Page 24 of The Sweetest Mistake

“I’m part owner of a landscaping design business,” he corrected, “along with my two brothers.”

“Ah. I see,” Dr. Lee said, helping himself to a scoop of green beans. “Does that keep you busy year-round?”

“Yes, sir. In the winter months, we have contracts for snow-plowing. Living in Michigan, that keeps us pretty busy.”

“I’ll bet,” Debra said as she set a basket of rolls in front of them.

“If you have some business cards, I’ll pass them out to some of my friends,” Dr. Lee said while cutting into a slab of steak.

Usually, Connor would have welcomed the opportunity to gain more business, but Dr. Lee had sounded patronizing, and Connor didn’t want his charity.

“Thanks, but I didn’t bring any cards with me,” he said and went back to eating.

Sensing the tension in the room, Debra swept in and changed the subject, regaling them with tales from her husband’s office, where she worked as his receptionist.

Connor smiled at Debra, thinking how much she reminded him of Julia. They were both petite and curvy, with warm smiles and deep brown eyes, but moreover, it was their personalities that shone. Friendly and open, expressive and engaging, they were quite the opposite of Dr. Lee, whose seriousness made him appear unapproachable and standoffish. Just then, the doorbell rang, startling them all.

Dr. Lee glanced at his watch and then at Debra. “Are you expecting someone?”

“No,” she said, “but I’ll go see who it is.”

After Debra left, Julia stood up and started clearing the dishes, which left Connor at the table with Dr. Lee. Staring at each other across the table, Connor racked his brain for something to say to the man, but thankfully, he was rescued when Debra returned with their visitor. It was a lean young man who looked similar to Julia in that he was a mix of Caucasian and Asian, and Connor wondered if he was a relative. But when he glanced over at Julia, he saw shock and panic on her face and realized that this was nobody she wanted to see.

Honing right in on her, the visitor said, “Hello, Jules.”

When Julia didn’t reply, the man turned toward the table and said, “Good evening, Dr. Lee.”

“Good to see you, Alec. I wasn’t expecting you,” Dr. Lee said.

Ah-ha. So that’s why Julia looks so shaken. She’d told him all about Alec, along with the reason for their breakup. They’d been close to getting engaged when Alec had divulged that he didn’t want kids. That had been a deal-breaker for Julia, and as far as Connor knew, she hadn’t seen Alec since they’d broken up almost a year ago. Perfect—the evening had just gone from bad to worse.

Debra hurriedly said, “Alec. Meet Julia’s friend, Connor.”

Roughly pushing back his chair, Connor stood to his full height, and he might have puffed out his chest too.

“Connor O’Brien. Julia’s date,” he said pointedly.

“I see,” Alec replied with a forced smile.

Neither of them extended their hands, and Connor sat back down, thinking, He’s the intruder here, not me.

Clearing his throat, Alec said, “I’m sorry to interrupt. I just stopped by to return the books you loaned me.” With that, he handed Dr. Lee the books he’d been carrying.

“Thank you, but you didn’t have to make a special trip. We’re meeting for coffee next week, right?” Dr. Lee said.

Connor saw Julia stiffen, and it was obvious she’d had no idea that her ex-boyfriend and her father were still seeing each other socially. It took every ounce of willpower he had not to get up, grab her hand, and stalk out of the house. But he waited for Julia to take the lead.

“Yes, sir. But I was in the area, so I’d thought I’d drop by,” Alec replied smoothly.

Asshole! Doesn’t he realize how awkward this is? Just leave!

“That’s okay, Alec. Connor and I were just leaving,” Julia said tightly.

“You don’t have to leave on my account,” Alec said.

“It has nothing to do with you. We have plans this evening,” she said and shot him a piercing look.

Connor had left the table to stand beside her, and he slid an arm around her waist for added support. It didn’t hurt that Alec noticed the move too.