Chapter 11
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Josie
If I didn’t know how moody and arrogant he could be, I’d think Dane Foster was an absolute saint. A stand-up guy. A gentleman, even.
Archie Bright, the nine-year-old cancer patient who just met Dane for the first time, is looking at him with such reverence that it takes my breath away. When we arrived, he cried and hugged Dane for a solid five minutes and he’s just now managed to let go of him so they can have a conversation, both of them wearing masks.
This morning, Dane called my cat “a furry menace” and griped at me for not emptying the lint trap in his dryer. Then he made me a delicious cheese omelet. I still haven’t figured out if he’s mercurial or just constantly trying to balance out his grouchiness with good deeds.
Right now, though, I’m in awe of him. Archie is bald and thin, and he was staring listlessly at nothing in his hospital bed when we walked into the room. Now his eyes are shining happily and he’s holding Dane’s hand. Dane is smiling warmly at the little boy, listening to him talk about watching hockey games on TV.
“They don’t have most of the Mammoths’ games on TV here,” he says glumly. “Sometimes they do, though.”
“How would you feel about watching tomorrow night’s game against Chicago?” Dane asks.
Archie lights up. “Oh yeah! I’m watching that one. Regina said I can stay up late and watch it on the big TV in the lounge. She’s one of my nurses.”
Dane shakes his head and makes a face, looking at Archie’s mom, Taylor.
“I don’t think you guys should let him stay up late and watch it in the lounge,” he says.
“What?” Archie cries.
Dane waves a hand dismissively. “If you’ve seen one hockey game, you’ve seen ’em all, man.”
“No!” Archie’s expression is devastated. “I want to watch the game! Regina said I can!”
“How about this?” Dane says. “You can still watch the game, but instead of watching it from the lounge here, you come to the arena and watch it with me in person.”
The little boy’s eyes fill with happy tears and he looks at his mom. “Can I?”
His mom is smiling through tears as she says, “Of course, baby.”
It’s a good thing the Mammoths’ PR office sent two of their photographers with us to capture this meeting on video and in photos because I can’t keep it together anymore. I have to step out of the room to go clean my tear-streaked face off in the bathroom.
Archie and his family deserve all the joy in the world. All I asked Dane to do was come here and meet Archie, but he asked Arnold for a private area where he, Archie and his family could watch a game. He’d read through posts Archie’s mom had put on social media and knew steering clear of germs was important for him. That’s why Arnold is giving up his own private box for tomorrow night’s game and having it disinfected from top to bottom so Archie and his family will have a safe place to watch.
I take a short walk, get a Diet Coke from a vending machine and put my mask back on before returning to Archie’s room, where Dane is crouched down next to his bed.
“Does it hurt when you get hit by a puck?” Archie asks him.
“Not too bad. Unless you catch a puck to the old coin purse without pads on.”
Archie laughs, his hand still holding firmly to Dane’s.
“Who’s your favorite player of all time?” Archie asks him.
“All time?” Dane considers.
“Mine is a tie between you and Gretzky.”
Dane grins. “Wow. I don’t compare to him, but I’m honored.”
“Sometimes Regina lets me hit pucks down the hallway when everyone’s asleep.”
A young woman in scrubs on the other side of the room laughs. “Archie, that was supposed to be our secret.”
The photographers take several photos of Dane and Archie and then more with Archie’s parents and younger brother. Then Archie asks if he can show Dane the room where he watches the games, which turns into a tour of the whole floor and Dane meeting and taking photos with several other patients.
He’s the best version of himself when interacting with the kids. Kind and funny. Most importantly, he listens to them. He never rushes them or acts disinterested in what they’re saying. It’s hard to believe this is the same guy Arnold referred to as “a PR nightmare” when he hired me.
“That was fun,” Dane says to me when we’re leaving the hospital after being there for nearly three hours, and I can tell he means it.
“You were great,” I say.
“That’s one thing I never mind doing.” He glances away and then back at me. “My younger sister had cystic fibrosis.”
I have to process that for a few seconds before I can respond. He said had . Past tense.
“I’m so sorry,” I say.
He shrugs. “It’s a brutal fucking disease. So is cancer. If I can do anything to brighten a kid’s day when they’re fighting a battle like that, it’s a tiny thing. Nothing compared to what they go through.”
I nod as an elevator takes us down to the hospital’s main entrance, a lump in my throat. His suspension turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Dane’s time with Archie today was more important than any hockey practice or game.
A few hours later, I’m taking Mr. Darcy’s blanket out of the dryer when Dane calls out from the kitchen.
“I need to get out of the house. I’m bored as fuck.”
So much for my evening plans of catching up on work, ordering pizza and reading.
“Okay, I just need to take a quick shower before we leave,” I said. “But first, I have to empty the lint trap because that’s critically important to me.”
“It is important, Nosy!”
I roll my eyes as I take the tiny amount of lint and hair from the trap and carry it into the kitchen to throw away. Then I return Mr. Darcy’s blanket to my bed and walk into the kitchen, where Dane’s eating crackers.
“Where do you want to go?” I ask him.
He shrugs. “Someplace low key.”
I walk over to the refrigerator to get my water bottle, Dane making no effort to move out of the way as I brush past him. I’d be embarrassed for anyone to know how hard my heart pounds when we’re so close I can feel the heat of his body. I’m here to do a job, but I’m still human, and it’s been a long time since I was in close quarters with an attractive man.
“Anyone ever tell you you’ve got great legs?” he asks casually.
His compliment makes my mouth go dry. I’m wearing shorts and a T-shirt, my hair up in a ponytail. I love that he was looking at me, but it also makes me feel a little panicked.
“Um...I don’t know,” I say.
No. The answer is no . No one has ever told me that, but it’s hard to be coherent right now.
We’re standing just a couple of feet away from each other, both of us leaning against the kitchen island counter. He stopped eating, his gaze now fixed on...my lips? My eyes? I feel the heavy, pleasant weight of his attention all over.
“I can see why Lucas has the hots for you,” he says.
“Who?”
The corners of his lips turn up in a smile. “Right answer. He’s our goalie.”
“Oh.” I clear my throat, forcing my gaze away from his.
My eyes land on one of his hands. It’s resting on the island and it’s enormous. My mind wanders to what it would feel like to have that hand running up my thigh. His hands are so big that he could cup my entire ass in both of them.
“Go take your shower so we can go out,” he says, winking.
“Okay.”
Suddenly, going out doesn’t sound so bad anymore. I turn on a playlist and shower with my favorite coconut shower gel, moving quickly. Afterward, I cover myself in lotion, telling myself it’s just because I want to and not because I don’t want dry skin if Dane happens to...encounter any of my skin later.
I can’t let anything happen between us. It would undermine my professional relationship with him. I’ve seen colleagues lose credibility with clients over personal relationships. Jane even lost a big client once when her relationship with their company’s CEO went bad.
A night out won’t hurt anything, though. Maybe there’ll be some flirting, but as long as we each go to our own beds after returning home, it’s okay.
It’s a good thing I spent some money on new clothes that arrived here while we were gone for our road trip. I wouldn’t have wanted to pull something wrinkled out of my backpack for tonight.
After dressing in formfitting black pants, a silky dark-green cap-sleeved top and low, strappy black heels, I put on light makeup and walk back into the kitchen.
“Dane?” I call out.
When he doesn’t respond, I check his bedroom and bathroom, which are both empty. I walk back out to the living room, wondering where the hell he went.
My heart skips a beat when I see a note taped to the back of the front door. My heels click against the wood floors as I walk over to read it.
I need a night out alone. Don’t worry about me.
Dane
I read it three times, my heart sinking a little more each time. Tears of frustration fill my eyes.
He played me. He turned on the fake charm and pretended to like me, all so he could bolt as soon as I got in the shower. And I fell for it like a complete idiot.
I’m angry, but more than that, I’m humiliated. What a fool I was, moisturizing myself for him while he was laughing and driving away.
I can’t even go look for him because I have no idea where he went. Slipping out of my heels, I send texts to Jenn and Elena, telling them to let me know if they hear about Dane being out somewhere.
If he gets into trouble, we’re both sunk. He’s suspended, and it’s especially important that he not be seen out partying right now.
Not that he cares. The one and only thing Dane Foster cares about is himself.
I won’t forget that again.