Page 76 of Taming Grumpy Dr. Beast

Shit.I should have clarified with Lily who we were comfortable knowing about us at this stage.

“So happy to hear that. I’ll just pop in and see what she might like for breakfast.”

I nodded and was about to move around her when she cleared her throat.

“Oh, and Jaxon?”

I narrowed my eyes at her tone and responded warily. “Yeah?”

She took a handkerchief from a hidden pocket in her skirt and handed it to me. “You’ve got a little something here.” She pointed to my mouth. And with a wave, she strode past me and into my office.

I wiped at my lips and groaned at the pale pink lipstick that was now smeared across the blue linen.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Lily

My hands pushed intomy lower back as I stretched. The intricate details in restoring books took patience, and a lot of standing in the same place at one time. I glanced at my watch, realizing I’d forgotten to set my typical timer, reminding me to take a break every fifty minutes so my body didn’t get stiff.

For the past week, I’d worked on the book a few hours every day. It was hard to step away during this part of the process. I bounced lightly in place, excited about the changes completed in the book already. It was coming together so beautifully.

Fixing torn pages relaxed me. My back may hate the constant hunching it had to do to keep me in place, but the repetitive nature of the movements were cathartic.

Even though he wasn’t physically here, Dad’s voice whispered the instructions I knew by heart—ones he’d taught me as he stood next to me, showing me how to fix the pages.

The process of restoring a book, while simple, helped ground me, and on another level, connected me with Dad. I caressed the leather I’d cut off and applied to the new cover. The deep caramel hue of the original had been easy to match and once I inlaid the new cover into the front of the old, it would appear to be more of an aesthetic choice rather than one to fix what was eroding.

I was so excited about the letter I found two weeks ago. It was getting harder and harder to keep the secret from Jaxon. Now that I knew more about the background of the book, I knew the letter I found written from André to Rose, was most likely from his grandfather. That letter alone, had to mean the book belonged to his family at one point.

The beautiful frame and mat I ordered should arrive any day now. I was desperate to be done with my surprise so I could see the smile on his face when he opened it. This was going to be the best gift I could ever give him.

A ding from my tablet let me know I had an incoming email. Cece was nothing if not predictable. She’d been hounding me for details about my sexy times with Jaxon, and I doubted she was ready to give up. I loved Cece, but right now I was keeping the specifics of the last week private. I didn’t want anyone’s opinion, even that of my best friend, to taint what, so far, was the best sexual experience of my life.

I swiped the screen, wondering what Cece would have said this time. My eyes grew wide at the first name that appeared: Gavin. Every part of me wanted to delete it without reading, but his subject line: ‘Urgent info about your dad’ had me pause.

A chill skated down my arms while my stomach twisted painfully. Had he found us out? With a shaking finger, I opened his message.