Page 84 of Comforting the Grump

“I expected nothing else. You’ve always been generous.”

“Thank you, sir. For your blessing, I mean.”

His smile faded into a thoughtful expression. “I do have one request…and you’re allowed to think about it and not give me your answer right now if you want or need to.”

I furrowed my brow in confusion. What could he possibly ask me? It had to be some kind of guarantee, right? A promise to protect Ennio? “Okay…”

His voice was soft as he continued. “I don’t know how else to say this, but it bothers me that you call me Sheriff and sir. I know you mean it respectfully, but it feels…cold to me. As if I’m nothing more to you than that.”

My mouth ran suddenly dry. What did he mean? What else could I call him? “I can’t call you by your first name. I’m sorry, but that doesn’t feel right.”

“You could call me something else.” He met my eyes, and much to my surprise, his gaze held a quiet plea. “You could call me Dad if you wanted.”

Dad. How wonderfully right that felt on my tongue. Like coming home. “You want me to call you Dad?”

“Only if you want to. I won’t be upset if you don’t, but I’ve been meaning to ask you for a long time now, and… Well, now that you’re with Ennio, it seems even more appropriate since you’ll be my official son-in-law.”

Jesus, he was gonna make me cry again, wasn’t he? What the fuck was wrong with me lately that I kept bursting into tears? As if somehow, forty years of not giving a shit had been reversed and now I had to make up for lost time. “I would like that. I would really like that…Dad.”

He rose and held out his arms to me. “Give me a hug, son.”

And I didn’t even hesitate. I clung to him as if I were ten again, and he let me. Even at his age, his arms had lost little strength and he smelled the same as he always had. “Thank you for being my dad even when I didn’t realize it.”

“It was always our joy. And Sarah would be so proud of you if she could see you.”

I lost my battle against my tears…but it didn’t matter. I was with family.

28

ENNIO

Marnin had been acting secretive. He’d been on phone calls he didn’t want me to hear, a few trips out of town he refused to share details about, and he’d been doing a lot of stuff on his laptop that wasn’t work. What the hell was he up to?

Not that I was even considering him cheating on me. The man looked at me with so much love that it took my breath away. How had I ever thought him aloof and distant? It was like he’d lifted his mask and was showing me the real him, and it was magical. Maybe he’d never allowed himself to love, and now that he was or had accepted he was capable of it, he embraced it? Whatever it was, I was so, so grateful to be the object of his affection.

But I still wanted to know what he was up to—not that I would ask. The man was entitled to his privacy, for one, and second, my gut said he was planning something for me. A romantic getaway, maybe? Or was I now expecting too much from a man who’d never been in a relationship? I’d have to wait and see.

I loved everything about our life together, with one big exception. As amazing as Marnin’s condo was, I missed Forestville. Maybe it was also because I didn’t love my job, which made it hard to motivate myself every day. I’d applied for different ones and had a couple of interviews, but I’d only gotten one offer. It had been for an upcoming restaurant aiming for a Michelin star. That itself had felt out of my league, but when they’d told me I was expected to work seventy hours a week, I’d politely declined.

Yes, I knew that was what it often took to reach that level. But that wasn’t a price I was willing to pay. Not at my age, and not when I’d finally found the man I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.

So yeah, I missed Forestville. I wouldn’t trade it for Marnin, but we hadn’t been back in three weeks, and I desperately wanted to go home. I also had some tough decisions to make about what to do with my house there. I was still paying my mortgage, but only because Marnin refused to let me contribute to our household expenses.

It made little sense to keep my house when my life was here. It was just that the thought of selling it… Not to get all dramatic, but it broke my heart. I knew my house was small, but it was mine, and I’d been so damn proud to buy it and own it and make it all mine. But what choice did I have? Marnin’s job was here, and for now, so was mine.

“Hey, sunshine.” Marnin walked into the living room from his office. “What are you doing this weekend?”

I furrowed my brow, trying to remember if I had any plans. “This weekend? Nothing.”

“You’re not working?”

“No, I worked last weekend.”

A spark lit up his eyes as he leaned against the wall. “Would you want to go somewhere for the weekend?”

My heart jumped at the thought of spending a whole weekend with him. “Yes! Where?”

He shrugged. “We could go to Forestville if you’d like.”

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