Page 48 of Doctor Grump

Still, if I was going to be hurt anyway, why not enjoy the journey? Or even take a chance on those feelings and see if maybe they could become more?

“Alright,” I said. “Let’s try.”

* * *

I triedto keep it casual at first, not get too invested.

Usually, when I started dating a guy, I immediately went all out to make them feel special. I would pack them lunches and send them cutesy notes and do all the things guys claimed to like but didn’t really.

I decided not to do that this time. I would play it cool and only reciprocate as much affection as I got.

But then Ian pulled an Uno reverse card and somehow became one of the most romantic men I had ever met overnight.

We decided not to tell Kendy about our relationship so as not to confuse her, but Ian was fairly affectionate even at home. He would come up to me, kiss me on the cheek at random times, or pull me into a hug just because. Once, on the way home, he brought me a single red rose he had picked up. Not gonna lie; it moved me. And when he saw how emotional it made me, the next day, he bought me a bouquet of roses with a note that said, “I’m not good with words. You deserve more.”

I had pretty much cried.

Slowly, he started to get me out of my shell, to the point where I found myself packing a lunch for him one day. It was his favorite, a baloney sandwich with creamy mashed potatoes, and I was excited to give it to him. But then, on the way to drop it off, I received a call from my mother.

I almost did not pick up but ultimately decided to. I hadn’t spoken to her in weeks, and I wanted to see if it was time to mend fences.

“Hi, Mom, what’s up?”

“Oh my God, Piper.” My mother’s voice was frantic. “Your father was in an accident. I think…I think he might be dying.”

20

IAN

“You have a visitor,” my secretary stuck her head through the door and announced.

I looked up, trying to ignore the fact that the increase in my heart rate denoted anticipation.

“Yes?” I also tried to keep the excitement from my voice, but I wasn’t sure I had succeeded.Shit, stop being so sappy, Ian.But I couldn’t help it.

I never thought of myself as a romantic type of guy, although I had not been in nearly enough relationships to say for certain. But I knew that even though I treated all the women that I dated with respect, I had never felt anything resembling excitement or anticipation at their presence, never wanted to show them all the beautiful things in life or spend hours just watching them sleep. Or maybe, it wasn’t so much that I didn’t want to do these things, but rather, I didn’t feel like the women I’d been with would have wanted them. Throughout my life, I kept going for the same type of woman—a pretty, hard woman who measured affection by price tags and loved expensive public dinners.

And perhaps, I had always gone for that type because I knew there was no danger of ever falling for them.

Meanwhile, with a woman like Piper…

The first time I gave her the flower that I plucked on the way home, her face lit up completely, and her eyes became soft.

“For me?” she had asked, looking on the verge of happy tears. It was baffling how she reacted like that to just a flower. The next day, I brought home a bouquet, and this time, shepretty much cried. I held her against me as she did, wondering about the type of assholes she had dated in the past.

I felt a possessive warmth bounce around my chest.

Ah yes. I could certainly fall in love with this woman.

My affection for her had already spread like a virus, permeating every aspect of my life. I pretty much always wanted to see her, be with her, and do things that put that beautiful smile on her face.

And if that made me a damn sap, then so be it.

So, when my secretary announced I had a visitor, I couldn’t help but sit up slightly, hoping that it was her.

Piper had told me that she would be passing by with lunch today, and as happy as I was about the food, I was more so looking forward to seeing her again.

I missed her.

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