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“Yeah, no, you didn’t,” I say too quickly, then force a smile and briefly look into his blue eyes. “I should go back to work.”
“I was actually hoping to talk to you,” Liam says as he follows me down the hall. “There’s something that I’ve wanted to address for a while now, but there never seemed to be a good time, and then I figured that there’s no time like the present.”
My body tenses, catching onto his tone long before my mind can guess the topic. He’s going to ask me out, and I’ll have to reject him, which will make working here a nightmare. Liam is an incredibly popular, loved, and well-respected doctor. Everyone will hate me for breaking his heart. I have to come up with a solution to avoid all that, to reject him without actually saying no, and to stop his advances without being mean.
From behind me, Liam gently grabs my arm, forcing me to stop. With a sigh, I turn toward him. My time has run out, and I have to face the music.
As I lift my gaze to look at him, my eyes widen when I catch sight of a familiar figure over Liam’s shoulder. Improvising my ass off, I plaster a wide smile on my face and push past Liam and run into Grayden’s arms.
Grayden’s body stiffens against mine, his arms hanging limply by his sides. I wrap my hands around his neck, pulling him lower as I bring my lips up to his ear.
“Play along,” I plead, hoping that he’ll get the hint.
Grayden’s arms snake around my back, and he lifts my feet off the ground as he embraces me. I let out a little joyful cry as he rotates on the spot, and I bury my face into his neck to keep me from getting nauseous.
“I didn’t know you were coming by today,” I say a little loudly when he sets me down.
“I wanted to see you,” Grayden replies with a smile on his handsome face. He tears his attention from me when Liam walks up to us. Grayden narrows his dark eyes at him, and I wonder if he remembers how Liam grabbed him that night.
“Oh, Liam, I don’t think you two have been properly introduced,” I say, my brain rushing to find words that would make this scheme believable. “I mean, no one wants to introduce their boyfriend when they’re drunk like Grayden was the other night.”
“Boyfriend?” Liam asks, his brows flying high up on his forehead.
“Yes,” Grayden confirms, saving me from spinning my web of lies. He offers his hand to Liam who shakes it with a confused look. “Helia and I have been together for a few months now, and when she told me that she’s going out with her friends, I wanted to see her.”
“So you showed up drunk out of your mind,” Liam says, making it sound like an accusation.
“It was his friend’s bachelor party,” I say, coming up with another lie on the spot. Grayden agrees with a nod, which I also take as an encouragement to keep going. “We’ve never been separated for longer than the duration of my shifts, so I was happy when he offered to stop by.”
“You know I’d do anything for you, baby,” Grayden says, giving me a quick kiss on the cheek that sends shivers down my spine. Way too soon for my liking, he turns his attention to Liam. “It was nice meeting you, man. I hope you don’t mind if I steal my girl for a minute.”
“Nice meeting you, too,” Liam replies, his voice barely above a whisper.
I suppress a pang of guilt when I notice a flicker of hurt in his eyes. It’s not my fault. I did everything I could to make it clear to him that I wasn’t interested, but he just wouldn’t take the hint. I didn’t lead him on, and I didn’t do anything to encourage him.
“I really was hoping to speak to you for a moment,” Grayden tells me when Liam’s out of earshot.
“Do you mind if we step outside?” I ask, gesturing with my head toward the exit. “I could use some fresh air.”
Grayden nods and lets me take the lead. As we move past the patients, he puts his hand on the small of my back as if in guidance. My toes curl in my shoes at the electric-like jolts his touch sends through my body. I’m glad that I’m not wearing flip-flops and can go on pretending that I’m completely unaffected by him and his closeness.
A fresh breeze caresses my cheeks, its coolness hitting my reset button. I take several deep breaths as I move toward the wooden bench on the right side of the entrance. Being out in the open helps me steady and reconnect with myself. It’s a witch thing that would work even better and stronger if I went to the forest instead. Green nature trumps cities made out of concrete.
Grayden sits close enough that our thighs touch. Even like that, he easily towers over me. I glance at him, his dark eyes slightly closed as if he’s squinting to keep the bright light away. His stubble has been recently groomed, but I don’t think he did it himself. His watch screams money, and so does his tailored black suit. He must have people to do his bidding. Hell, he probably doesn’t even style his own hair but pays someone to do it every morning.
“What’s so funny?” Grayden asks, making me realize that I’m smiling.
“Nothing,” I reply with a slight shake of my head. “I got lost in thought.”
“Oh, yeah?” he asks, suddenly alert. His dark eyes shine with a newfound interest. “Mind if I ask what about?”
“This and that,” I reply rather cryptically before quickly changing the topic. “Did you come to get checked out?”
Grayden ruins his handsome face with a frown. He doesn’t need to shake his head for me to know that he’s not here for that.
“I’ve actually come to thank you again,” he says, and I wave my hand in dismissal, but he doesn’t let it go. “And I also wanted to apologize to you.”
I tilt my head to the side, my brow furrowing with interest. “What for?”
