Page 52 of One Night With My Grumpy Professor Daddy

Drake

Since that night with Ava, I don’t know how I’ve managed to still show up but I do. Today is one of those days.

I'm in my office dealing with paperwork for a pro-bono case. I'm on autopilot,

"Sir, have you seen the news?” Emily bursts into my office, her face is a mask of wild excitement.

"I haven't seen much of anything.”

“The story is everywhere. On every paper, every news outline, social media. Everywhere. See!”

DANIEL STRONG LAW FIRM UNDER INVESTIGATION FOR FRAUD.

The bitter irony of the situation isn't lost on me. An anonymous tip about fraud has led to his downfall, almost a replica of what happened to Ava's father's firm because of what he did.

My mind immediately goes to Ava. I call her twice, when I get no response, I call another number.

“What do you want?" he snarls as soon as he picks up.

“I wanted to make sure you were OK,” I reply coolly despite the aggression in his tone.

"I don't need your pity, Drake. Did you do this?” He asks after a few seconds.

“I didn’t,” I answer flatly. I’m not even surprised that he suspects me. According to my father, anybody can be an enemy. I choose my words carefully, wanting to convey my sincerity. “I didn't want this for you, Dad. And you’ll be fine as long as the tip is wrong right?”

“If you’re here to preach to me son, save it. Don’t call me again." With that, the dial tone ends.

Thinking about ava and the way she keeps pushing me to voicemail. I guess she really is done with me.

The gaping hole in my chest hurts, As I resume work on autopilot. My mind is still filled with thoughts of Ava. The memory of her smile, and the warmth of her touch, are imprinted in my mind.

I miss her.

I look again at my files, adding footnotes where necessary and tagging precedent cases.

I miss her lips.

I sort the evidence sent by the claimant into files and begin to draft a brief for the case. After that, I tell Emily to set up a meeting with the claimant to see if he's ready to settle outside court.

I miss her smile, her body, her smell.

The day fades into evening, and I decide to take a break. I sit by the floor to ceiling windows watching the city lights flicker to life. The ache for Ava intensifies, and I realize I need closure. I can't fully wrap my head around the reason for her decision. Fine, our families have had their differences, but something seems to be missing. What did she mean by the role she played?

I grab my phone and type a few words of text but I end up erasing them. After a repeated cycle of typing and erasing, I abandon the idea and scroll through my phone absentmindedly.

I'm scrolling through my mail when I stumble on the file sent by Daniel Armstrong with the subject titled; AVA MILLER.

Chapter thirty-three

Ava

Daniel Strong’s firm is under investigation. My parents know I’m pregnant, and Drake won’t stop calling me.

How did I get here?

By here, I’m not sure if I mean this stage of my life or this restaurant where I am with my parents. I fumble with my outfit– a flare summer dress that does well to hide any evidence of my pregnancy and look up at my parents seated across me. I don’t know what pushed them to call me and suggest lunch, my sudden announcement or the news about Daniel’s firm. At first, no one says anything, and I push around my pasta with my fork. These days, I don’t understand my appetite. Sometimes, even the sight of food makes me sick. Other times, I feel like I could eat a horse.

“I know you think pregnancy is a big deal, but these days it’s not.” My mother breaks the silence with that, and my father chimes in. “Yeah, sweety. Your mother is right,” he murmurs in agreement. My mother continues speaking. “You know what? I think this is a good thing. And I know just what we should do.”

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