Overwhelm Me by A. C. Marchman Read Free Book Online

not me,” I smile.
    Donovan laughs, “I’m sure there are a few touches of yours around here.”
    I toss my purse and keys onto the table. “Make yourself at home. I’m going to go change.” I offer for Donovan to have a seat. “I won’t be long.” I head down the hallway to my room and shut the door.
    My heart is racing. Oh my, Donovan Callahan is in my living room! I beam at the very thought. I debate whether or not I should put on something sexy. I rummage through my dresser drawers and realize I don’t even own something sexy. I decide on cute instead and put on my gray shorts and black tank top. I throw my hair up in a bun and look in the mirror. “Good enough,” I say to myself. Now to wash this damn makeup off my face. I open my door and see Donovan looking at my family picture.
    “This your family?” he asks.
    “No, those are some random people I decided to take a picture of and hang in my home,” I tease him.
    “You’re a smartass!” he jokes back.
    I laugh. He is so cute right now. So far, I’ve known him one night, and I’ve seen sexy, angry, frustrated, and playful Donovan. I like the sexy and playful side of him.
    “Yes, that’s me, my parents, and my brother, Jon,” I look at the picture with him, “They live back in Lynchburg.”
    “Lynchburg? Tennessee?” Donovan questions, eyebrows raised.
    “No, Virginia. It’s a small college town with nothing to do, but I call it home.”
    “Well, I have to say, you look adorable in your flowered dress, and your mom is kind of hot.”
    Donovan wisely ducks as I swat at him. “Hey, come on. You two look alot alike. I was paying you a compliment, too.” I swat at him again and catch his arm. “Ow, that hurt, you brute,” he says. He rubs his arm like he’s in pain. I kiss his arm, just like my mom used to do when I skinned my knees. “Thank you, much better,” he winks at me.
    Donovan turns back to the picture. “So, do you have any other siblings?”
    “No, it’s just Jon and me. But my brother does have twin boys who light up my world. Their names are Jamie and Henry.” I beam at the sound of their names. God, I love those boys.
    “Bet their auntie Allie spoils them rotten.”
    “They have me wrapped around their fingers, for sure,” I smile warmly. I really need to get a picture of those two on my wall.
    “So, are your parents still together?” Donovan asks casually as he glances at the other pictures in the hallway.
    I let out a sigh and say, “Sort of.”
    Donovan turns his head and cocks an eyebrow at me. “Well, that’s an odd answer. What does that mean? Are they separated, but not divorced?”
    “No, my dad died of heart disease two years ago. He was only fifty. He missed his fifty-first birthday by three weeks. My mom vowed to never get married again after he passed, and she still wears her wedding ring,” I choke up on the last two words, and I feel the burn of the unshed tears in my eyes. “He died while I was here in Atlanta. I didn’t get the chance to say good-bye.
    The heart attack was so sudden, and it killed him almost instantly.” My tears are unleashed, and they start to trickle down my face. “I miss him dearly. He is the whole reason I want to get into healthcare. I want to help other people manage their diseases and not die so young,”
    Donovan is standing in front of me. He wipes my tears away with his thumbs as he cups my face. “Please don’t cry, I’m so sorry for your loss. I’m sure he’s very proud of you and who you are.” I wrap my arms around his neck.
    “Please don’t leave me here alone with my thoughts. I just…just need you here with me,” I sob into his neck, tears coming unchecked. Donovan strokes my hair, and I find it very soothing.
    “Okay, okay, I’ll stay. I keep an extra pair of scrubs in my locker at the clinic.” He keeps running his fingers through my hair.
    I instantly start to feel better just knowing he is staying. I wipe the rest of my tears with the back