Not Your Doormat Anymore

"Dr. Ranford, am I going to embarrass you?" Kourtney still seemed a little nervous as she got into the car.

"You won't." She was beautiful and so young. Standing next to her, I even felt like an old man dating a much younger woman. What would the others think?

"When we go in, don't call me Dr. Ranford. Just call me by my name."

She nodded. Then, remembering I was driving, she quickly added, "Alright... Jace."

For some reason, hearing my name come from her lips felt oddly tender, softening something in me. I figured it was just because her voice was too sweet; it had to be messing with my head.

But maybe that wasn't such a bad thing. She was pleasing to the eyes and now the ears too.

When we arrived at the villa, Kourtney seemed to have mentally prepared herself. She didn't overreact, just drew in a quick breath and composed herself.

"I'll get the door for you."

Seeing she was about to get out on her own, I gave her a quick reminder. She quickly pulled her hand back, resting it on her lap, and nodded obediently.

"Sorry, Dr.-uh... Jace. I don't really know how these things work." She gave an apologetic smile, her big eyes blinking sweetly. It was adorable.

"It's fine. You'll learn." I shook my head, stepped out first, and opened the door for her, holding out my hand.

Kourtney hesitated before placing her soft hand in mine. With a gentle tug, she followed my lead and stepped out, now standing in front of me. She wasn't very tall, only reaching my chest.

I stretched out my arm.

"Huh?"

"Link arms."

"Oh, okay."

Kourtney linked her arm with mine. Just as we stepped through the door, the butler came to greet us.

"My apologies, Mr. Ranford. We have quite a few guests today, so I was delayed and couldn't greet you outside. I hope you'll forgive me."

He gave me a small bow. Then, seeing Kourtney, his eyes lit up. "This must be Ms. Gomez. Mrs Ranford has mentioned you many

timès. Please, both of you, come in."

I nodded. Kourtney gave him a polite smile, clearly nervous, but the butler didn't seem to mind. He smiled as he saw us in.

The living room had been decorated by the maids. A good number of guests had already arrived, and Dad was in the center of it all, surrounded and chatting.

Mom was also there, seated among the other ladies, but her eyes kept darting to the doorway. She was clearly waiting for me.

The moment she saw us, she stood up right away.

"Alright, I'll talk to you all later. My son's here!"noveldrama

She came over quickly. As I greeted her, she took Kourtney's hand with perfect precision, her smile wide and beaming. Kourtney, I've missed you these past few days. I'm so happy to see you again! Son, hurry and take Kourtney to meet your dad. He's just over there!"

Kourtney, a little overwhelmed by the attention, nodded at Mom, making her even more pleased. "She's such a sweet and well-mannered girl. Absolutely adorable!"

Kourtney looked at me, unsure how to respond.

"Alright, Mom, don't tease her. We'll come back over in a bit."

I felt a little awkward. Mom was clearly treating Kourtney like her future daughter- in-law already.

I had better go find Dad. He was usually the more composed one.

"Dad, this is Kourtney..."

After squeezing our way through the

crowd to reach him, I finally

introduced her. My usually stern father was grinning so widely it

looked almost eerie. Even though his expression was a bit stiff, it was

obvious he had practiced it on purpose.