Page 105 of The Grump I Got Stuck With

She shook her head, grinning up at me. “Nope. This one is perfect.”

I smirked, pleased that all the work Kenna and I had put into the ring had been worth it. Even more pleased that Madison seemed to adore it. I did intend to get her a sturdier engagement ring, but we could discuss those details later.

For now, I simply wanted to take Madison home. We’d already swung by the Deerhound to pick up her things and officially check her out of her room. When Isla had spotted us walking into the lobby together, hand in hand, she’d beamed even as she’d burst into very noisy tears—something she was quick to blame on postpartum hormones. After a hasty round of hugs, she’d practically shoved us out the door to go celebrate.

“Should we grab Kenna early from nursery?” Madison asked. “Spend the day together?”

“We could,” I agreed, “but she’s only got a couple hours left, and today was Crazy Hair Day. They’re apparently doing a fashion show at the end of the day.”

“Oh, well, I wouldn’t want to deprive her of that. Did Florence help you with her hair?”

“I’ll have you know that the fourteen pigtails she’s currently sporting were all my doing.”

Madison giggled, squeezing my arm gently. “I can’t wait to see this masterpiece.”

I couldn’t wait either, imagining the way Kenna would squeal in delight as she threw herself into Madison’s arms. “In the meantime, there’s someone else you can get reacquainted with.”

As we neared Dunhope, I was pleased to see that the news vans had dwindled to just two. Members of the media had been slowly leaving town, and with the release of my in-depth interview, my hope was that I’d taken most of the hype out of the situation. Hanging around to snap photos of a man who’d already laid it all out on national television didn’t pay the bills.

I pulled up the long driveway, got out of the car, and took Madison’s hand, leading her through the side door. The moment we walked into the kitchen, I heard the familiar tap, tap, tap.

“Princess!” Madison cried, crouching to greet the tiny furball.

Princess ran right past her, leaping at my knees with the energy of a firecracker. She yipped, tail wagging, then flopped over onto her back, batting the air expectantly.

“I see her loyalties have shifted,” Madison said, smirking up at me.

“She just likes a good belly rub,” I said, bending over to greet Princess.

“And to think you didn’t even like her when we first showed up.”

“When you first showed up, she looked like she wanted to chew my hand off.” Once the dog was satisfied with her belly rubs, she got up and trotted over to Madison for pets, licking both her hands.

“I missed you,” Madison whispered to her. “Have you been behaving?”

Princess barked and barked and barked, like she was giving Madison a rundown of everything she’d missed while living at the inn.

Madison glanced at me. “She says someone hasn’t been giving her enough treats.”

“All lies,” I said, walking to the sink to wash my hands. Madison followed. “If anything, she’s been getting way too many. Kenna and I really need to get on some sort of system. Not to mention whatever Florence has been sneaking her.”

Madison washed and dried her hands. “How is Florence?”

“She is on a well-deserved vacation day today. Her daughter and granddaughter were coming up to Edinburgh from London, so she’s gone to visit. And I’m happy to report that she finally stopped glaring at me once I’d scheduled the interview.”

“Good old Florence. Keeping up with the home, taking care of your love life…”

“I should really give the woman a raise.”

“You should,” Madison agreed. “For her cooking alone.” She pulled back to look up at me. “What do you want to do until we pick up Kenna?”

“Well, like Isla suggested…” I took her hands, leading her from the kitchen toward the stairwell. “I was thinking we could spend some time celebrating.” I lifted her hand to my mouth, pressing a soft kiss to her ring finger.

“Celebrating, huh?” She shot me a coy grin, walking the fingers of her free hand up my chest.

“It’s not every day we get engaged.”

“What exactly did you have in mind?” she asked, following me up the stairs.