It only takes three hours to get to Charlotte from Charleston. By the time I get home, I’m tired and all I want to do is sleep. I connect my phone to the charger but leave it turned off. I don’t want to hear the incessant ding of incoming texts. I’m sure by now, mine and Greyson’s wedding picture has been shared all over social media. Curiosity gets the best of me, so I log into my laptop and do a generic search on Greyson. The second I hit the button, our picture is all I see.
Mouth gaping, I scroll down through all the different media sites that have covered our wedding story. There are so many headlines.
Real or fake? Is Greyson Jennings married?
Enemies to lovers. Greyson Jennings and sister of archenemy Bryan Nelson are married.
Sorry, ladies. Your #1 Sexiest golf bachelor is TAKEN!
Congratulations to the new Mrs. Greyson Jennings!
The list goes on and on. Our picture already has millions of likes and thousands of comments. Greyson hasn’t posted that it was all a joke yet. As I look at the picture, my mother’s words come back to haunt me. The look on Greyson’s face as he stared at you wasn’t malicious. It’s of a young man in love. It’s not hard to see.
I can still feel Greyson’s lips on mine as he kissed me, and the way his hands gently caressed my skin as he made love to me. I want Eli to be right about him, that it was all just stupid words Greyson said. Just words and that’s it. Because the man I was with last night would never do that to me. Or would he?
The next morning, I call my supervisor at the hospital and request to come in. I’m actually supposed to still be on vacation, but I need to work to get my mind off of things. It’ll be a welcome distraction. My phone is charged, but I have yet to turn it on. By now, not only does the world know about Greyson and I getting married, but I have no doubt my friends at the hospital do as well.
Then again, there could be a slim chance that no one got on the internet over the past couple of days. When I show up at the hospital and see the balloons with the words Congratulations and Happily Married on them in the break room, I know I’m screwed. Luckily, Lindy, a fellow nurse and friend is the only one in the room.
Lindy rushes up to me and flings her arms around my neck, squealing so loud it hurts my ears. “Oh my God. You go off on vacation and come back married? How the hell does that happen? You’ve ignored my calls.”
I hug her. “I’m sorry. It’s been a crazy few days.”
She lets me go and bounces on her feet. “The picture was so cute. I didn’t even think you liked Greyson Jennings. The media has been going on and on about his rivalry with your brother.”
Groaning, I walk over to the table and sit down, only to find a huge cake with mine and Greyson’s name on it. You have got to be kidding me. I turn away from it and focus back on Lindy. “Yeah, it’s been a whirlwind.”
She claps her hands and squeals again. “Everyone’s dying to talk to you. When you called this morning and said you were coming in, I went out and got the balloons and Dr. Hannaford’s wife got the cake. You know he loves golf. I think Greyson is his favorite.”
After everything they’ve done, I don’t have it in me to tell the truth. Hopefully, once things calm down with the media, it won’t be so hard.
Lindy rests her face on her hands, grinning at me. “You know, the paparazzi is going to be all over this place when they find out you’re here. Last I saw on the internet, they were trying to figure out where you were after your Las Vegas trip. People are dying for an exclusive interview with you two.”
Heart stopping, I hang my head and groan. Greyson never posted publicly that he was in Charleston. That’s how we stayed away from it all. But now that I’m involved, they’ll trace me here. It’s not a secret that I work at the hospital.
“I didn’t think about that. If they find out I’m here today, they’ll be waiting for me.” Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to come into work.
Lindy squeezes my arm. “Why do you look so sad? Greyson Jennings is smoking hot and he’s rich.” Then her mouth drops open. “Oh wow, I didn’t even ask about your family. How are they taking it? I bet your brother is pissed.”
I belt out a laugh but there’s no humor in it. “You could say that.” It’s almost time for me to clock in. I stand and take my purse over to my locker.