Not Pretending Anymore(18)

“I guess you’re not afflicted with hyperopia?”

My lips curved to a grin. “Twenty-twenty vision. Thank God.”

“Goodnight, Dec. Thanks for everything. And I don’t just mean making me dinner.”

“Anytime. ’Night, Mollz.”





CHAPTER 6




* * *



Molly



“Holy crap. Some woman who just pushed out a watermelon is going to be pregnant again too soon.”

Daisy and I were sitting at the nurses’ station next to each other, but I had no idea what she was talking about. I looked up from the computer screen and traced her line of sight.

Oh my . A man was strutting down the hall carrying an enormous bouquet of flowers. He had on a well-fitted, three-piece suit with the knot of the tie slightly loosened, and a five o’clock shadow peppered his carved jawline. Not just any carved jawline—Declan’s carved jawline. Spotting me, he flashed a million-dollar smile and two cavernous dimples.

“Actually…” Daisy whispered. “I think he just got me pregnant.”

I’d had no idea he was coming since he was supposed to call first. So between the surprise of seeing him and how amazing he looked, I seemed to be incapable of speaking. Instead, I sat and stared until he walked right up to me.

“Hey, gorgeous.”

Daisy’s eyes widened as I stood.

“Declan…what are you doing here?”

He held up a bag I hadn’t even noticed in his hand. “I made you dinner…or I guess it would be your lunch.” He extended the flowers to me. “And brought you these.”

“They’re beautiful. But…you didn’t have to do that. I didn’t realize you were coming.”

“I wanted to surprise you. Did you take your break yet?”

I shook my head. “No. But I can go in, like, fifteen minutes. I just need to finish up a few things here.”

Daisy, whom I’d forgotten was still sitting next to me, stood up and plucked the patient’s chart from my hands.

“I’ll finish for you.”

“Oh…okay. Thanks, Daisy.”

Declan’s ears perked up hearing the name. “Daisy, huh?” he said. “I’m Declan, Molly’s date for dinner this evening.”

“Nice to meet you, Declan.”

“You, too. I appreciate you covering for my girl so I can eat with her. I work days, and she works nights, so I miss seeing her face.”

Daisy seemed unable to stop smiling. “That’s so sweet. Take as long as you want. It’s pretty quiet tonight, so I can handle things on my own.”

Declan held out his hand for me to take over the counter and led me to his side. “Lead the way, beautiful.”

As soon as we were out of earshot, he leaned to me. “So that’s Ivy, huh? She doesn’t hold a candle to you. If Dr. Dickalicious picks that over you, he’s not only blind, he’s a moron.”

For some odd reason, my heart was racing. I wasn’t sure if it was the surprise visit, the act we were putting on at work, or the fact that I’d actually sort of swooned when Declan walked in the way he had. The man had such a big presence.

“That’s very sweet of you to say, even if you’re full of shit,” I said. “But I hate to tell you, we seem to be having one of those rare nights where none of our patients are in labor, so Will isn’t even here. I wish you would’ve called first so I could’ve saved you the trip.”

Declan shrugged. “It’s okay. I wanted to check in on you, anyway. Today was your dad’s first day of chemo, right? You mentioned he was going to call you afterward. I figured you might want to talk about it.”

I led Declan into the break room. Technically, it was supposed to be for employees only, but no one really cared, especially on the overnight shift. He began his food prep, just like he did in the kitchen at home. Taking a Tupperware out of the bag, he popped it into the microwave and pulled out a chair for me to sit in while he warmed up whatever he’d brought.

“Did you get to talk to him?” he asked.

“I did. We talked for almost a half hour, which is honestly the longest conversation I can remember us having in a decade. Mostly we discussed his treatment plan, and which doctors we liked and didn’t like. It was sort of more like a doctor and a nurse going over a patient’s medical records than a father and daughter talking, but I guess it’s a start.”

He nodded. “It’s good that you have common ground to ease into things.” The microwave dinged, and he removed the dish and set it down in front of me. “Homemade gnocchi in cream sauce.”

“Wow. Homemade? Like, you made the pasta, too?”

“Yup. Told you I’m the perfect roomie.”

I forked two pasta dumplings and slipped them into my mouth. If Declan hadn’t been standing there to watch my reaction, I might’ve let my eyes roll into the back of my head and moaned a little. It was that good .

“This is absolutely delicious.”

He sat down across from me and smiled. “Good. Eat up.”

I forked more pasta. “You want to share?”

“Nah. You eat. I already had some. But tell me how you left things with your father. Did you make a plan to visit him in person?”