Page 52 of Doctor Grump

My mother nodded. “Yes. We noticed a car following us for miles. Luckily, we were near a police station, so we simply went there. Still, the experience was terrifying.”

“I’m sure,” I said, feeling guilty that I hadn’t even thought to check in on my parents. “I’m sorry I didn’t call or anything. It’s just…well, I seem to be having my own share of bad luck too.” After the near accident that Ian rescued me from, I was nearly in two more, one when I was about to cross the road, and the car came out of nowhere. To hear that my family had also been going through it was hard…and supernaturally odd. I didn’t know if this was somehow punishment for something we had done in the past, but I was ready for this phase to be over and for us to get to the good part.

“He seems to care about you,” my mother suddenly spoke up. “Your…fiancé.” The last word seemed like it was choked out of her.

“Yeah.” I couldn’t help smiling at the thought of it. Ian had treated me better than many of my other boyfriends despite his reservations about dating at first. “He’s a good guy.”

“Seems like it. I’m happy. You deserve a good man.”

I gave my mother a sidelong glance, wondering where this was coming from. “What’s happening? Why are you being so nice to me today?”

“What do you mean?”

“You know what I mean, Mom.” While I knew my mother loved me, she had not been particularly affectionate toward me growing up. I didn’t take it personally. Affection was hard for her in general.

Mom seemed a bit flustered at my frank gaze, and she sighed. “Your dad told me that you were giving him money to pay off the debt.”

“Yes,” I responded. “Isn’t that what family is for?”

My mother gave a huffed laugh and looked to the side. Bitterness brimmed in her eyes. “Yes. That is what family is for. It’s ironic, isn’t it, what we do for family?” She shook her head. “Ever since your father found out about his siblings, he has been working his ass off, trying to get in with the main branch. He has attended every one of their stupid events and borne every humiliating task, but where has that gotten us?” She gestured to the waiting room. “None of them are even here. Just you and your sister. I called Frederick, and he couldn’t even be bothered.”

I’m sure they’ll make time later. It was what I should have said, but I didn’t because I knew it wasn’t true. My mother was right. The rest of the family branch did not really give two shits about my father, however friendly they acted to his face. And despite how hard he worked to earn their respect, he would always just be the illegitimate child.

“You all are the only family I have left,” my mother continued soberly. “My parents are long gone, and I never had any siblings. So it’s just you, your sister, and your father. And honestly, fuck the rest of them.”

I smiled at my mother. “So, to get it straight, you’re being nice to me as a fuck you to the main branch?”

“Honestly, Piper.” My mother rolled her eyes again. “No, I’m being nice to you because you’re my daughter, and I love you.” She reached out and tucked my hair behind my ear. “Even though I don’t always show it in everything I do, I do it because I think it’s for your good. You understand that, right?”

I nodded. Even when my mother continuously harped about my weight, I knew it was partly due to her fear that society would judge me harsher for being chubbier. And her insistence that I marry the count was, on some level, due to her desire to leave us a legacy as she and my father had always spoken about, so Patricia and I didn’t have to struggle the way they did.

“I know, Mom,” I said. “And for what it’s worth, I love you too.”

“Doeshelove you?” She didn’t have to say who she was thinking about. I answered as honestly as I could, given our lie.

“I think so,” I said. “And does this mean you’ll stop trying to set me up with the count?”

“I suppose,” she said hesitantly. “Not like I have a choice anyway. The man has already moved on.”

My eyes widened. “That quick?”

“Yes. Turns out he has them on some kind of roster.”

“And you wanted me to marry him?”

“Well, I didn’t know that at the time,” she said defensively. “And I genuinely thought the two of you would hit it off if you gave it a chance. He appeared to like your quirky personality and seemed like a man who would treat you well with the respect and affection you deserve. So what if he’s not exactly the best-looking man?”

“I would say he looked fine, considering he’s nearing seventy,” I said wryly.

“Oh, the age thing again.” She waved her hands dismissively. “I have seen bigger age gaps that worked. Especially during my time.”

“Well, Mother, we’re not in your time anymore.”

“I see that now.” She sighed. “As the kids say, ‘my bad.’”

At that point in the conversation, Ian returned with food in his hands. He glanced at my mother curiously before telling me that he had left Kendy with a babysitter. My mother managed to be surprisingly cordial with him, apologizing for her rudeness and even asking him about Kendy. Ian looked vaguely perplexed, but he answered the questions regardless. After my mother left, we shared a look.

“What’s going on with her?” he asked.

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