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It Starts With a Cookie

This is my entry for the Summer Fic Exchange organized by @wyattjohnston. She does a fabulous job organizing these exchanges that we all enjoy. I hope you enjoy this @princessphilly. Nate is always a favourite and this was kinda different for me. Thanks to @puckngrind for keeping me motivated and suggesting Nate fall first. Enjoy!

Cassie O’Neil knew when the Zadorov interview came out saying that Nathan MacKinnon was very much like Michael Jordan and could be a jerk to his teammates on ice and off, and that he was militant about food - it was going to cause some problems. And when the cute little social media girl had stopped posting the menu from the plane that always had cookies on it, it was taken as validation of the theory that he had banned sodas, sugar and normal food on the plane for his teammates.

And Nate’s attempt to get everyone to eat healthier so they played better was shot down the first time they went to Buffalo and he suggested there shouldn’t be wings from the Anchor bar brought onboard for their short flight to Montreal. No matter how much the guys were willing to follow the leader, you do not mess with Erik getting the best wings in the world while in Buffalo. That would have been grounds for being pushed off the plane while over Lake Ontario.

It really came to a head, when after a rough game, with Cassie trying to get treatments done while they were in the air leaving no time for her to actually grab dinner, that Nate pushed his luck. As she grabbed a cookie and moved to head back to check on Bowen, Nate stepped in front of her and tried to take the cookie.

“As a member of the training staff, you should be eating something better than a cookie,” Nate growled at her, going to grab the cookie. Everyone around them stopped.

“Touch the cookie Nate Dawg,” Cassie warned, “And you will find out how life on LTIR is when I break your hand after I punch you in the nose.”

There was a brief stare off, while they both held an edge of the cookie. When Nate didn’t let go, her eyes narrowed.

“You really should be nicer to the person who is about to have you on a med table and who hasn’t had time nor has the time to eat a full dinner because you idiots keep jumping in front of pucks, tripping on your non-existent toe picks, and slamming into huge dudes just as miserable as you are compacting bones in unnatural ways. If I want a chocolate chip cookie, I will have a damn chocolate chip cookie,” she ended on a bellow.

By this time, Cale and Gabe had moved beside Cassie and Nate, Cale slowly moving towards Cassie while Gabe moved towards Nate.

“Just let go of the cookie, Nate,” Gabe said soothingly. “Please don’t mess with the physical therapist who can hurt you in many torturous ways all while assuring you it has to hurt before it gets better.” Gabe slowly raised his hand towards Nate’s, hoping the dumbass would just let go of the cookie before he had to make him let go.

“Cassie, he’s going to let go of the cookie. Or I can get you a new cookie,” Cale tried to calm her down. She side eyed Cale and saw Devon hand him another cookie, which he held out to her. Her eyes flicked back to Nate, before she took the offered cookie from Cale, while snapping the one Nate held in two.

And when Nate’s jaw dropped at what she’d done, she shoved the partial cookie in his mouth, closing her hand over it, before saying, “Eat the damn cookie. Life’s too short to not eat the damn cookie!” Before pushing past him towards the back of the plane.

There was stunned silence for ten seconds, before Erik drawled, “How’s the cookie?” to Nate, causing everyone to start laughing.

“She’s a menace,” Nate said around the mouthful of cookie, before he actually chewed and swallowed.

“You only think that because everyone else lets you get away with being a dick,” Gabe retorted. “And you may finally have met your match.”

********

For weeks after the cookie incident, Nate and Cassie kept their distance. She would tend to let one of the other trainers look after him unless she had no other choice. While Nate realized he’d been an ass about the cookie, not realizing how busy she had been with no chance of actually grabbing dinner, he also thought avoiding Cassie was the best plan. While Cogs and Gabe tried to convince him to apologize, Nate thought dropping the subject would be a better idea. And if he made sure that there were quick healthy snacks and fruit always there for the training staff, that was something no one needed to know.

On what should have been just another regular Wednesday night in January where the Bruins were in town and you were hoping for two points - all hell broke out. Cassie was just making her way up the tunnel to the bench at the start of the game, when Taylor Hall train wrecked Nate clearing the Avs zone. Cassie watched Nate drop and then she saw all the blood and knew he was in trouble.

“Jimmy, prep the room with towels, ice packs, saline and gauze,” she called to the training intern. She watched as the other staff trainer was on the ice with Nate, trying to assess what was happening while Gabe was barking at Hall beside her. She grabbed one of the ipads, to get the replay to see if she could get a better look at the hit.

‘Dammit,” she muttered, when she saw it was the stick that clipped him hard. “Get Doc down to the room please,” she asked over the headset. She glanced to see that they had Nate up and he was heading to the bench, bitching the whole way. She headed down to the room, making sure with a glance everything was ready while she pulled on gloves and waited.

“Let’s get him on the table,” she guided him in and onto the table. “Jimmy, ice pack on the back of his neck,” she directed, moving to switch out the towel on his face, with a cool, wet one, wiping more blood away to get a better look, while having him hold gauze pads to his nose to catch the blood still pouring out.

“Scale of one to ten, where are you pain wise?” she asked, gently prodding him along his cheeks.

“Eight, fuck! That fucking hurt,” he bellowed when she got close to his nose.

“Stop whining,” she tossed back at him, slathering cool gel around his eyes and cheeks to try and minimize the swelling in case Doc wanted scans.

“What do we have, Cassie?” Doc asked, coming up to Nate.

“Broken nose for sure. I think we’re gonna need scans because there might be a cheek fracture on the right side,” she detailed, moving to the side and sliding her hand over Nate’s as Doc checked him out. Nate groaned and squeezed her hand when Doc checked his nose.

“Definitely need to see the damage to the septum,” Doc said quietly. “Nate, we’re gonna get you changed and to the hospital for some scans. You might need surgery to fix this.”

“Fuck,” Nate swore loudly, as Doc went to call the hospital prepping them for Nate’s arrival.

“Hey, it’s fixable,” Cassie said quietly. “Let’s get you undressed, to the hospital and they’ll get you back on the ice in no time.”

Late that night, after another long game day, Cassie drove to the hospital to check on Nate. She winced when she saw the scans, seeing they were going to have to repair Nate’s septum so he could breathe normally. And Nate didn’t know that Cassie had sat by his bedside after the surgery so that he wasn’t alone until his Mom arrived. But when he woke up, there was a bakery bag with a note.

"I'm a quite yummy gluten free chocolate chip cookie. And life's too short to not eat the cookie."

His Mom didn't say anything about the smile on his face as he ate the cookie.

********************

For the next few weeks, there was a truce between Nate and Cassie. He missed some games and didn't get to play in the All Star game in Vegas after the surgery, but otherwise was healing normally. The team headed out on the road, and an otherwise normal night in frigid Minnesota, the truce ended in spectacular fashion.

Matt Dumba hit Mikko as he entered the Wild zone, Mikko bouncing back up and carrying on, when Nate challenged Dumba to a fight. Cassie watched in disbelief as Nate, fresh off the concussion and nose repair exchanged punches with the scrappy Dumba.

"What the fuck is he doing?" Cassie muttered, apparently loud enough for Coach Bednar to hear.

"Good question," he responded, watching the shenanigans with that not exactly happy coach face.

Cassie watched as Nate was escorted to the box, apparently none the worse for the fight. But post game, after being reamed out by his coach, Nate sheepishly approached Cassie in the treatment room.

"Cass," he started. She glanced up and then her eyes went wide when all she saw was Nate’s bare chest, before realizing he was holding up his hand. "I think somethings wrong," he said.

She saw the swollen fingers, the bruises starting to come out on his hand and then the discoloration on his shoulder and shook her head in disbelief.

"You think something is wrong?" She muttered. He nodded at her. "You THINK something is wrong?" Her volume raised, as Nate shut the door.

"What gave it away, Nate? When you decided just weeks after recovering from a concussion and nose surgery that it was a good idea to get in a fight? Was that it? Or is it the fact that right now it looks like you've dislocated your shoulder and maybe fractured your hand?" She turned and pushed him onto the chair.

He followed her directions while she moved his shoulder, feeling how the muscles and tendons moved. She tested the arm thoroughly and then moved to grab an ice pack to put on his hand.

“I need to go talk to Coach Bednar,” she told Nate, moving towards the door. She didn’t realize he’d moved behind her until he reached over her to slam the door shut, his body pressed up behind her.

“Cass, what are you going to tell him?” Nate asked nervously.

“You have a sprained shoulder and until I get x-rays to confirm a possible hand fracture,” she responded. “And I’m not signing off on you playing.”

“What the fuck,” Nate exclaimed. “Cass, you can’t do that.”

“It’s my job to do that,” she countered, spinning around and finding herself facing a semi-naked and irate Nate right in her face. “Back up, Nate,” she demanded. The tension could have been cut by a knife as they stared at each other, waiting for the other to back down.

“You are so infuriating,” he bit out.

“Tough shit,” she responded. “My job is to protect you….” is as far as she got before Nate’s hand cupped the back of her head as he lips slammed into hers. Apparently her lips were all on board as her mind screamed not to kiss him back. Who knows what would have happened if there hadn’t been a knock on the door and the handle started to twist. Nate jumped back, a look of shocked surprise on his face, while Cassie spun back to the door, to see Gabe poking his head in.

“Everything okay?” he asked, his head swinging between the two of them.

“Yes,”stated Nate at the same time Cassie said “No”.

“I need to talk to Coach Bednar,” Cassie said, pushing past Gabe.

“Cassie,” Nate called, but she didn’t turn around. “Well, shit.”

“Nate, what’s going on?” Gabe asked him, noticing the bruising starting to appear on Nate’s arm.

“I fucked up,” he muttered. “There’s something wrong with my shoulder and hand. She’s not going to let me play,” he paused. “And I may have kissed her”

Gabe blinked several times trying to process that information. “Okay. She’s a little pissed at you getting in that fight,” Gabe agreed. “As am I and the coaching staff,” he eyed him. “And you kissed her? You do nothing but complain what a hard-ass she is and you decided kissing her was the way to go?” Gabe hissed at him. “What were you thinking?”

“That I needed to shut her up for a minute so I could get her to not bench me,” Nate sighed. “And that she looked so damn adorable when she was mad at me,” he looked up at Gabe. “I know, I know, not my finest moment.”

Before Gabe could respond, Coach Bednar is striding into the room, anger coming off him in waves.

“You are going back to Denver for proper assessment and treatment,” he started. “And the only way you are going to be allowed back on the ice is if Cassie approves it. No discussion.” He walked out of the room, leaving a frustrated Nate staring after him.

“I’m sure this is going to be fascinating to watch,” Gabe laughed, walking out to tell the boys how much of an idiot Nate has been and to start the betting pool on when Cassie would kill him.

********

Cassie was giving Jimmy, her intern, all kinds of instructions which he was frantically noting on his IPad as she was pulling her bag off the bus the guys were taking to their charter flight to Calgary. She wasn’t happy about having to fly back to Denver with Nate, but when the Coach and GM ask you to do something, you do it. They didn’t know that she still hadn’t processed the fact that Nate had kissed her or that she had no idea what that meant. Was it just a heat of the moment, he-man show of dominance? Or was there something else to it? Damned if she knew.

“Just call me if you have any questions,” she said to Jimmy when he looked a little panicked. “You’re going to be great. You do this stuff all the time with me and I have no doubt you are going to rock this.”

“Thanks, Cassie. You’re a great teacher,” Jimmy said, then turned when one of the other trainers called for help, waving to Cassie before jogging over to help load equipment.

Cassie sighed, before turning to look for sure to be grumpy Nate. He was no doubt not happy being sent home and she was sure he was not going to be happy he had to get her to sign off on him playing again. She spotted him huddled with Gabe and Cogs in what looked like a heated conversation.

"Come on, Princess," she called, walking up to them. "Say goodbye to the guys, we have a plane to catch."

“Princess? I’m a Princess?” Nate growled.

“Would you prefer Diva?” Cassie asked calmly. She waited for an answer, watching his mouth open and close, while there were snorts from the guys. “Nate, I’m tired and we have a plane to catch that isn’t going to our next game but home because you had a moment and here we are.” She turned to the guys. “Have a good game guys, play smart and I’ll see you in a few days.”

Sliding the strap of her carryon bag over the handle of her suitcase, she started walking to the car that was waiting for them, knowing Nate could catch up to her in no time once he snapped out of his little pouty moment. And he did, the two of them continuing to head to the car that would get them to the main airport. After several minutes, Nate sighed and then turned his head towards her.

“I’m sorry, Cassie,” he said softly.

“For what?” Cassie asked. “Being the reason we’re heading home before everyone else? Or for being an idiot and getting into a fight after just having your nose repaired?” Nate blinked when he realized she had said nothing about the kiss. Interesting.

“All of it,” he said. “Are you going to let me play?”

“Not until I know what all the tests say. We have x-rays first thing tomorrow morning. Doc set it up, so buckle up, Buttercup, we’re going to be spending a lot of time together over the next few days.”

*******

Cassie hadn’t been kidding - they spent nearly the next twenty four hours either together or connected via text message. She had fallen asleep on the plane, and somehow so had Nate despite him being uncomfortable. He woke before her to find her snuggled into his side, using him as a pillow. He smiled softly, thinking maybe she didn’t hate him as much as it seemed. He said nothing when she woke up and proceeded to check his shoulder. Then it was off to the hospital for x-rays - he was beginning to hate this building having spent so much time in it over the last month.

Nate came out of the treatment room and saw Cassie standing in front of the nurses station, reviewing the scans and x-rays, a small frown between her eyes. He watched as she flipped between them, stopping to zoom into one before moving to the next. He wasn’t sure what to think when she sighed and stood looking into the distance. He gave her another minute before he walked over to her, standing behind her to get a peek at the x-rays.

“Well?” he asked quietly.

“Your hand isn’t broken, but there is a chip in your middle finger. And you sprained your shoulder,” she answered. He nodded, waiting to hear her verdict. “I need to call Bednar,” she grabbed her phone. Nate clamped his hand over hers holding the phone.

“Cassie, don’t leave me hanging. Are you going to let me play?” Nate’s voice had a slight plea to it.

Cassie looked up at him, seeing his worry. She really could mess with him here - which he kinda deserved after being stupid enough to get in the fight, but something stopped her.

“I’m recommending a couple of days PT, and then we will reassess.” she nodded at the x-ray of the hand. “I’m a little worried about that chip and how you will be able to grip your stick. The main PT will be to keep your shoulder moving and loose while it heals.” She looked back up at him. “I’m not letting you on the ice for at least a week.”

“Text me the PT schedule,” he said, before turning and heading to the exit. He knew there was no way he could argue with her because Bednar had given her all the power. And if he yelled in frustration when he got home, no one knew or heard.

*********

Cassie was on the treadmill at the Avs facility, trying to release some of the stress that had been mounting for weeks. Yes, she realized that the biggest source of her stress was a large, blond, ridiculously hot center and a situation that she didn’t seem to have any control over. She wasn’t sure what to think about that kiss that kept replaying over and over in her head. What did it mean? Why hadn’t he said anything? And because he hadn’t brought it up, she wasn’t bringing it up either. She knew that wasn’t the healthiest but so be it.

She was so deep in her head that she hadn’t noticed that Nate had come in and was on the treadmill beside her. She barely registered the beeping telling her she was starting to cool down after having done five miles without actually realizing she had. It took hearing Gabe’s voice asking Nate a question to pop her back into reality. She quickly wiped down the equipment before heading to her office to prep for the day. Today was the day for Nate’s reassessment and she was so ready for this period of anxiety to be over.

Coach Bednar was discussing Nate’s progress with Cassie when Nate walked into the treatment room. He stripped off his sweatshirt and jumped up on the table, waiting for Cassie. He was pretty confident that she was going to clear him. He had followed everything she had given him to do or not do - including no ice time or weight room. Other than the treadmill, he hadn’t had much of an outlet for his frustration. The positive was that his cardio was incredible.

“Okay, let’s get started,” Cassie had snapped gloves on and walked over to Nate. She started with checking the range of motion in the shoulder - watching for any reaction from Nate and feeling the movements through her hands. After twenty minutes, she handed him a stick and told him to grip it, first bare handed and then with gloves on. Coach watched and when Cassie gave him a nod, he patted Nate on the shoulder and stated, “See you on the ice,” before leaving the room.

“You’re good to go,” Cassie advised when Nate didn’t leave. He nodded, not sure whether he should say anything.

“Cassie?” he said quietly, waiting for her to look up at him. She hadn’t noticed him coming up behind her until she turned and he was right there in all his shirtless glory. How did he do that? Sneaky ninja skills. His eyes searched her face, as she waited for him to continue. Cassie realized she was going to miss Nate, miss having her hands on all that muscle, now that he’d been cleared to play. She wasn’t sure what he’d seen, but as he made to take a step back, she hooked a foot behind his knee and pulled him forward, knocking him off balance, his hands slamming into the counter on either side of Cassie for balance. The surprise on his face was nothing to the shock that appeared when she said, “I think you should kiss me again.”

She reached to pull his mouth to hers, which shook Nate out of his surprise and his hands gripped her hips and lifted her onto the counter as his lips crashed into hers. It was all hunger and pent up longing in one glorious sweep of his tongue dancing with hers. A crash in the hall had them pulling apart, eyes locked.

“You need to get ready for practice,” Cassie whispered.

“This isn’t over,” Nate answered, dipping his head to softly bring his lips to hers. “Not by a long shot. Have dinner with me tonight?” he asked, forehead meeting hers while he waited for her answer. She nodded, giving him a quick peck before pushing him back.

“Get out of here and get ready for practice Hot Shot,” she told him, turning to clean the table he’d been sitting on. “And don’t block any pucks,” she called as he went through the door. She heard his laugh as he went to get changed for practice.

*******

Cassie and Nate kept their dating a secret for all of two weeks, when Cale of all people caught them. Poor guy, all he had wanted was to make sure there wasn’t any damage from blocking a puck, when he opened the door, asking Cassie for help and then stopping dead in his tracks when he saw Nate sneaking a kiss. He backed out of the room, hitting Erik who then let everyone know that he’d called it and to pay up.

“This is all your fault, Hot Shot,” Cassie shook her finger at Nate, who promptly sucked it into his mouth before she poked him. “We’ll keep it on the down low he said until we’re ready to tell them,” she mocked.

“You weren’t very covert,” Cogs said loudly. “I saw Nate sneaking into your room in Dallas.”

“And Maddie and I saw you holding hands leaving the restaurant last Saturday,” NAK confirmed.

“Not to mention he brought her a cookie before the game,” Bo added, causing Cassie to groan and bury her head in Nate’s chest. They were never going to live this down.

“Fine,” Nate glared at them. “You all told me what an amazing girl she was and I needed to stop fighting with her. I just took all of your advice.”

Gabe looked at Erik, and then back at Nate. “Cassie, promise me you will still be on his ass all the time for his stupid shit.” Cassie’s eyes widened in surprise.

“He may be a good kisser, Gabe, but I’m gonna keep calling him out on his dumb shit,” Cassie answered him with a nod. Nate pinched her and she kicked him in the shin.

“Heaven help us,” Gabe snorted, turning back to getting changed. The others followed him, sly grins on their faces.

Cassie kept her word to Gabe. For the rest of the season and into the playoffs, she called Nate out whenever it was needed. When he blocked a puck and kept saying he was fine until she saw the bruising and he knew he was in for it when she very deliberately pressed her finger into the center of the bruise until he groaned. He made sure she remembered to eat while she took care of all the injuries. He’d been there when she was exhausted after spending the night in the hospital when Naz had his surgery, Cassie insisting she needed to get to the rink and make sure everyone else was fine - taking her home and using his kissing skills to relax her enough to pass out.

On an incredible June night in Tampa, when the clock wound down and they won the Stanley Cup, Cassie had watched with tears in her eyes as Nate hoisted the Cup. They’d finally won something.

During a summer of never-ending Cup celebrations, Cassie was kept busy keeping track of everyone’s rehab. The next season was the hardest season for her, with pretty much everyone getting injured, including not the best patient Nate, at least once. She considered wrapping Mikko in bubble wrap at one point as he was one of the few who hadn’t missed time with something. Nate subtly made sure Cassie was taking care of herself during all of it, from making sure she ate to dragging her away from the rink for some relaxation.

The disappointment of getting knocked out in the first round was strong, but after the short summer and all the injuries, it was maybe a blessing. There was a lot of healing that needed to happen. And there was always next season.

And on a quiet night in July, just before Cassie and Nate were set to head to British Columbia and Tyson’s wedding, Cassie was sitting on the dock, enjoying the quiet. She laughed when Knox stuck his face in her lap with big eyes begging for some loving.

“You are a very needy dog, just like your Daddy,” she was scratching his ears with a smile on her face, knowing Nate was behind her.

“Hey, I am not that needy,” Nate argued, setting a tray on the table. “I brought you a snack,” he dropped a kiss to her forehead and waited.

Cassie glanced at the tray and did a doubletake. On a very pretty china plate was a huge chocolate chip cookie with a message - Marry Me. Her eyes flew to Nate, who was on one knee with a ring between his fingers.

“It seemed fitting as it all started with a cookie,” he smiled. “And a very wise woman once told me that life is too short to not enjoy the cookies.” She rolled her eyes, before leaning forward and kissing him.

“Yes, I’ll marry you,” she answered, Nate sliding the ring on her finger. “But I’m not sharing the cookie.” Nate started laughing, hauling her up and into his arms.

“Wouldn’t expect anything less.” he said before sealing the deal with a kiss.

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