Page 73 of Entwined in Norway

Erik got to his feet, keen to get himself patched up before he stiffened up too much. ‘You’re right,’ he said again. ‘I guess I needed to get something out of my system first.’

Brad nodded. ‘Well, you did a great job of that,’ he said, looking at Erik with raised eyebrows.

The medical centre was just down the street, and in the off-season, they weren’t so busy.

‘Erik Anderson.’ The nurse who came to fetch him from the waiting area stood with her hands on her hips while she waited for him to join her. ‘I didn’t expect to see you here. Wasn’t that last accident enough for you?’

He limped into the exam room and exhaled in relief once he was seated again. ‘I didn’t expect it either.’

He’d known Jessie for a few years. She was part of the on-call medical team and had been one of the first people to reach him that day.

She snapped a pair of gloves on and helped him take his t-shirt off.

‘Gravel hurts worse than snow, right?’ Her eyes scanned his arm and shoulder. ‘Any pain here?’

‘No.’

‘Here?’

He winced. ‘Yeah.’

‘We’ll get an X-ray, but I think it’s just bruising. Let’s get these grazes cleaned up first.’

‘Thanks.’

‘So I haven’t seen you around for a while,’ she said, unwrapping what looked like a scrubbing brush.

‘I’ve been in Toronto, mostly. And I just got back from a trip to Norway.’

‘Wow, really? This is going to sting.’

‘Shit, Jessie.’ It was excruciating as she began scrubbing the grazes on his arm.

His flinching did nothing to stop her in her tracks. ‘Got to get the dirt out. And how have you been? Missing the team?’

‘Yeah.’ His heart ached for it. Being in Norway had helped, but now he was back here, it was all too real again.

‘Did you talk to anyone about that?’

He knew she meant a therapist, and god knows his parents had tried hard to get him to agree, but he was a stubborn asshole. Especially when he was in pain. Like now.

‘I’m doing better now.’ He sighed with relief when she stopped scrubbing at him and covered the worst of the wounds with dressings.

‘Yes, I can see that.’

‘Jessie…’

‘Erik. I don’t want to see you like this. You’re tormented. Come on, I know we were just a casual thing, but I know you.’

‘It’s not about the boarding. I met a girl in Norway.’

‘You did?’ She grinned, and he loved that even though he’d treated her pretty badly back in the day, she didn’t hold that against him.

‘She’s amazing, but I think I’ve ruined it.’

‘Right. So this is you punishing yourself.’

He looked at her. ‘I guess so.’