Page 100 of Doctorshipped
“Morning,” I say.
I pull down a cup and fill it, taking a seat across from him.
“Fiona’s showering and then she’ll catch the bus. I have some patients to see today. You’re welcome to sit in as long as I get individual consent, or you can relax around the house, or go into town.”
“Stop stalling, son.”
I look over at my dad. He’s got the same knowing look he had when some friends and I jumped the high school fence to play basketball in the middle of the night our junior year.
That’s as close as I ever got to being unruly. But, trespassing wasn’t considered a minor thing. The police took each of us home in the back seat of their cruiser to face our parents since it was a first offense.
I tried to excuse our actions, saying it was only basketball, it’s not like we were doing drugs or stealing, but Dad wasn’t having it. He saw through the issue and wanted me to take it as seriously as he did. I’ll give him this. He never lost his cool. He just gave me that look—a combination of understanding mixed with a don’t-mess-with-me face.
“So?”
“So, I guess I owe you a thank you.”
“For?”
“Not letting me stew in my own juices after the game yesterday. When you walked away, I stayed and talked with Jayme. Those photos were from a shoot for her books. She writes about vampires, among other things. Brooks was just helping her out. They aren’t in a relationship.”
“Well now, I’m glad you figured that out.”
“Are you telling me you already knew?”
“I watched them. There were no kisses over the wall, no lingering glances, no need to touch one another. Considering how outgoing and unguarded each of them seem to be, if they were romantic, they’d have kissed for good luck, or touched before he took off to coach, or else their eyes would have done all that for them.”
The mere thought of the scene my dad is painting causes my fists to involuntarily ball, even though I know it’s not real. There will be no lingering glances, or kissing, or touching unless it’s with me.
“So what did you do with this revelation?” Dad asks.
“I kissed her.”
Dad beams. “Atta boy.”
“And she liked it.”
“I have no doubt. And, considering the circumstances, I modify my whole take the woman to coffee recommendation, seeing as you bypassed that and went straight for the kissing.”
He chuckles. Always so amused with himself. But, I can’t even fault him this morning.
“We need to figure things out. Especially things with Fee.”
“You will. You will. One step at a time, son. You’re not proposing marriage—not yet anyway.”
I nearly choke on my coffee.
“No. I’m not.”
Is it crazy that I could imagine marriage in our future? It is. Completely, undeniably irrational. We only just kissed yesterday. And before that, we had this insatiable need to antagonize one another. I need to tap the brakes and slow my roll.
“Well, personally, I love her. And I love her for you,” Dad says easily. “And I hope things go as well as I think they might.”
“If I don’t mess it up.”
“You're not the one to mess up a commitment, Grant. Remember that. When you pledge your heart to someone, they are one of the luckiest people on the planet. Never underestimate your capacity for loyalty. I’ve witnessed it first hand. Jayme’s as fortunate as you are in this relationship.”
“Thanks,” I say.
