Page 37 of Stat: Love In Scrubs
“I can’t touch you now?” he asked.
I looked in his direction with a smile.
“You know why.”
He laughed and raised his hands to say, “Excuse me.”
Moments later “WE (Warm Embrace)” by Chris Brown played, so I sang along and he joined in. I looked over in his direction so fast because I didn’t know he was into Chris Brown, too.
“Let me find out you’re part of Team Breezy, too.”
He chuckled.
“I’m not saying all of that. But he is talented, and I fuck with a good portion of his songs. And what do you mean by that? I got a Breezy fan on my hands?”
“You'd better know it. It’s a lot of things and people I don’t play about, and Chris Brown is one of them.”
“I hear you. I’ll keep that in mind, but I hope one day I can become one of those people.”
“Who said you weren’t already?” I asked.
He nodded. “I like that. So, you're finally ready to admit you mine?”
I lifted a brow in his direction.
“I don’t recall being asked a damn thing, so there is nothing to admit,” I said, then crossed my arms across my chest.
“I agree. I thought my actions spoke loud enough, but that’s my mistake. I don’t spend this kind of time with someone I don’tsee a future with. I want this to be me and you. You cool with being my future wife? I’m too grown for a girlfriend.”
“Sir, you’re not in your late fifties, and how do you figure we’re going to last past the girlfriend/boyfriend stage?” I asked.
“I can’t give you a drawn-out answer because it’s a gut feeling. It’s why when I ran into you again, I wasted no time getting to know you better. Our first meeting was unconventional, but it’s ours.”
I couldn’t find the words to say because in this moment, everything he said was right. I couldn’t find a single thing to critique or another question. I stayed quiet for a moment, and he didn’t push for an answer; he just allowed me to process.
“You don’t have to give me an answer now. I only wanted you to understand my intentions clearly.”
I looked at his side profile intently, then back out of the window. We pulled through the gate leading to his long driveway and soon his large home came into view. This was my first time here. If I ever wondered if he was a good doctor, his home gave me my answer. He was the damn best.
The moment he parked, Esa mumbled. It was as if an alarm went off in her head, telling her she was home. I glanced over my shoulder to see her stretch. Esa’s eyes lit up the moment she realized I was still in the car. It was as if she had never been asleep; I chuckled at the sight.
“Daddy! We’re having a big sleepover. I’m ready to get out now so I can show Ms. Yara my room and all my toys!”
Doc turned to face me with an apologetic smile. But little did he know I lived for moments like this, or else I wouldn’t have opened the academy outside of the obvious. I gave him a smile, hoping he understood it was fine. I would play and do all the things his daughter wanted to do. But tonight, I would be all his.
“We’re going to have so much fun!”
Doc released Esa from the backseat, then grabbed my bag before leading us to the front door and allowing us to walk in before him. My mouth dropped at how warm and homely it was here. You could tell a woman had a hand in making his home what it was.
I walked further into the house, and it had an open floor plan, allowing you to see the large kitchen and living room from the front door. A few of Esa’s toys were scattered around as if she had left them in a hurry. I even liked the forest green and black color scheme with touches of brown. It was masculine, yet it still felt like it had a touch of a woman. I figured it was his late wife’s doing or his mother.
“This place is beautiful. Who helped you put it all together?” I asked.
“Damn, so I couldn’t have done this?” he asked, gripping his chest, pretending to be offended.
“Did you?” I countered with a smirk.
He laughed.
