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Ninais sitting behind the counter sipping her steaming hot latte that she gets every morning, andIwave to her asIwalk past and toward my office.Bishopis just walking out when the bell above the front chimes, causing each of our heads to turn toward the noise.
Myeyes widen, andIswearIhearBishopgrowl behind me, asIstare at the man standing in front of me with a huge bouquet of flowers and a smile on his face.Aman that isn’t even supposed to be here right now because lastIheard he was supposed to be inNorthCarolinafor a game.
“Camden?”Ifinally say, staring into his gaze from across the room.
There’sa sinking feeling in my gut, soIlook towardBishopto see his expression, but he’s no longer standing there.Hisoffice door is closed, somethingIdidn’t even realize until now becauseCamdencaught me by such surprise, andIstart inching toward the door to explain things to him.Again.
Shit.Thisruined everything.
Ihave no doubt in my mind thatBishopis never going to give me the benefit of the doubt this time.
“Peach,”Camdensays excitedly. “I’vemissed you.”
Iglare at him, then march across the room and drag him outside. “Whatthe hell are you doing here?”
Hesmiles brightly at me. “Ourgame was canceled, wanted to surprise you.”Thenhe lifts his hands up with the bouquet still clutched in his hand and says, “Surprise!”
“Werethe unanswered texts not enough for you?”Iscreech, not bothering to grab the bouquet from him even as he holds it out to me. “I’veasked you to leave me alone… multiple times.”There’smovement from inside the office andIpull him further away. “Pleaseleave,Camden.Idon’t care about you like that anymore.”
Henods, then backs away from me. “Yeah, sure,Iunderstand.”Beforehe walks away, he turns around and looks at me with an apologetic smile. “I’msorry for not seeing you before.But, at least know,Isee you more than anyone else now.”Thenhe disappears around the corner with the bouquet still in his hand.
WhenIget back inside,Ninaquickly darts her gaze to the computer in front of her trying to act like she wasn’t watching us out there, butIwalk past her without saying anything.Idon’t care if she was listening, maybe she can vouch for me whenIgo talk toBishop.Orat least try to, sinceIhighly doubt he wants to hear anythingIhave to say now.
Itap on his door. “Dr.Adler, canIhave a moment?”
Silencegreets me on the other end and, instead of continuing to knock on the door until he answers,Isulk into my office in defeat.Isthere any coming back from this?Iblow out a rough breath, then glance at my phone to see if there’s a text fromWinnieletting me know her brother was back for a day or two —Ifind nothing.Whythe hell did he come here like this, to win me over after the way he treated me?
Isthat not what you’re doing toBishop?
Chapter20
Bishop
IgnoringGeorgiawas hard, but seeingCamdenwalk through that door looking at her as if she was the only girl in the world cut me deep.Imean, she just told me she wanted more with me, then he walks in and acts like they’ve been together?It’snot sitting right with me, and as of this moment,I’mdecidingI’mdefinitely putting myself out there — maybe make a profile on a dating app.
Rightthis second though,Ineed to get my day situated for all the patientsIhave today.
* * *
Theday went by as quickly asIhoped it would, andGeorgialeft a little earlier thanIdid soI’mgrateful to walk out of the office without running into her.Shetried coming to me during lunch, butIignored her just asIdid first thing in the morning.Howmany more times canIlet her explain things to me beforeGeorgiafinally realizes that’s not how it’s always going to work?
Iget into my car, then head toward my house, my body shaking with nerves whenIget inside.I’mgoing to make a profile and go out with someone else, to prove to myself thatGeorgiaisn’t the only one for me.WhenIwalk through the door,Iimmediately grab the laptopIleft sitting on the counter and head into the open living room.
Thisis one of my favorite spots to relax in the morning, especially with the floor-to-ceiling windows in the living room that give off the perfect view of nature ahead.Thedating website loads up andIclick to create a new profile, where it asks me things about myself.
I’ma man who loves nature, even just being surrounded by it brings me a sense of peace thatIcan’t get anywhere else.I’dsayI’malso a workaholic, but not so much thatIdon’t have time for anything else —Ijust love my job.There’sa question asking what some of my hobbies are, andIhave to curse at myself for not finding anything else interesting.
Fishing, that’s about allIlike to do, andIcan’t even remember the last timeIdid that.NowthatIthink about it,Ibet a nice day out on the water would be good for me after all the shitI’vebeen through.Imake a mental note to clear up some time to fish, then finish filling out the rest of the profile.
WhenI’mdone,Ismile to myself as a weight lifts from my shoulders — which only lasts a few seconds onceIthink aboutGeorgiaand how this would make her feel.WhyshouldIeven be worried about how she feels?It’snot like she does the same thing for me, she’s flaunted everything in my face sinceWinnie’swedding.
Assoon as the profile uploads,Istart going through the women and clicking theXifIdon’t thinkImatch with them, or the check mark ifIthinkIdo.Aftera few minutes of looking through,Idecide to shut the laptop and get dinner started.I’msure onceIgive it timeI’llhave plenty of women matching up with me, at least that’s whatIhope will happen.
I’mnot going to act likeI’mnot an attractive man,IknowIam, but women want someone who’s fun — and that’s just not me.Iprefer to spend my days lounging around the house and watching movies in the comfort of my home.I’ma homebody, for sure, and not many people like someone like that.
Iget into the fridge, grabbing the pack of chicken breasts that’s resting on the top shelf, then glance around the kitchen for anything elseImight need.ChickenAlfredosounds nice tonight, especially since it’s pretty easy to cook.Cookingmight possibly be another hobby of mine, now thatIthink about it, sinceIlove making different dishes for dinner.
Itdoesn’t matter ifI’mthe only one who’s going to eat them, that doesn’t stop me from trying to make the best plate of something.Whilethe garlic bread is in the oven and everything simmers together,Iuse the short timeIhave to jump into the shower quickly.Bythe timeIcome back down, the bread is ready, along with everything else.
