Not Pretending Anymore by Ward, Penelope (big ebook reader .TXT) 📕

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?”

I sighed. “He invited me to come over for dinner.”

“That’s good. When?”

“Tuesday.”

Declan scratched his chin. “I have a meeting, but I can probably reschedule it.”

“No, you don’t have to do that. I can go on my own.”

He took out his cell and started to type. When he was done, he tossed it on the table. “Done. I emailed the guy and asked him if we can do it Friday instead. I’m sure it won’t be a problem.”

I shoveled more gnocchi into my mouth. “You’re really a good friend, Declan.” Even though we’d only known each other a couple of weeks, I somehow knew I could count on him.

A few minutes later, I had nearly emptied the container. I scooped up a few more gnocchi and lifted the fork halfway to my lips. “I want to eat the rest of this, but I’m stuffed.”

“You sure you’re full?” Declan asked.

“Positive.”

“Good.” He leaned across the table and closed his lips around the fork. “Because I lied. I haven’t eaten anything yet. I worked really late, and those damn dumplings take a while to make. I rushed out because I didn’t want to miss your break.” He chewed and kept his face in front of me, leaning over the table. “So feed me the last of that, will ya?”

I laughed, but shoved two more heaping bites of gnocchi into his mouth. We were both so busy with the food and enjoying each other’s company that neither of us heard someone walk into the break room.

Not until a man’s deep voice interrupted. “Hey, Molly…”

I turned to find Will Daniels holding a coffee mug. His eyes moved back and forth between Declan and me.

I cleared my throat. “Hi, Will.”

Declan’s eyes went wide as he realized what was happening, a smug look of “mission accomplished” written all over his face.

Will extended his hand to Declan. “Will Daniels.”

“Declan Tate. Nice to meet you.”

“You’re a friend of Molly’s?”

“We’re dating, actually,” Declan answered without missing a beat.

Will looked over at me, understandably confused. We’d just had coffee last week, and I’d mentioned my roommate, but not that I was dating anyone. I hadn’t mentioned Declan’s name, so he had no way of figuring out that my new “love interest” was the same guy I’d spoken about.

Not knowing what to say, I stammered, “Uh, it’s...new.”

Will forced a smile. “I guess a lot can change in a week.”

“Yeah.”

He turned to Declan. “Whatever you guys nuked in the microwave smells amazing.”

Declan grinned. “Thank you. Gnocchi. I made it.”

“Ah. A chef.” Will walked over to the coffee pot and filled his mug for what felt like ten awkward seconds. He put the top on and said, “Well, I’ll let you two get back to your dinner.”

Then he was gone.

After Will was safely out of earshot, Declan spoke low. “Okay...you want my assessment on Dickalicious?”

“Yeah.”

He continued to whisper. “Doc was definitely jealous. That whole thing was awkward. It was great. He was clearly disappointed and surprised to find you with me.”

Hope filled me. “You think?”

“I don’t think, I know. So this was good. Definitely not a wasted trip.”

“What now?” I asked. “I mean, could this backfire?