Obsessed with a Daddy

“She’s already grown up.” Mr. Pierce twisted the top off his beer and took a sip. “That’s the damn problem. She needs to start acting like an adult instead of a kid.”

“You just want to make sure she doesn’t interrupt your plan to retire early and buy an RV.” Mrs. Pierce’s words were quick, and there was a harshness in her tone.

“You know it’s more than that. Look at my sister—she…” Mr. Pierce’s face twisted into a scowl, but he didn’t finish his sentence.

“Holly is nothing like your sister. She’s smart. It’s okay if she doesn’t know what she wants to do yet. She’s got plenty of time to figure that out—and I’ve told you that multiple times now, but you don’t seem to get it through that thick head of yours.” Mrs. Pierce’s tone softened as she scolded her husband, who seemed to sink lower in his seat with every word.

I guess they’re not going to accept my offer to talk to her—I should just go.

“Wow, this was delicious.” I put a smile on my face and pushed my chair back. “I really appreciate your hospitality.”

“Going so soon?” Mr. Pierce looked up at me. “There’s dessert—there’s always dessert.”

“You don’t deserve dessert!” Mrs. Pierce shook her finger at him.

“I appreciate the offer, but I’m stuffed. That casserole was amazing.” I looked back and forth between them.

I was afraid they would keep pushing, but luckily, they let me escape. I felt really bad for Holly, and I felt pretty bad for her parents too. I could see things from both perspectives, and neither one of them were inherently wrong. Her father wanted what was best for his daughter, but he didn’t have enough tact to encourage her to make a decision without pushing her in the opposite direction. Holly had no intentions of just moving through life without direction—from what she had told me at least. She set a timetable and planned to figure it out after she had a year to consider which option was best for her. I could respect that, and I got the impression that her mother did too, but her father was quite stubborn.

I made it really easy for my parents—they were extremely happy when I told them that I wanted to be a doctor. They do get a little feisty every time they bring up the grandchildren I haven’t blessed them with yet—at least that doesn’t result in a fight.

The next morning

I had trouble getting to sleep. I wanted to talk to Holly and make sure she was okay. I got up a couple of times and looked at her bedroom window. The light was out every time I checked, so I assumed she must have had an easier time getting to sleep than I did. I finally forced myself to close my eyes and slept for about four hours. It wasn’t a peaceful night by any means. I tossed, turned, and never got to the point I felt comfortable. There was an uneasiness in my head—a twisted knot in my stomach—all because I felt something for that beautiful girl who lived next door.

I wasn’t going to let Holly leave without seeing her one last time, and my analytical problem-solving brain already had a plan to bring us together before she left Los Angeles. It was going to require a little bit of timing, but I felt confident that I could make it work. I remembered what Holly’s father had said about her getting on the road early—which gave me a time frame to work with. I didn’t want to leave things hanging—with no real understanding of where they were. Holly mentioned seeing me again at Thanksgiving before she stormed up the stairs—but what did that mean? Did that mean she wanted to wait that long to even speak to me again? I hoped that wasn’t the case.

I debated not taking more days off work than I actually needed to get moved in, but I don’t regret taking the extra days now—it’s not like I’m planning to go on an actual vacation this year.

Holly’s car was packed with all of her things, so it wouldn’t take her long to get on the road once she was ready to leave. I watched her house until the lights came on and waited for any sign of activity. There was no way that I could just stroll up to her car while she was saying goodbye to her parents—that might have worked when her father was checking the oil, but it wasn’t even daylight yet. When I finally saw the front door of their house open, and Holly walked outside with parents following closely behind her, I ran to my back door, sprinted to the gate that opened to the wooded area behind my house and made a mental note that I needed to buy a lock for it since there was no sign of one.

I’ve got one chance to make this work—I can’t blow it.

I ran parallel to the privacy fences that connected all of the properties together—it created one large wall that practically surrounded our neighborhood. At the end of the wall, was Maple Street—which was the road Holly would have to drive when she left the neighborhood. I mapped it out with my phone, and it was supposed to be the fastest route. If her father wanted her to avoid rush hour traffic, then getting out of Los Angeles as fast as possible would be integral to that. Once she hit the interstate, there wouldn’t be much traffic to worry about except for the usual delays—she would probably miss all of that too since she was on the road so early.

Alright—no headlights. Hopefully none of the neighbors call the cops and report some weirdo running through suburbia before daylight.

I got a little nervous as I leaned against a tree and waited for her car. There was always a chance she could have driven in the opposite direction—the GPS said Maple Street was the best route, but maybe the locals didn’t agree. My head started forming possibilities—worst case scenarios—the kind of thing that generally made me a good doctor—but the exact opposite of what I wanted to focus on at the present time. I also didn’t know how Holly would react when she realized I was waiting on her. It occurred to me, after I was already creeping in the dark, that my behavior coul

d have been considered a bit stalkerish. It wasn’t like we were in a relationship or anything—we had only known each other a couple of days.

Maybe this is stupid, but all I can do is go for it—and live in the moment. That has worked out a lot better than trying to analyze everything…

Chapter Five

Holly

I knew my parents had the best of intentions—they really did. My dad loved me. He was just too stubborn for his own good sometimes. He wanted me to be successful and have a career that I enjoyed—but he wanted me to figure all of that out before I went to college. He didn’t agree with my plan to think about it for a year and then declare a major. I think my mom was actually in that boat with him, but she didn’t like how he handled it, so she stood up for me most of the time. At the end of the day, she just wanted me to be happy—provided that I was staying in my lane and following something that resembled progress. They would have just tag-teamed the attack if I told them I didn’t want to actually go to college or something crazy like that. Luckily, my dreams aligned with theirs, even if mine weren’t fully developed yet.

The worst part is that Everette had to hear all of it—I’m not surprised that he decided to leave without having dessert.

As soon as my car pulled out of the driveway, I started thinking about the gorgeous doctor next door with the stupidly-sexy smile. I didn’t expect to see him again after our first kiss. I thought that would be the end of it, especially when my parents came home. I certainly wasn’t expecting him to walk up and offer to help my father check the oil in my car—or insist on helping me load my boxes into it. It was nothing more than a ploy to get us alone for a few seconds. They were moments we stole and made our own. Every single kiss made the spark burn brighter than it did before his lips found their way back to mine.

Now all I have is what might have been—if my summer was longer—if I was going to be in Los Angeles for another year…

I hated the way I left things with Everette. I didn’t even get to sneak away with him for a proper goodbye. Maybe it was better that way. I would have made promises to him and asked for some in return. I didn’t know if it was possible to fall head over heels for someone in a matter of days, but I did want to know if it was more than infatuation. I could wait until Thanksgiving—if he could do the same—but that wasn’t fair—so it was best that I never got a chance to do something foolish like ask. The last image he had was me storming off to the top of the stairs after a spat with my dad—that was sure to make him want to come back for more. Not to mention the fact that my dad tried to suggest that I marry myself off to a younger version of Everette.

I’d much rather have the current version than one my age—there’s just something about him that turns me on.