Filthy Doctor(36)

“Not so fast, Julian – let's take this all one step at a time. But yes, we can talk. Tomorrow. And I promise not to throw any punches.”

“Fair enough.”

At that point, I wasn't really in a good position to bargain with the man. The fact that he was giving me the time of day to talk it out at all was more than generous.

All I could do was talk to him, see where it all went, and hope for the best.



Chapter Ten

SABRINA



“You coming down for dinner, sweetheart?” mom asked, peeking her head into my bedroom with a friendly smile.

“I'd rather not,” I said, flipping a page in my book. “I'll grab some leftovers later. Either that, or I'll just go out and grab something.”

My mother sat down on the bed beside me. “I know it's hard, Sabrina. Your dad is stubborn, sure, but he's also hurting. You're his baby girl and Julian was supposed to be his best friend. What happened between you two – he's struggling with it.”

“But we both know that Julian would never, ever take advantage of me, mom,” I said. “How long have you known him? Do you really think he's some sort of deviant sexual predator?”

“I know he's not. And I also know that you've been in love with him since birth, pretty much. It just took us all by surprise, that's all,” she said. “You never expect your daughter to end up with a man that's your age. Especially one who watched her grow up. I'm not saying it's right or wrong, I'm just saying that it takes a little time to adjust to the reality life throws at you sometimes. And you know your father – he sometimes doesn't do well with unexpected curve balls. Especially, when they're of a personal nature.”

I knew all of this. I understood it. “But it doesn't make dad's reaction right. Not at all.”

“No, it doesn't,” she said. “But it makes it more understandable, doesn't it?”

“Maybe so,” I mumbled. “But to keep me from seeing Julian? After I've told him a million times that I love him? That's an absolute dick move, if you ask me.”

“Your father isn't perfect, but he's willing to admit when he's screwed up, Sabrina. Give him a chance to make amends. He might just surprise you.”

“I highly doubt it,” I said. “Old dogs, new tricks and all that.”

“Just come down to dinner and let's talk, as a family.”

She gave me a small smile as she patted me on the back. She stood up and walked toward the door, turning and looking back at me. I saw a look in her eyes that I couldn't quite place. It was then that I realized she was pleading with me – with her eyes. She had been caught in the crossfire and was watching her family get torn apart. I knew she was hurt and she didn't deserve this. The least I could do was go downstairs and enjoy dinner – ignoring my dad as mom and I chatted about whatever. I could go and have dinner – with her.

“Fine,” I said. “I'll be right down.”

My mom smiled and then walked downstairs before me, but I followed behind soon after. As I walked down the stairs, however, I noticed that there were four settings at the table – not just the typical three for us.

“Are we having company?” I asked, raising an eyebrow at my mom.

“Yes, we are actually,” my dad said, walking into the dining room from behind me.

I turned and my jaw hit the ground as I stared at Julian, standing only a few feet away – and next to my father. My first instinct was to run to him, to embrace and kiss him. But I put that instinct in check. I knew that if I did that in this environment that had been superheated ever since that day, it would more than likely cause even more problems. There seemed to be a fragile peace in place and the last thing I wanted to do was jeopardize it. I needed to keep it together, keep the peace, and perhaps my mom was right – maybe we could make amends. I mean, if my father was willing to invite Julian back over, I supposed anything was possible.

“Sabrina,” he said softly, a smile on his face. “It's good to see you.”

My heart skipped a beat. “It's good to see you too, Julian.”

My father cleared his throat before speaking, “Julian, I believe you have something to tell my daughter.”

I looked at my dad, then back at Julian, a curious look on my face. I had no idea what was about to happen, but a million different nightmare, heartbreaking scenarios flashed through my head. My heart was thundering in my chest and I felt my palms growing damp with sweat. I didn't know what was about to happen, but I feared that I wasn't going to like it.

“What is it?” I feared for the worst.

I was suddenly sure that my father had gotten to him, convinced him to break things off with me in order to save their friendship or something equally as cruel as that. My head spinning and my heart racing, I steadied myself by placing a hand against the wall. And when Julian began to speak, I was suddenly grateful I'd had the foresight to brace myself against something.

“Yes, I do. I have something to say to your daughter,” he said, clearing his throat and stepping forward, coming toward me. He took my hand in his, holding it as he spoke. “Sabrina Prescott, I know this may come as a surprise, but I love you.”

My knees went weak and I almost toppled to the floor, despite the fact that I was holding on to the wall. “You what?”

“I love you,” he said, and a nervous smile was shared between us. “I love you, Sabrina. There, I finally said it. And it feels damn good to say it too.”

“I – I love you too,” I said, feeling as if I might pass out from all this going on at once.

Right there, in my family's dining room, Julian was professing his love for me and I was able to give it to him in return. In front of my parents? Was I dreaming? Was this some sort of cruel hoax? An alternate reality? What in the hell was going on?

I looked over at my mom who was smiling, her eyes welling with tears. She took my father's hand in hers and squeezed it tight. And while my father wasn't smiling and still looked distinctly uncomfortable, he at least looked to be handling this better than I thought. At least he wasn't throwing punches at Julian.

While I was looking away, Julian dropped down to his knee. It took me a few seconds too long to process what I was seeing and realize what was happening. It wasn't until I saw the ring in the box in Julian's hand that it hit me.

“No way,” I said, shaking my head, tears welling up in my eyes as I looked over at my father in disbelief.

“Sabrina,” Julian said, holding my hand in his, “I've already asked your father permission, and he gives us his blessing – will you do me the pleasure of being my wife?”

“Seriously? Yes! Yes! Of course,” I said, my mind and body alternating between a sense of euphoria and a state of shock as he slipped the giant rock on my finger. He stood up and we kissed, but I still felt like I might pass out.

“When? How?” I asked, not able to form a coherent thought, let alone sentence.

“Your father called to talk to me last night. Then we met earlier today,” Julian explained, pushing my hair from my eyes so he could stare more fully into them. “We worked things out, Sabrina. We worked it out and he understands now. He understands that what we have is real. And this isn't just some old guy preying on a young, naïve girl.”

“Daddy?” I asked, choking on the words. “Is this true?”

“It is,” he said, a small smile on his face at last. “I just want what's best for you, sweetheart. And Julian is a good man. He's one of the best I've ever known. If you two are in love, I support you being together. It's just going to take a minute for me to get fully used to it and comfortable with it. But – I'll get there. Just be patient with me, honey.”

I couldn't believe it. Not only was my father saying we could be together – openly – he had given us his blessing to get married. Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined anything remotely like that happening.

“Are you happy, sweetheart?” my mom asked me.

“Very much so,” I said, tears of joy filling my eyes. “I'm getting married to the man of my dreams! How could I not be happy?”



EPILOGUE

TWO YEARS LATER

SABRINA



Do you ever look at your life and wonder how you ever got so lucky? It's like, you can't quite figure out what you've done to deserve all of the good fortune to come into your world. It happens to me every single day of my life. I've got a husband who adores me, takes care of me, who provides for me, and who treats me better than any man my own age ever could, I feel truly blessed.

Sure, people comment on our age difference and assume I'm with him for his money. Little do they know that I was once a little girl madly in love with him, long before he found success in business. It wasn't his money, it was him. But some people would never be convinced. I could just shrug those people off though, knowing the truth of the matter.

I find myself sitting next to him, doing mundane things like eating dinner or watching tv, when it hits me all over again – he's my husband. Julian Pierce, the man I'd grown up around, the man I'd always crushed hard on, was my husband. This was real. Absolutely real. It was no longer a dream or a teenage girl's fantasy for me.

I was better for him than Beth ever was too. I knew a side of him that very few people did, a side that only came from having grown up around him and seeing him in normal, everyday, mundane life. He was so amazing to me back when I'd been a child – I always knew he'd make a wonderful father. He was scared, of course, but once we discussed the idea, weight out all of the pros and cons, he realized that maybe I was right.