Page 42 of Doctor Grump

Although, I couldn’t deny that it sent a thrill of pleasure through me at the thought.

“Uh-huh,” Lucia said disbelievingly. “Sure.”

That had sealed the deal for me. We decided this was the dress for me, and Lucia even refused to let me get a backup.

But now that I was here, I cursed whatever madness had taken over my brain at the time. I couldn’t do this. There was no way I could wear this anywhere. I needed to change before Ian finally got impatient with waiting downstairs and came to get me.

However, a sudden knock on the door told me that I was too late.

“Are you ready?” he called out. “We’re gonna be late.”

“Um, yes, but….” I searched for a reason. “I just need to change.”

He gave an annoyed sigh. “You’ve been in there for an hour. You look fine. Just open the door.”

“But I—”

“Open the door, Piper.” His voice clearly brooked no refusal.

Resigned, I went to the door and pulled it open, half bracing myself for probable laughter at my get-up.

But instead, something different happened.

When I opened the door and he caught sight of me, his face tightened to the point of pain. His fists clenched as his eyes ran slowly down my body. His roaming gaze felt like a threatening caress. By the time they came back up to meet my face, there was unmistakable heat in his eyes.

“It looks too much, isn’t it?” I asked, finding my voice husky.

“No, it’s….” He shook his head but didn’t complete his sentence. He stood there for a few more minutes, staring at me, then suddenly turned around. “Let’s go.”

The Governor’s ball itself, held this year at the historic Matterson Convention Hall, was beautiful as usual. I saw all my friends in attendance, but I didn’t want to go to them for fear of making Ian uncomfortable. I knew he wasn’t a fan of people in general, and I didn’t want to make him interact any more than he already had to. And he certainly wasn’t leaving my side. His hand seemed attached to my back at this point, and he glared at anyone who came within a five feet radius of us.

“You know you’re supposed to be giving a good impression, right?” I told him. “A friendly one.”

“They’re all staring at you,” he growled, his eyes surveying the crowd darkly. “Fuck friendly. If they touch you, I’ll cut off their hands.”

I should have scolded him for the possessive way he talked, but I couldn’t deny that it made me wet to hear him talk like that.

I spotted Santiago and Lucia in the distance, so I waved. Santiago did not look pleased to see us together, and instead of waving back, he and Lucia began weaving through the crowd, moving toward us.

“You look beautiful,” Lucia squealed when she reached us. “I knew that dress would be perfect.”

“Thanks,” I said shyly. “I almost didn’t wear it.”

“I would have killed you if you didn’t,” Lucia said. “She looks beautiful, right, Santi?”

“Yes,” Santiago muttered, but he wasn’t looking at me. He was glaring at Ian instead. “So you weren’t kidding. This is a thing.”

“Yes,” Ian said, meeting his gaze head-on and cocking a challenging brow. “I suppose you have a problem, mayor?”

Santiago’s face tightened. “Can I talk to you in private, Graham?”

“No,” he said. “I have no interest in talking to you.”

“Well, I want to talk to you.”

“So talk.”

The tension could be cut with a knife, but then Santiago gave a sardonic grin. “Are you sure about that?” he questioned. “Because I doubt you want Piper to know the details about your dishonorable discharge, would you?”

---