“You have a right to be angry,” Kas pressed.
“You don’t know anything! How could you know what I’m feeling right now?”
“Because I’ve been there. I know more about what you’re going through than anyone you know. You still have a chance to get up and get moving again. My riding days ended the day Wicked Wild stomped on my back and broke my neck. Everything I’d wanted for myself and my future ended in that moment and nothing else after that mattered as much.”
Her mouth dropped open just a bit.
“But, you’re a successful business man. You’re one of those hockey jocks.”
His lips lifted only slightly. “Who told you that?”
“Never mind.”
“Okay, play it your way.”
“It doesn’t matter. People talk.” When he continued to challenge her with a stare, she added, “You own a hockey team and you play hockey here in Sweet every chance you get with the local jocks. That makes you a jock.”
“I’d hardly call them local jocks. They’re friends from high school who are still in rodeo. It’s been a while since I played.”
“How come? You’ve been back here for weeks. The local skating rink in the next county has hours.”
“We never play hockey on a rink. We started playing on the mill pond on the side of town. It’s a good size. Not too deep so it freezes up pretty quick. And the mill owner doesn’t mind us playing on a Saturday every now and then.
“I didn’t play hockey when I was younger. I started when I stopped competing. A lot of us needed some way to burn off all that testosterone when the rodeo season ended. I stopped when I left Sweet. But I missed it, and I went back into it when I found out some of my friends were still playing. You should come see us play some time.”
Her eyebrows stretched high on her forehead. “I still have another four weeks with this cast. I’m not going anywhere. Besides, what am I supposed to do, lace up skates over this cast?”
He thought a moment. It could work. Not lacing up skates over her cast. But it was clear Tabby had cabin fever. And staying here feeling sorry for herself wasn’t helping her frame of mind at all.
“Get yourself dressed,” he said.
“I’m comfortable the way I am.”
“You’re wallowing the way you are, Tabby. The biggest smile I’ve seen in you since the accident is when you were eating a cannoli and that doesn’t count. Get dressed.”
* * *
Irritation coiled beneath the collar of Tabby’s flannel robe. “You must be hard of hearing because I just said—”
“I heard you just fine. And you heard me.”
She sat up as straight as she could. “Are you giving me an order?”
He stood up from the chair, towering over her as she sat on the sofa. “If it works, yes.”
“Offering me sponsorship money doesn’t give you the right to order me around. Especially now when the deal—”
“First of all, no offer beyond a look at you and Tenterhook in action was made.”
“That turned out real swell, didn’t it?”
He gave her a wry expression with her choice of words. “Swell? Really?”
“Give me a break.”
“You already have one. You don’t need another one.”
“Ha, ha, ha,” she said with heavy sarcasm.
“You’ve been sitting on your behind too long.”
“It’s only been a week.”
“Ten days.”
“Who’s counting?”
“Me. We’re going skating,” he said.
“Now I know you really are crazy. It’s five degrees outside. Welcome to Montana.”
“That means the ice is thick and smooth and ready for skating. In fact, I happen to know that the boys have already cleared off a spot on the pond for a game this afternoon.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because they asked me to play. All the snow from the last snowfall has been pushed aside, leaving a nice smooth surface just perfect for a good game.”
“What am I supposed to do? Skate with one skate?”
“Exactly. We’ll put a plastic bag and a sock over your cast.”
“No way. I’ll break my other leg.”
He took her by both hands. “Tabby, I’m going to be right there. I’ll hold you and you won’t fall. I won’t let you.”
She liked the feel of his hands on hers and it startled her more than she thought it would. She’d thought a lot about Kasper Dobbs since she’d met him. He was so unlike every man she’d ever met. He was commanding. Infuriating. Exciting. Right now he was a little of all three of those traits.
He cleared his throat. “Besides, I skated with a halo on my head. That has to be a lot harder that trying to move around on the ice with a cast.”
She rolled her eyes. “You went skating with a halo? Wasn’t that a bit risky? I mean, even for you?”
He shrugged. “I was a bull rider.”
“And look how that turned out for you.”
“My point exactly. Nothing in this life is without risk. Tabby, you could be perfectly healthy, get in your car and get an accident. It happens every day to good people.”
Pain pierced her chest. “Don’t I know it.”
His face registered steep panic. “Oh, Tabby, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to—”
“Boy, you really are a bundle of joy, aren’t you?”
“I’m sorry.”
“Are you going to leave me alone now?”
She really didn’t want Kas to leave. In truth, despite the challenging dialogue, his visit was the brightest point of her life since the accident.
“Just get dressed,” he said. “Please.”
“And if I don’t?”
He gave her a wicked grin. “Then I’m going to throw you over my shoulder and carry you down to the pond in your pajamas.”
Tabby eased herself up from the couch, ignoring the ache in her leg. She wasn’t sure if it was from sitting too long or from the break. But it did feel good to be standing, or in her case, teetering as she tried to balance herself on one leg.
As if reading her mind, Kas said, “No talking yourself out of it. I got you to your feet, and I’ll get you out the door one way or
