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“I know. I can control myself.”
I think.
My eyes flick to the tattoo on the back of his hand, and the confidence I have in myself wavers.
“Good,” he says, and he pours himself another drink. “Because I’m not sure I can.”
“You’re going to have to try, buddy. We can’t make this more complicated.”
“You stained my couch,” he says, and I turn to glare at him. “It was worth the cleaning bill.”
“Oh my god.” I bury my face in my hands. “We really can never talk about this again.”
“Okay.” Shawn laughs. “Want to talk about tonight instead?”
“Please,” I say, because if we don’t, I’m going to ask him what he did with the pair of underwear he kept. “I’m excited.”
“Everyone is excited you’re coming. It’s low key, but we did invite a few members of the media. There will be cameras and reporters. You’re definitely going to get stopped, but it shouldn’t be anything invasive tonight.”
“Am I allowed to say we’re spending Christmas with your family?” I ask. “Or is that an overshare?”
“No, that would be nice. My mom called yesterday and grilled me about you. Where you went to school. Where you did your residency. What some of your hobbies are. Luckily, I knew all the answers, but there’s this small part of me that thinks she knows we’re lying.”
“Then we’ll do a good job of selling how in love we are tonight,” I say. “And at the hospital gala. And then at Christmas. There won’t be any doubt in her mind.”
“Did you ever hear from that guy you were at the game with?” Shawn asks, and a muscle in his jaw twitches with the question. “Did he apologize for leaving and treating you like you were worthless?”
I blush, and hot flashes of that kiss in front of the entire stadium run through my mind. “No. He did an interview with Barstool, though. Talked about how I led him on when I was already dating you. I didn’t read too much into it.”
“Want me to buy the company and kill the story?” he asks, and for half a second, I think he might do just that. “I could hire a hitman, too, if you want to go that route instead.”
“No,” I laugh. “It’s fine. Let’s have a good night together. He’s a distant memory at this point.”
“What was his name? Chad?”
“Matthew.”
“Oh, even better. It all makes sense now.” Shawn nudges my knee with mine. “Fuck him. I’m sorry for bringing him up. How was work today? Has it been busy with the holidays?”
“Everyone tends to get sick when the weather changes, so we’ve seen an uptick in patients. We’re posting an opening for an additional pediatrician, though, thank god. Maybe that will mean I can stop running around and eat three meals a day.”
“I think I’m going to have to have lunch delivered to your office every day from now on. I’m going to sit on the couch and watch you eat. You can’t be skipping meals, Lacey girl. You have to take care of yourself.”
I blow out a breath and wring my hands together. “Sometimes I’m busy taking care of other people, and it’s hard to put myself first,” I admit, and it’s scary to be so honest with him.
“Maybe we can work on that, yeah?” Shawn asks. He touches my cheek, and I nestle into the warmth of his palm. “If your day is busy, let me know. I can easily order you something. I’m going to take care of you, remember?”
“Okay. I can do that,” I whisper.
“Thank you. I know you’re fiercely independent, which is a trait I love about you. You can fight your own demons and slay your own dragons, but I’m here, too. I just want to make sure you’re fed and maybe hold your hand every now and then along the way when the going gets tough, okay?”
I nod, and my eyes sting with tears. “Okay,” I say again, and there’s a heavy pressure in my chest.
I don’t know why his help makes me want to cry, but it does.
I think it’s because accepting help isn’t easy for me, and Shawn is so nice. He’s not overbearing or controlling, and knowing he’s pickedmeto be the one to take care of makes me feel adored in a way I’ve never been before.
He doesn’t think I’m weak or incapable of doing things on my own. He’s offering a hand to make sure I don’t go under the water for too long, and it’s the kindest thing anyone’s ever done for me.
