“I know you aren’t. You’ve been more of a father to Tegan in the past two months than he has all her life. But being with him left me burned… And with trust issues, I’m aware.”

I do my best to keep to my side of the hall and fight the instinct of wrapping my arms around her and kissing her.

“What if something else like this happens?” I ask. “I’m bound by doctor-patient confidentiality, Vivian, and occasionally there will be emergencies. Will you bail on me again the next time you get suspicious?”

“Well, I hope you’ll never have to go pick up my drunk daughter at a secret party ever again.” I’m about to protest, when she adds, “But even if something different happened that you couldn’t tell me about, I swear I won’t run. I can’t promise I won’t get mad, but I won’t cop out.” Vivian takes a deep breath. “I mistook you not coming to our date as a sign you didn’t care enough. But what I hadn’t realized is that you’ve been showing up for me—and Tegan—for as long as we’ve known you.” She pauses again. “Except maybe for that first day at the office.”

I raise an eyebrow in a “Do you really want to go there?” way.

She falters. “What I’m trying to say is that, except being a lunatic about donuts, you’ve pushed and shoved your way into my heart, and now I couldn’t get you out even if I wanted to.”

“But you want me out?”

“No, I don’t.” Vivian shakes her head vigorously. “I want you in, so in… That is, I mean, if you still want me?”

The vulnerability in her voice makes me crack. Who am I kidding? She could’ve come here and told me, “You take me back right now, you dumb fool,” and I would have agreed without a second thought.

She’s suffered enough. I’ve suffered enough.

I relax my shoulders and straighten away from the doorframe, taking a step toward her. “Can I say you had me at donuts?”

“Really? Because you were grilling me pretty heavily a second ago.”

“I had to play a little hard to get, didn’t I? Plus, when am I ever going to hear you say again that you’re wrong?”

“I never said I was wrong. I said I was sorry, and that I have trust issues.”

“Still, you were groveling.”

“I was apologizing, in a totally dignified way.”

“Apology accepted,” I say, taking the box of donuts from her hands and dropping it on the hall’s cabinet. I pull her inside the condo and shut the door behind us. “And now I want to kiss you, and I’m asking in a totally undignified way. Do you have any objections, counselor?”