“Looking at houses together? Well now, you seem to be moving quickly, but what do I know. Young love.” he interrupts me, standing up and coming over to put his hands on my shoulder. I’m frozen in shock, trying to understand what the hell is happening. “I’m happy for you. Sharon and I will have to have the two of you over for dinner sometime soon. It’ll be a great opportunity to chat more about your future here.”
He walks out of the office, whistling, and I’m left standing there, my heart pounding in my ears. Why the hell does Doctor Morton think I’m in love with Mila Monroe?
I open my phone and finally send a message to Mila.
JACKSON: We need to talk.
MILA: Yeah, we do. Rosie spilled the beans about yesterday.
JACKSON: Rosie?
MILA: Yep. She’s the biggest gossip in town. She probably texted her knitting club, which is the fastest way for news to spread like wildfire. Sorry, I should’ve thought of that before I…you know.
JACKSON: Before you kissed me.
MILA: Yeah. That. Look, just come by my place tonight after work. I have an idea.
I pocket my phone and take a deep breath. Whatever is going on, it’s a simple misunderstanding. We just need to explain it to…everyone? Fuck. Does the whole damn town think I’m dating Mila? I internally groan thinking about Phil’s reaction when I tell him it’s all a mistake. This isn’t going to bode well for my partnership.
I head out to the waiting room, where thankfully, Rosie is not working, so I don’t have to pretend I’m not mad at her for spreading lies. Although I guess she didn’t know she was spreading lies. All I have to do is get through the next nine hours, then I can go to Mila’s and we can figure out how to get out of this mess.
By the time I get to Mila’s house I’m grumpy and exhausted from having to deal with patient after patient who had something to say about my “relationship” with Mila.
Every goddamn time I wanted to tell them there is no relationship, but I stopped myself. I need to talk to her, and get our story straight before I try and fight down the tidal wave of rumours I was flooded with. Everything from Mila being the real reason I moved to Dogwood Cove, to us moving in together, to her being pregnant. That last one I did shut down pretty damn fast.
Apparently, no one knows gossip like a small town.
When I walk up to her door, I’m struck by a few things. First of all, her house is perfect for her. It’s small and cute, with well kept gardens out front and a stone path leading up to the front door. Part of me wonders how the hell she has time to garden, since it seems she’s always at the bakery, but Mila strikes me as an overachiever in the best sense of the word. The next thing I notice is the door mat that reads “If you’re pizza, Amazon, or Ryan Gosling, I’M HOME”. That brings a real smile to my face for the first time all day, and I wish I had thought to bring something for dinner. Pizza sounds amazing right now.
Before I can even knock on the door, I hear Milo’s deep bark from inside, and Mila’s voice telling him he’s a good boy. I respect the fact she isn’t trying to stop his natural instinct to notify her of someone on the property, especially since she lives alone.
“Hi, come in, don’t let the scary beast get you,” she says as she opens the door. Milo sneaks past her and prances around at my feet until I crouch down and give him some attention. Then I stand up, and we head inside. The interior of her house matches her personality perfectly. It’s bright and colourful, with photos of her and Ethan, and of her and her friends everywhere.
“Are you hungry?” she asks as she heads into what I assume is the kitchen. I follow, Milo by my side.
“Starved, actually. But you don’t have to feed me, we could order pizza; your door mat tells me that would be a good idea.” I give her another smile. What is it about this woman that makes me smile all the damn time?
She puts her hands on her hips and looks at me, bringing her lip between her teeth. “You’re no Ryan Gosling, but if you’re offering pizza, you can stay.”
I chuckle, and just like that, all of my stress from the crazy day I’ve had fades away. The only other thing that gets me to relax that easily is being on the ocean, or sex.
But I’m not going there.
“So, today was interesting,” I say after the pizza is ordered and we’re settled on her couch with a beer in hand.
“Oh my God, right?” she moans, flopping her head back. “I swear, every single person that came in today had something to say about our new relationship. I knew gossip travels fast, but damn.”
“I had someone ask if I got you pregnant.”
She bolts upright and looks at me in horror. “No. Way.”
I nod and take a pull from my beer. “Don’t worry, I corrected them. No one needs to know about our secret love child until we’re ready.”
Unfortunately, just as I say that Mila is mid-swallow, so she starts to choke with laughter.
“Shit, sorry, are you okay?” I put my beer down and lean over, but the second my hand touches her bare shoulder I pull it away. I don’t know if I should touch her right now.
“I’m fine. Just, shit. Didn’t realize you had that in you.”
