Page 94 of Doctor I Do

“Sounds good,” I say, and he kisses my cheek, lingering a little too long. My heart aches from the gesture.

When he leaves the room, I let out a heavy sigh and text Maddison to tell her I’ll be around in a couple of hours.

I hit stop on the treadmill and walk into the kitchen to find he’s made me a coffee. Damn him. Why does he have to mess with my head? I need to get out of here and think seriously about what we’ll do after the wedding. I take the coffee and see the heart design on top, and I sigh. He’s definitely trying to kill me.

I drink the delicious coffee he made me, and then hit the shower. My mind is still in a bad way when I get to Maddison’s. I tried to eat breakfast, but the knots in my stomach wouldn’t ease up. So, I skipped it and brought some snacks for us to have with tea.

“Is everything all right?” Maddison asks, opening the door and seeing the bag of food I’m carrying.

“Not really, but let me sit down and explain. I need to pick your brain,” I mumble.

“Let's talk quietly. My head isn’t 100 percent today.” She gives me a knowing smile and closes the door behind me.

“Hungover? I didn't think you drank more than me,” I question with a frown.

We take a seat on the sofa. She sinks low and throws a blanket over her legs.

“I brought snacks,” I say, waving the bag between us.

“I wondered what you brought. Gimme.” She curls her fingers into grabby hands.

I hand over the bag, and she pulls the bag of chips out and tears the packet open.

“Talk to me,” she says before eating a chip.

I exhale deeply. “He got a text this morning.”

“Mm,” she encourages.

“From an unknown number, but it was clearly a woman. It said it was nice seeing you last night, and wish we repeated…but I didn’t read the rest because I didn’t want to open his phone—it felt wrong.”

Her mouth twists in an unsure look. “Did you ask him about it?”

I grab some chips and munch on them.

My stomach welcomes the food.

“No, I was shocked, and he was in the shower for work. I wanted to think about it and then talk to you. I don't want to be a paranoid girlfriend, so if I come to him, I need to be controlling the situation, not emotionally driven.”

She shuffles off the sofa to stand. “Soda?”

“Please.” I smile back. I need the sugar to stay awake today.

“Be honest with him and say you saw part of a text on his phone, and you want to know if he’s seeing other people. Just be casual, and I think it’ll be fine.” Her voice is soft as she walks farther away, but I catch the rest of what she’s saying.

“Yeah, I was so shocked this morning, my heart couldn’t have asked him about it.”

“That's fair, but when he gets home, ask him.” She arrives back in the living room and hands me a bottle.

“Tonight, I’m meeting his parents, so I’m also nervous about that,” I say and gulp some of the drink, welcoming the bubbles.

“Meeting the parents is always nerve-wracking, but you’ll be fine. Just be yourself.”

“You’re always so calm about everything. The text and now the parents,” I say.

“Remember, it’s easy to tell someone else how to be calm, but if it were me, I’d be losing my shit.”

We laugh, and even though she didn’t have much to say about the text, I just needed some time to digest it. Feeling much better now, I sit back on the sofa, and we watch a few old Friends episodes, eating chips and drinking soda until it’s time for me to leave and get ready.

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