AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“For being a class A asshole. I shouldn’t have talked to you the way I did,” he says, then hesitates for a second. “I’m also very sorry for breaking your shower curtain.”
I laugh at the utter silliness of his words. Grayden gives me a quizzical look, but I just smile, wordlessly letting him know that I’m not upset.
“I scratched your back, and you scratched mine,” I tell him, referring to Liam. “I’m pretty sure that makes us even.”
“Good,” Grayden says, offering me a devastatingly handsome smile of his own. He leans back onto the bench and spreads his legs wider, which presses our thighs together even harder. “What was that all about?”
“Nothing really,” I say, not wanting to get into details. When Grayden raises his brow, giving me an expectant look, I have no other choice but to spin some bullshit for him. “Liam’s a good guy and a great doctor.”
“What’s the problem then?” he challenges. “Bad in bed? Not your type? Oh, wait, do you swing the other way? Because if you do, that’s totally okay with me. I mean, if you’re ever looking for a watcher, I’d be more than happy to volunteer for the role. I promise I can go without touching—”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa, that’s so not what I was trying to say,” I interrupt him, then burst out laughing when he looks somewhat disappointed. Grayden brightens his face with a smile. I find his friendly presence calm and relaxing.
“In fact, I do think he’s handsome,” I continue, giving him a pointed look. “It’s just that he and I aren’t compatible. He doesn’t know it yet, but I do, which is why I’m trying to avoid mixing our personal and work lives. I’d really rather not become a pariah for breaking the heart of the hospital’s most wanted bachelor.”
Grayden leans closer, his breath tickling my ear when he whispers, “Between you and I, he doesn’t seem that special.”
“Most of the staff wouldn’t agree with you,” I counter, but he only shrugs.
“If you ever need a fake boyfriend, that’s also a role I’ll be happy to fill,” Grayden says, his low and sensual tone bringing all sorts of fantasies to my mind.
“Thanks,” I say with a thick voice, hoping that he won’t notice the strange effect he has on me.
His face is so close to me, leaning down enough that I wouldn’t even need to move much to close the distance between our lips. His dark eyes are shining with an emotion I don’t recognize, but it lights a fire deep in my belly. The part that his thigh is touching is burning with the need to move closer and extend our area of contact even more. I curl my hands into fists, digging my nails deep into my palms. The pain doesn’t do anything to break me out of this trance. I even lick my lips as if I’m actually going to go for a kiss.
“There you are!”
My attending’s voice effectively pulls me out of the spell that Grayden weaves around me. It’s weird to be bewitched when I’m the witch in this scenario. Humans don’t have powers like that. Grayden is handsome, but he’s not the first attractive guy I’ve been close to.
“Dr. Smith,” I say, and then point at Grayden in panic. “Have you met my boyfriend?”
Dr. Smith raises his bushy grey eyebrows for a moment, but quickly recovers and gives Grayden a warm smile. “I didn’t know Dr. Payne had a boyfriend. It’s so very nice to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you, too, sir. Doctor,” Grayden says, standing up to shake Dr. Smith’s hand. “I’m Grayden.”
“Doctor Matthew Smith,” the attending introduces himself. “It’s a lucky coincidence that you’re here, Grayden.”
Grayden cocks his brow in question, then turns to me but I shrug my shoulders. I have no idea what this is about. I’m just hoping that this is the last of the lies. There have been way too many of them, and my stomach is beginning to hurt.
“As Dr. Payne probably mentioned to you,” Dr. Smith starts, glancing at me and I do my best to force a nod, “the hospital is organizing a charity dinner. A gala of sorts, if you will.”
Shit. I did know that. Please Mother Nature don’t let this be what I think it is.
“While we’re trying to make it a fun weekend getaway for our doctors, we’re also using the opportunity to raise money,” Dr. Smith says. Then he leans closer to Grayden to continue in a conspiratorial whisper, “I’m sure you’re aware that we have a staff shortage, which is why Dr. Payne has been asked to work many more hours than should be allowed.”
“She did mention it, yes,” Grayden confirms with an equally grave tone. “I’d be happy to help in any way I can, especially if that means me spending more time with my baby girl.”
I suppress a cringe at the term of endearment he chose to use in front of my boss. The pain in my stomach is escalating, and I’m nowhere near coming up with an idea on how to get out of this mess. Grayden will be expected to attend the gala, and we’ll have to pretend that we’ve been dating for the last few months. I can’t just tell Dr. Smith that it’s all a big fat lie. Admitting this lie would be even worse than breaking Liam’s heart. I have no other choice but to see it through to the end. Hopefully, Grayden will be on the same page.
“We did have to cut back on our date nights,” I say, giving Grayden a sad smile. He puts his arm around my shoulders and tucks me closer to him, pressing the entire side of my body against his.
“I’m truly sorry to hear that,” Dr. Smith tells us, sounding genuinely sorry. “I’m hoping that the gala will change that, and we’ll raise enough money to be able to hire a few more doctors.”
“That would be great,” Grayden agrees, then adds the weirdest thing. “Humans are so fragile.”
I don’t have a chance to ponder on his choice of words because Dr. Smith laughs and pats Grayden’s shoulder.
“It will be a pleasure to have you there,” Dr. Smith tells Grayden. “I’m looking forward to getting to know you better.”
