giving him an orange juice after he passes out and whacks his head on my table.

“You should know that Doctor Tyler has given me the power to approve your final preseason review,” I add. “You wanna play next week?”

He nods. “Yeah, of course I do.”

“Good. Then get rid of that dirty look in your eyes. I’m not Seattle right now. I’m Doctor Price. So, tell me, how long was your post-op recovery after your meniscus surgery? What was on your regimen of care? And do try not to leave anything out.” I pluck the stylus off the side of my tablet, glancing up at him, and wait.

He sighs, his shoulders relaxing a bit. “Fine, Doc. We’ll do this your way.”

Jake was a perfect gentleman for the rest of the exam. He answered my questions, performed all the range of motion tests I requested, and only groaned once when I did a quick check of his hip joints, my fingers prodding the muscles, checking for tightness or tenderness. I let him go with a smile and a quick promise that his starting position was safe.

My morning hurries along as I work down my list of guaranteed starters. All these guys are head coach approved for the active roster. So long as they pass my exam, they’ll be suiting up for the first game.

After Jake, I meet Lukas Novikov. He’s another defenseman. Tall and burly, he has a face that looks like it’s taken more than a few hits. But he’s kind and flirty. He seems fine from his treadmill tumble the other day, and I leave him with a tease to make sure he’s double-knotting his shoelaces.

Next in the door is Jean-Luc Gerard, the one the guys call J-Lo. The first thing I notice when he wanders in—besides the missing teeth in his smile—is the wedding ring on his finger.

“You married?” I say as I massage his knee cap.

“Yeah, Doc. Six years and counting.”

“That’s nice. You got any kids?”

The rest of the exam goes quick as he flips through his phone, showing me endless photos of his two little girls, who apparently spend every waking moment in princess crowns and tiaras. I snort at the one of him in the middle, toothless grin spread wide, with big circles of red rouge colored on his cheeks. Yeah, all the athletes I’ve met are tough guys until their daughters are born. Then they melt like butter. I bet he can name more Disney princesses than me.

He shakes my hand as he leaves, and I check my list.

“Kinnunen, you’re up next!” I call out to the crowded weight room, my eyes on my tablet as I close out Gerard’s file.

After a minute or two, I glance up, looking around the gym. No sign of Kinnunen. The man would be impossible to miss. I walk over to Novikov who’s about to get on a treadmill. “Hey, you seen Kinnunen this morning?”

He just shrugs, glancing over his shoulder to scan the room. “Maybe his practice ran long. I’d just skip him, Doc. He’ll show up eventually.”

I sigh, checking my list. “Langley! You’re up!”

I hear a clang from close by and turn around. “Great. Yeah, Doc. I’ll be right there!” Blondie gets up from his weight rack, smiling like he’s the star of a bubblegum commercial.

“Why don’t you head into the room,” I say. “I’m just gonna check something in the office.”

We part ways at the doors, him for the exam room, me for the standing-room-only office. I snatch up my phone, looking to see if I have any missed messages from Kinnunen or the goalie coach. Nothing.

I move through into the exam room, tablet tucked under my arm, as I text out a message to Hillary to get Kinnunen rescheduled. Tucking the phone in my pocket, I turn back to the tablet. “Alright, Langley. Let’s get star—ohmygod—what the hell are you doing?”

He jumps up to attention, eyes wide as his gym shorts slink to the floor. He’s standing by the table in nothing but his junk-hugging briefs, socks, and trainers. “What—I didn’t see one of those paper gown thingies.”

My eyes go wide as I hug the tablet to my chest. This guy is cut. There is not a single ounce of fat on him. And he was in the middle of a workout, so his perfect pecs are shiny with sweat. “Why the hell are you getting naked, Langley?”

Now he’s looking at me like I’m the crazy one. “This is a physical…isn’t it?”

I gape at him. “This—I’m a knee specialist, Langley. You were already wearing shorts.” I gesture to the pile of polyester at his feet.

His face blanches whiter than an almond. “But the other guys all said—” He pauses, and we just stare at each other. Then his cheeks go from white to red. “Oh, fuck those guys! I’m gonna kill Novy.” Then he’s dropping to his knees to snatch up the shorts.

I can’t hide my smile as I shake my head. “Just put your clothes back on. I’ll wait outside.”

The second I step out, the gym explodes with laughter. All the guys were apparently waiting to see what might happen. Jake is standing by Novikov, his arm around his shoulder. The pair of them are wearing matching shit-eating grins.

“See somethin’ you like in there, Doc?” Novikov teases.

“Who are you hazing here, him or me?” I call back.

“Both!” shouts a guy—I think is named Karlsson. He’s Swedish and very GQ-looking.

Langley appears at my shoulder, fully dressed, and the guys all hoot and howl again. “Fuck you, Novy! You guys are all jerks!” he shouts before disappearing back inside the room.

“Please tell me he stripped totally naked,” says Novikov, tears in his eyes.

“No, he didn’t,” I reply. “And just for future reference,” I call out. “The first guy who gets naked in my exam room is gonna get benched for a week. Bad idea to piss off the person who signs your medical releases,” I add, shooting daggers at Novikov and Jake.

“What’s wrong, Doc? Can’t appreciate the male form?” jeers Novikov.

“Oh, I appreciate the hell out of a fine male form,” I reply. “I just like to have finished my damn coffee first.”

“So, you would want to see us naked…just later in the day,” says Jake. “After you’ve finished your coffee.”

“Yeah, it’s all a matter of timing,” Novikov adds with a nod.

“Noted, Doc,” Jake says with a grin.

“We could try again after lunch!” someone calls. At the same time, a guy starts singing ‘Afternoon Delight’ and the guys all fall to pieces again.

“You’re all twelve,” I grumble, turning back to go inside the exam room.

“And you love our dumb asses!”

I snap the door shut, drowning out their laughter, as I face a mollified Langley.

“Let’s just get this over with, eh Doc?”