Grump Daddy

Grump Daddy An Enemies to Lovers Romance BLAIR BROWN Copyright © [2023] by [Blair Brown] All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher or author, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law. Contents 1. Chapter One 2. Chapter Two 3. Chapter Three 4. Chapter Four 5. Chapter Five 6. Chapter Six 7. Chapter Seven 8. Chapter Eight 9. Chapter Nine 10. Chapter Ten 11. Chapter Eleven 12. Chapter Twelve 13. Chapter Thirteen 14. Epilogue Also By Blair Brown Chapter One JACK I’m nervous enough. I can’t believe the bus is late. I’m sitting here, looking at my watch, my right leg jumping involuntarily. This is all I need. This is a big meeting I have got to get to. At the moment, I have only got about twenty minutes to get there. Where is that damned bus? I would’ve caught the earlier bus if not for that stupid pigeon attack on my way out the door. My brand new suede and leather jacket was completely ruined and I went back inside and spent another twenty minutes going through my closet looking for another coat. Surprisingly, I don’t have a lot of nice coats. At least not as many that were as nice as that one. I have got a head thing about being late. It’s one of those things about me. I have always lived by the rule that if you’re on time, you’re fifteen minutes late. It would just figure that I have an important business conference to attend today and the universe is finding every possible way to slow me down. I look down at my phone for the time and it buzzes. What do you know? Clark’s calling. Of course, he is. “Jack, where the hell are you?” he barks. “The conference is going to begin in, like, literally 20 minutes, and we still need to go over our stuff. Jeez, I told you to be on time, man.” “It’s the universe’s fault, Clark,” I say wearily. “I was shat on by a pigeon this morning and by the time I finally got out to the bus stop, it turns out that I was on time, but it wasn’t. What can I do?” “You can try by not sounding so nonchalant about it,” he growls. “Look, I don’t actually care how you do it, but I need you here ASAP. Run here if you have to. If you don’t get here before this conference begins, we are dead meat.” And with that said, he hung up before I could say anything more. I don’t blame Clark for being pissed. He means well, even if he’s confused about who really is the boss at times. He didn’t always use to be this way. Before he became CEO, he was a pretty mellow guy. After, though…well, I guess the stress of the whole thing has just gotten to him. Still, this is my company he’s losing his head over. I was the one who came up with the idea for the app. I started the first bits of coding for it and organized the first beta tests. I can’t tell you how many nights I stayed up late, hunched over my laptop at the kitchen table. I have got chronic back pain and carpal tunnel from those long nights and now, all those small beginnings have finally turned into a startup with a bright future and high valuation. I mean, we aren’t quite there yet. A lot of other companies have their eyes on us. This time, though, it feels like the rent is finally due after all these years and we’re about to get paid. And yet…here I’m stuck at the bus stop instead of at a meeting where one of those big companies is waiting for my presentation. I pull out my phone again and decide to get an Uber. I can’t afford it, but what other choice do I have? Minutes later, the Uber pulls up and I slide in the back. The car smelled heavily of some incense-y car potpourri and the driver was all smiles when I got in. “Hi, there!” she said. “Having a good morning?” I can’t express how not in the mood I was for this. “Can you just drive? I’m running late.” “Ooh,” she says. “Somebody’s grumpy.” She’s driving entirely too slow, or at least it feels that way (funny how it always feels that way when you’re in a hurry), but, to her credit, she manages to get me there in less than ten minutes. Relieved, I make sure to put in a big tip in the app as hazard pay for my ‘grumpiness.’ I jump out of the car and bolt up the stairs of the building, whizzing past security and straight up the stairs. When I get to the second floor, I race down the hallways to Clark’s office. I open the sleek glass door and see Clark pacing back and forth while looking at his phone. “Sweet baby Jesus, you made it,” he says. I almost expect him to fall to his knees in gratitude. He walks up to me, then takes a sharp step back. I was a sweaty mess. “Oh, my God, did you actually run all the way here?” I’m gasping for breath, but I still manage to say, “Can we please get on with this?” “Right.” He turns around and brings me the folder with all the talking points for the presentation. As soon as the folder hits my hand, my work mode switches on. The conference starts and I’m ready. After everything that’s gone down this morning, this will make it all worth it. The thing is, this meeting is with our potential new investor who, if they actually sign up with us, we’ll all end up making millions of dollars. Being the president and founder, my status would go from single dad juggling work and parenting and barely