Page 12 of Romancing the Grump
It’s a good thing I don’t because Nathan really does leave through Grant’s other door. When I hear the click of itclosing again, a tiny ping of disappointment bounces around in my chest.
I’m still sorting out what that disappointment means when I walk to the parking lot at the end of the day. Once I get there, I immediately scan the mostly empty lot, only realizing when I don’t see it that I’m totally looking for Nathan’s car.
Okay, thisreallyhas to stop. I make a list of all the very logical reasons why I should put Nathan from my mind as I cross the parking lot and climb into my car. But the list only needs to be one point long: I am entirely too old for one-sided crushes.
I pull out my phone to drop it into the wireless charging dock, hesitating when I see two new text messages. The first one, from Gracie, immediately makes me smile. But the next one is from my old boss, who’s labeled JACKHOLE DA in my phone, and it makes my stomach tighten into an uncomfortable knot.
It’s been weeks since he last messaged—since before I quit—so this is unexpected.
JACKHOLE DA
Summer, was wondering if you could call and give me some feedback on the Helms case. The file notes don’t seem complete.
I’m still staring at the message thread when a second message pops up.
I thought about you today. All day.
The first text makes me furious—after everything, he still thinks he has the right to text me? The second one just makes me feel gross.
Bare minimum, the district attorney I worked under for two years should have lost his job for the way he spoke to me. But he was good—crafty. His words were alwaysjust veiled enoughto seem innocent. The man was completely spineless, and I knew it, so I never felt threatened, but it was still more than I should have had to deal with.
Finally, I snapped. I made the phone call. Filed the complaint. Made all the reports I needed to make. Then I accepted the job to work with the Appies and waited for Jason P. Roscoe to get his comeuppance.
What he got was a slap on the hand. A stern talking to from the state attorney general. Turns out, being a first-class jerk isn’t grounds enough for dismissal.
How nice.
I delete both his messages, then block his number. I should have done it a long time ago, and the satisfaction of doing so now fills me with an immediate sense of calm. I’m in control of this situation, and there’s nothing Jason Roscoe can say or do that will ever pull me back into his orbit.
I go back to Gracie’s message as soon as Jason is fully and completely deleted.
Gracie
Wanna come over? I made soup because February DEMANDS it, and there’s enough for an army. Pretty please? I want to hear all about your first week!
Seeing as how I’ve been eating takeout all week because I still haven’t made it to the grocery storeorunpacked my kitchen utensils, soup with Gracie sounds amazing.
Summer
You had me at soup. But I’ve been wearing these heels for way too long so I’m gonna change first, then I’ll come over. Can I bring anything?
Gracie
Just yourself. Felix made bread, and there’s tons.
Hmm. Felix made tons of bread. She made enough soup for an army. And I know how much the Appies love to hang out at Felix’s place.
I’m beginning to wonder if I willnotbe the only guest for dinner.
CHAPTER 4
NATHAN
Felix’s placeis big but not quite big enough for the entire team, so we have to be particular about who finds out just how much our goalie loves to cook. Tonight, it’s me, Van, Alec, Logan, Camden, and Wyatt, which is making for a pretty serious crowd. We need Eli here to crack some jokes, but now that he’s married, we’re seeing him less and less when we’re off the ice.
Not that I blame him. The guy always wanted to be in love more than the rest of us do. At least more thanIdo, and I probably shouldn’t speak for the rest of the guys. Except for Van. If my lack of a dating life indicates Idon’twant to settle down, his abundance of one says the same thing. We just deal with our aversion to relationships in different ways.
“Can we have seconds?” Wyatt asks from across the table.
