Romancing the Grump (Appies, #4)

by Jenny Proctor

I will meet someone. And when I do, we will fall in love and make each other happy, and life will be better because of it.

“Kiss me,” she repeats. “If you want them to know you’re spoken for, then show them you belong to me.”

We make eye contact, and I smile, lifting my hand to the glass. He stops directly opposite and lifts his glove to the same spot. And then he smiles. Not the little half-grin I’ve seen whenever I tease him, or the annoying smirk he gives his teammates when he thinks they’re being ridiculous. This smile is wide and real and it makes his eyes crinkle at the corners and it’s possibly the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen.

In the past forty-eight hours, my relationship with Summer has gone from zero to sixty.

I don’t need a rule book with this woman, I need a survival guide.

You think? I’ve got this (fake) boyfriend who plays on the team. I’m wearing his jersey. Nathan Turn around and let me see. Summer If this is just an excuse to check out my butt, I’m fake breaking up with you. Nathan Summer. Let me see my name.

“Because I like everything about you.”

And I really liked being needed.

Do better. Surround yourself with men who do better, who inspire you to greatness. Good teammates and good friends will always want what is best for you as an individual.”

“Thanks, Uncle Nathan,” she says. “You should be a dad.”

“I did hate it. But I wouldn’t have changed it. He loved to play, and I loved watching him play. Honestly, what was the alternative? We were in love, and he was a hockey player. I wanted to be with him, so the schedule, all the traveling, it was just part of the deal.”

But for the first time, I’m realizing it isn’t just about letting myself love Summer, it’s also about letting Summer love me.

“Summer, there are a lot of things that I owe to you. You taught me what it means to be a partner—to love and to be loved. You’ve made me a better friend, a better brother, a better son. You’ve made me more patient and more forgiving. I know it’s only been eight months, but I feel like I’ve done more living in those eight months than I did in the eight years before. You woke me up, Sum”—he grins here—“both literally and figuratively, and I would love to spend the rest of my life making you happy. Will you marry me?”