Page 5 of The Grumpy Doc's Surprise Delivery

I head down to the bar and sit down heavily. It’s busy, full of others who are either here as doctors or as vacationers, and youcan tell which is which. The doctors are in polos and keep to themselves, while the vacationers are in bright print shirts and pretty dresses, laughing with cocktails in hand. The fact that the doctors look miserable does not fill me with joy.

With a wave, I get the attention of the bartender and ask him to surprise me with a drink. He flashes me a smile, and I sigh. If he wants conversation, then he’s talking to the wrong guy.

To prove it, I pull out my phone and start scrolling aimlessly, trying to block out the background bustle of people arriving, getting drinks, getting friendly, getting so,soexcited to learnso muchon the training course. Ugh. I can’t imagine being that enthusiastic about anything. All there is to life is work, and I’ve made it my job to work hard.

And then someone comes and sits next to me, bringing a lovely floral scent to my awareness.

I kind of get it. The bar is busy, and there aren’t that many available seats, but still. Right next to me? When I am clearly giving offdo not approachvibes?

It’s not until I look up and notice who it is that I sigh audibly.

“Oh,” she says, coming to the same realization. “Sorry. I can go.”

“No, you don’t have to,” I say, impulse overtaking me. Not a feeling I’m often met with, and I’m not completely sure I like it. “Let me buy you a drink.”

“You?” she scoffs. “Why would you buy me a drink?”

“Because you’re a lovely young woman, and we’re both sitting at this bar together.” It’s true, she is lovely. Despite everything earlier, I couldn’t help but notice the curve of her face, her softolive skin, her dark hair. Her long legs that draw the eye all the way up to her hips, her breasts… “You must want a drink.”

“What makes you think I want anything from you?”

“Well, now,” I say, startled by the attitude. I was just trying to be nice. “Is this because I yelled at the guy behind the reception desk?”

She nods slowly, making her disapproval clear.

Seriously? Why is she being so sensitive about that?

“They were giving us both awful customer service,” I say. “I mean, of course I don’t expect too much out of staff, especially at hotels. They’re usually useless. But I at least want them to apologize for their mistakes when they make them.”

“You know they’re working under stress, without enough support most of the time. You could be a little kinder.”

I shrug, not bothering to smile. “Don’t talk to me about stress. I’m a doctor. I know all about stress and no support.”

“You’re a doctor?”

I can’t explain it, but the way she blinks in surprise annoys me. It’s like she can’t believe that a guy like me could have any kind of bedside manner. Which isn’t true at all. I am great at my job as a hospital ob-gyn. It’s just everything else that I hate.

“Yes. It’s why I’m in this stupid place to start with.”

“Oh, the training course,” she says, her eyes widening as if that’s making sense of everything. My heart sinks as I guess exactly what words are going to come out of her mouth next. “I’m here for that too.”

“Great,” I mutter.

“Great? What do you mean by that?” Her dark eyes blaze, her face alight with irritation.

I give her my very best sarcastic grin, flashing my teeth. “We’re going to have a great time with it all, I’m sure. Just peachy.”

“You could really do with a new attitude,” she says as she tilts her head and scrunches her nose, and despite her pretty face, the look on it sours everything.

“Who are you to tell me what to do?” I’ve had enough of this for today. I’m tired from the flight, I’m still annoyed from the room screwup, and now she’s winding me up almost like it’s on purpose. I lean forward a little, enough so I can catch the faint scent of her perfume. It’s lightly floral. “I’m not here to learn a new attitude.”

“Well, maybe it wouldn’t hurt if you did,” she sniffs, then waves down the bartender for a drink.

“Hey, I was going to get you one of those,” I say, annoyed that she didn’t want to take me up on the offer.

She shrugs. “Too slow.”

My mouth drops open. Too slow? It’s clearly bait, but I’m not going to rise to it. I’ve wasted enough energy on her already, and all this bickering is bad for my blood pressure.

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