The next day was a game day, but before the game Jane made Viktor do a couple of exercises. He didn’t say one word during these exercises. He actually looked like he was enjoying himself a little too much. All the upper body exercises were no problem for him, and Jane found herself watching him in amazement. The way his muscles bunched with every movement.
Jane had worked with her fair share of people, but never had she enjoyed watching someone as much as now. Not in a creepy way, though. It was her job to see to it that her patients were doin the exercises properly and it helped a whole lot when someone was as handsome as Viktor.
”Okay, stop,” Jane finally said and put a hand on his shoulder. He dropped the weights and sat up again, wiping the sweat off his brow. Jane stepped aside and threw a towel at him, still having a grin on her face. ”You want to do the rest here or on the sofa in the living room?”
”Here is fine.” He wiped the towel over his face and head before he put it aside. His hair was standing up in different directions, making Jane stiffle a laugh. ”What?”
”You look ridiculous!” She chuckled.
”That’s not a nice thing to say!”
”I’m not trying to be nice.” She bit her bottom lip to keep from laughing when she leaned over and reached for his hair, to straighten it out. ”There. Now you look like a normal person again.”
”Thanks.”
Viktor turned to the side as she instructed him. He was wearing shorts and his knee was still bandaged, but Jane changed that now.
”Can we leave the bandage off after I take a shower? Just for the night. Maybe I’ll be able to sleep better then.”
Jane didn’t think it was such a good idea and she told him so, but if he wanted to try it, they’d do it. It might be good for him in the end. They’d just have to be careful when they went to the game, so Viktor promised to use both crutches later on.
”Okay, I’ll move your leg now and you have to tell me when it hurts too much.” Jane grabbed hold of the cast on his foot. Viktor nodded, watching her intently. He’d had a couple of physiotherapists, and manual therapy (I hope this is the right English term) wasn’t his favorite, but he knew that he couldn’t do anything else for his knee right now. They had to watch out because of the cast, though.
Jane moved his muscles a little, stretched the leg and bend it as far as possible. Viktor didn’t say a thing, but she could see it in his face when it hurt. She dug her fingernails in his other leg to startle him and it worked.
”Ow! What was that for?”
”I told you to tell me when it hurts. You know, I can see it in your face. This won’t take us anywhere if you don’t open your mouth to tell me when it’s too much. Some pain is tolerable, but if it hurts too much, you have to tell me, Viktor!”
”Alright, alright.” He sighed and closed his eyes for a moment. When Jane moved his leg now and the pain got worse he told her. They did this for about fiteen to tenty minutes. After that Jane sent him off to the shower.
Viktor left the door unlocked. Jane had told him to this right from the beginning. Should something happen could she get in the room. Viktor put a bag around his cast as he’d done before. If he was lucky he’d get rid of it in one to two weeks. It wasn’t a difficult fracture and it was heeling pretty well. He’d have to be careful of course.
While Viktor was in the shower Jane got everything ready for the trip to the game. They’d get a snack there and she’d meet Abby. Viktor would be able to talk to Andrew Shaw during the game, because he had to sit one game out because of a check from the previous game. They wanted him off the ice today, so that he’d be back for the road games hopefully.
After stepping out of the shower, Viktor towel-dried his hair and wrapped another towel around his hips. ”Skit!” he mumbled to himself (Shit). He’d completely forgotten to take clothes into the bathroom with him. Hobbling around with still damp feet probably wasn’t a wise idea.
”Jane, can you do me a favor?” he called out and waited for her response. ”Can you bring me my clothes? I forgot them on my bed.”
”Sure!”
”Thank you!”
Viktor left the door open so that she could walk right in. He took a look in the mirror and sighed. He should probably shave the next morning. Now wasn’t the time for it, but tomorrow before Jane would come over.
”Here are your things.” Jane stepped inside and slowly looked up. She took another step and that was when she lost her balance on the wet floor, because Viktor had splashe water pretty much everywhere. She stumbled forward, unable to grab hold of anything, but Viktor caught her, clutched her to his chest.
”Jane, are you okay?” He stared down at her, eyes wide. Jane held on to his arms, slowly drawing herself up so that she could stand on herown two feet. She was still pressed to his chest. He could feel the rapid beating of her heart.
”Yes,” Jane said breathlessly. She raised her head until her eyes met his. Suddenly aware of how close they were, and that he was only wearing a towel, she took a big step back. ”Um... Thanks.”
”No problem.” Viktor stared at her chest, before he looked her in the eyes again. ”But now your shirt is completely wet. Just go and grab one of mine to wear. You can’t leave the house in a wet shirt.”
”No, it’s okay. Really.”
”Jane!” Viktor pulled on her shirt a bit. ”I don’t want you to catch a cold, so go and put one of my shirts on.”
”Okay okay.” She swatted his hand away and stalked out of the room. She took the first shirt out of the wardrobe and changed in his bedroom. It was a Blackhawks shirt with Viktor’s number on the in small characters at the bottom. It was dry and it would serve the purpose.
Half an hour later they were at the United Center. Abby was already waiting for Jane, so they parted ways with the guys. They’d meet at the locker room after the game.
When Abby and Jane had something to eat and drink, they finally sat down.
”How’s he doing?” Abby looked at her friend.
”He’d doing good. The injuries are healing pretty well and we started therapy today. I even got him to tell me when the pain intensified. I mean... At first he didn’t say a word, but I made him suffer, so that he had no other choice.” Jane grinned at Abby.
”Okay, next question. Why are you wearing Viktor’s shirt?” Abby’s lips curled up after she’d asked the question. It had actually been the first question on her mind, but she’d thought it rude to start off with this one.
”Well, there was a littel accident in the bathroom.”
”Accident? Bathroom? I need details!”
”Oh my God, don’t look at me like that. It was nothing of the sort!” Jane could see the disappointment in the other woman’s face. ”Sorry to disappoint you. He forgot his clothes in the bedroom and I brought them to him, slipped and he caught me, so I ended up pressed to his chest.” It was probably not such a good idea to tell Abby this detail, because her eyes started glinting with excitement. ”And he didn’t want to let me leave in my wet shirt, so he gave me one of his.”
”Viktor is a really good guy.”
”Stop it.” Abby had tried to set her up with a guy before and it hadn’t worked out. That wasn’t Abby’s fault or the guy’s. Sex was one thing, a relationship a completely different one. If she met a guy for just one night, that was fine, because she’d never see him again. For a one night stand she didn’t have to explain anything about her body, about the scars. She could just go home or send the guy away. ”You know I’m not interested in a relationship.”
”Well, then just use him for sex. I don’t think that he’ll have a problem with that. Quite the contrary.” Abby nudged her shoulder and looked down at the ice, where the game was about to start.
”I’m working for him, so that’s not likely to happen.”
”Think about it again. You can’t tell me that you don’t hink he’s attractive.”
”I never said that.”
”Then think about it. See what happens.”
”Whatever.” Jane finished the topic with that. There was no use discussing it further with Abby. She’d just try to enjoy the game now.