Page 28 of Secret Baby for Dr. Grump

“His wife cheating on him. Then leaving him for the man she cheated on him with.”

Whatever I expected, that’s not it. My heart automatically squeezes at the thought. I’ve never been cheated on, but no matter how one looks at it, I can’t find myself sympathizing with a person who willingly does it.

It’s just wrong. If you don’t love someone anymore, you end it with them, not cheat on them.

“Oh. I didn’t know that.”

“No one expected it, honestly.” He shrugs. “They were together for a while and were supposedly this power couple from prominent families. I don’t follow high society around here, but I heard she was a known socialite before she married him.”

I can already picture her: smart, elegant, probably all charming smiles, never losing her temper. The complete opposite of me.

“It’s sad that that happened.”

Mark nods. “Let’s just say he was the kind of bear you wouldn’t have wanted to poke after that incident and during the divorce process. But I venture he moved on right away.”

“He did?”

“Well, not right away. Maybe a year after or something like that. But he went from being this loyal husband to this eligible bachelor who couldn’t keep the ladies off him. And I don’t blame him for taking advantage of that.”

I blink. “Oh. He slept around with employees?”

“Not employees. He didn’t go there, but he had a different woman on his arm every time he went out. A lot of them were probably just business dates, but the rumor is that he was never seen with the same woman twice. So everyone just assumed he casually slept around.”

I guess I can see it. I mean, look at him. The man who’s always grumbling and frowning just needs to smile and women are mesmerized.

Hell, I was mesmerized. I try not to think about all the times Luke probably slept with women long after he met me…while I was busy taking care of Riley. But he’s right.

That’s on me, not him. Whether I trusted him or not, I should have told him because he has a right to the truth—and yes, I had plenty of opportunities to tell him after I found out about the phone number mix-up. The guilt still eats at me, but there’s nothing I can do about it now except move forward.

Oh, and apologize at some point.

Mark’s still chatting about Luke, but the topic soon changes, some of which I tune out. Maybe I tuned him out too hard as he calls my name twice.

“Liv?”

I blink again, then look at him. “I’m sorry, what?”

“I was asking if you wanted to go out after your shift. Grab a beer or something. Or dinner.”

Startled, I stare at him, trying to decipher what he’s saying. Is he asking me out? Well, obviously…but is he asking me out on a date?

His expression is open and earnest, and nothing about it indicates that this is anything more than a friendly invite. He’s giving off a friend vibe, after all. Again, I relax.

It would be fun, but…

“I can’t, I’m sorry. I have stuff to do.”

“Oh, well, maybe next time.” Mark leans over. “How about?—”

“Miss Davis, I need to speak with you right away.”

My nerves jump at the sound of Luke’s voice, closer than I anticipated. My body heats up, too, which is ridiculous, but it’s a good thing I’m good at managing my expressions. I turn to him, surprised when I find him standing right behind me.

Mark nods. “Hey, Luke.”

Luke nods back, then ignores him as he keeps his gaze on me. I clear my throat.

“Dr. Jennings…”

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