Hard & Deep: A Football Romance

“Hey, we'll get you there, Ollie,” she said, sounding sure of herself. “The two of us are a team now and we'll work together. I've got your back.”

His eyes lit up and he reached forward, placing his hand over hers. His touch sent a pleasurable chill through her. She liked it, a lot more than she cared to admit.

No, Elsie. No, she thought. Sure, he's cute and he's got a great story, but he's your patient. That's all.

Slowly, she pulled her hand away and picked up her pen. Then she pretended to jot some notes down on her paper.

“I appreciate all that you're doing for me,” he said, after a few moments of pause. “Truly, it feels good knowing you're on my side. I was hopeless when I woke up in that hospital. But you've really made me feel like there's a chance I can pull through this thing.”

Warmth spread through her chest and she couldn't stop the smile on her face.

“Thank you. Just don't get down about it,” she said, placing a hand onto his shoulder. “Stay positive and keep the same 'work hard' attitude that brought you into your career in the first place.”

“That's some very sound advice,” he replied. “You sure you're not related to Coach?”

She chuckled.

“I hope you take it to heart,” she said, her lips curling up into a wide smile. “Anyway, that's it for today. Keep yourself comfortable tonight and don't be afraid to put ice on that knee. You know the drill.”

“I do.” Ollie nodded.

Elsie grabbed her clipboard and purse, but then paused. The session was over, but she didn't really want to leave. She was having a nice time. There was a great connection between them and it made for smooth and relaxing conversation. It had been a while since she had been able to enjoy that with someone. Still, though, she feared if she stayed much longer than she would wear out her welcome.

“You have my phone number if you need anything,” she said, turning toward the door and mentally telling herself it was time to go.

“That I do.” Oliver grabbed his crutches and eased himself back down to the floor. “And you have mine. Which is good, that way if I do call you, you won't think it's some crazy spam caller or something.”

She grinned at his comment, but couldn't think of anything else to add. The session was over and it was time for her to leave, even though she was having a nice time.

“Okay, I'll see you Friday,” she finally said, and started walking toward the front door.

Just as she touched the doorknob, she heard Ollie call out, “I'm looking forward to it.”

Elsie grinned and stepped outside into the icy air.

It almost feels like a date, she thought.

She liked the idea of that, but also feared the implications. Combining her professional world with her personal was never a good idea. They'd gone over that plenty of times in school and she'd seen coworkers get in trouble with patients.

But she couldn't get rid of that feeling of attraction toward Ollie. It wasn't about his good looks or money, either. It was something different. Maybe it was his playful personality or how he made her feel important. Whatever it was, she couldn't get him off of her mind. And Friday couldn't come soon enough.

Chapter 6

Ollie

Oliver was laying on his back, looking up at the ceiling. He was on the floor of the makeshift gym in his temporary home and Elsie was standing nearby, counting out his movements. He was in pain and beyond exhausted. A part of him felt like passing out would be a better alternative than staying conscious, but there was no way that Elsie would let him quit. He loved that about her.

“How is this so hard?” he asked, through gritted teet

h. “I'm hardly doing anything. This shouldn't be so difficult.”

“Just keep going until I tell you to stop,” Elsie said.

She was wearing her lime-green scrubs again and Ollie couldn't help but to take a peek at her backside every chance he got. She looked really good and the weeks of therapy with her had created feelings toward her. He knew there was a deeper connection than just the doctor/patient one. There was something there that was undeniable and he wondered if she'd noticed it too.

“Come on, Ollie,” she said, crouching down next to him on the floor. Her brown eyes were warm and encouraging. “Just thirty more seconds and you can take a break.”

He pressed the back of his head into the padded floor mat and clenched his jaw. Then he focused on the movement, which was very basic. All he had to do was straighten out his right leg and then slowly lift it up to a vertical position. Then, after holding it there for three seconds, he was to bring it back down and start all over. He'd been doing it for a while, though, and combined with the bicycling and weights they'd already done, he was beat.