Page 30 of The Grumpy Doc's Surprise Delivery

“You’re not exactly old,” he says, and I think it’s a compliment.

“True,” I say. “But time marches ever on.”

Liam hums thoughtfully but says nothing. He’s a tougher nut to crack than I had imagined. Not that I had imagined getting him to open up to be a particularly easy task, but I had at least hoped he would follow my lead a little and tell me one or two of his secrets.

“Don’t you want a family?” I ask, trying to get us back on topic.

“No.”

Again, I wait for him to say more, but he doesn’t, so I decide to push. “Surely you must desire some sort of companionship?”

“Why should I have to? I have my work. That makes me happy enough.”

“But there’s more to life than work. And when you work as hard as we do, don’t you find there’s no time for anything else at all?”

That makes him pause to consider. Carefully, like he’s choosing every single word to get his point across exactly, he says, “I suppose so. I don’t have much of an interest in family. I think that’s a waste of time. But sometimes, I guess I do think it would be nice to indulge in a hobby or two. Join a tennis club, maybe.”

“You like to play?”

“I would if I had time.”

I bite my tongue from suggesting he might meet someone at the tennis club who might change his mind about family. It isn’t what everyone wants, and I shouldn’t push him to change his mind.

It just stings a little, that’s all. It leaves a pang of disappointment in my chest.

“If I had more time,” I say, “I would join a choir, I think. At least do something musical.”

That piques his interest and gets him talking, at least. I learn that he likes sports, that he wants to learn to play the violin, and the best gift he could get would be season tickets to his favorite college basketball team. Not that he would have time to go.

That’s something we both agree on. There aren’t enough hours in the day.

He’s just like me in that way; he never says no to overtime, and he often goes in on days he’s not scheduled. He works holidaysand weekends, and that’s the way he likes it. I can sympathize with that completely. I’ve worked more than my fair share of Christmas Days and Thanksgivings.

Except, unlike him, I have people to go to. My family lives out of state, mostly in Montana, and I miss them all the time. But if I don’t have them, I at least have Phoebe.

Liam seems to have nobody at all.

And though I don’t think he would appreciate me saying so, I think that’s a shame.

And there’s a tiny, dumb part of me that’s calling out — maybe that person he could rely on could be me.

CHAPTER 17

LIAM

Yesterday, Emma’s ankle was looking good, and today she’s walking just like normal again. A few days of rest have done her the world of good.

This morning, I woke up to a text from Emma telling me to meet her in the lobby once I was up. I brush my teeth, freshen up, pull on a shirt and get ready to head out. I have no idea what she’s planning, but I’m intrigued.

When I come out of my room, Emma is coming out of hers at exactly the same time. “Morning.” She grins. “I wasn’t expecting to see you so early.”

“Good morning to you too.”

“Want to do something today?” she asks.

“Let’s get breakfast first. I can’t do anything without my morning coffee.”

“Okay, deal.”

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