Hard & Deep: A Football Romance

“I suppose you're right,” he said with a sigh.

Elsie could see the worry behind her uncle's eyes. The compassion she felt for his situation was overwhelming, but she knew that the best thing she could do was to assure him that things would be okay.

“I'm here for you if you want to talk,” she said. “I'm always here.”

Uncle Frank placed her hand onto Elsie's shoulder, giving it a firm squeeze. “Don't look so blue, kid. Everything is fine. And look, if it makes you feel any better, I'm pretty sure I'm going to go through with the surgery. I'm just not quite ready to admit that fact to myself yet. The whole idea of going under the knife makes me nervous, but I realize it's probably the best move. Besides, I'm not ready to throw in the towel quite yet.”

Elsie's eyes lit up. “That's great news, Uncle Frank. I know things will be fine.”

“I'm sure they will,” Frank agreed. “Now, where's this little surprise you were telling me about? I think I'm ready, but I hope it's nothing too crazy. The last thing this old man needs is a heart attack on top of everything else.”

Elsie chuckled. “Come on, it's in here,” she said, leading him toward the back room where all of the new equipment was.

“What in tarnation?” he whispered, as he stepped into the exercise and recovery room. “Elsie, where did you get all of this? This is incredible.”

Elsie proudly walked through the room, showing off all of the new things. “Isn't it amazing, Uncle?”

“This must have cost a fortune.” Frank walked around the room, touching every piece of equipment as though he'd found the holy grail. Physical therapy was his life's work as much as hers.

“Didn't cost a penny,” Elsie said, unable to hide her excitement. “That last patient of mine gave it all to me. Every bit of it.”

Uncle Frank brought his gaze toward her, wide eyed with bewilderment. “He gave this all to you?”

“Yes.” Elsie nodded. “He said that he owed so much to me for helping in his recovery. He said it was the least he could do.”

She felt her smile fading as she talked about Ollie. Bringing him up forced her to remember the fact that she would never see him again. She turned away from her Uncle.

I can't let him see me cry, she thought, choking back the tears. He's already got too much to worry about.

But Elsie's uncle knew her better than she knew herself. He stepped beside her, wrapping a comforting arm around her shoulder.

“What's wrong, kiddo?” he asked. His voice was low and comforting, just like when she was a little girl. “Something is on your mind.”

“No, I'm fine,” she said, with a sniffle. “Just, uh, I don't know. Maybe a little stressed or something.”

Frank gazed around the room. “Elsie, you just had a million dollars of equipment that landed in your lap. Patients will be coming from all over the state once they hear how state-of-the-art this place is. Financial worries will be a thing of the past. I'm having a hard time understanding what you're stressed about. I think it's something else.”

He looked at her with discerning eyes. It was a look Elsie had seen from him a million times in her life. He could see right through her and she knew that there was no getting around that.

“I just miss him,” she said, surprised at how the words felt as they tumbled out of her mouth. “I miss Oliver.”

“The patient?” Frank asked.

Elsie nodded. “He and I became pretty close over the past few months. I knew he'd have to leave at some point, but it seemed so sudden when that time finally came.”

Her uncle was silent as he listened, stroking the white beard stubble on his chin.

“I know what you're thinking, Uncle Frank.” Elsie took a seat on one of the weight benches as she spoke. “It was wrong for me to become close to a patient. But I promise that it didn't happen until after I'd released him from my care.”

“Elsie, I may be a crotchety old man, but that doesn't make me some kind of prude,” he said, sitting next to her on the bench. “You don't need to justify anything to me, and you certainly don't need to fear getting into trouble for dating one of your patients. I know you did everything above board.”

“I just don't know what to do,” she said, turning to face him. “I've never met anyone like him. He's different. He's kind and sweet. We get along so well. Maybe I'm just overreacting, but I miss him so much r

ight now.”

Frank brought an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close, giving her a firm squeeze. “Elsie, I've noticed that you haven't been yourself over the past few days. You've seemed distant and distracted. There's a sadness in your eyes that I've never seen before. I had a feeling it had something to do with that patient of yours, but I never realized just how close you two were.”

“What should I do?” Elsie asked, leaning her head against her uncle's shoulder. “I feel like I've been walking in circles ever since he left. I can't get organized, my thoughts are scattered. He's the only thing I can think about. I feel so uneasy without him here in town.”