“You don’t know?”
“Do I sound like I do?”
“You’re all over the fucking news.”
“Why? What’d I do?”
“Rhett Sullivan, everyone in the country knows your name.”
“Jenkins, you ain’t making any goddamn sense. What the fuck is going on?”
“Remember the photo shoot in New York from a month back?”
“Of course.”
“It hit this mornin’, and it’s like wildfire. April’s been surfin’ the internet for the past twenty minutes. You’re everywhere. I drove here as fast as I could because I figured your phone would be ringing off the hook.”
“What?”
“Your story went viral. So did Carina’s. Headlines like these are floating around,‘A MODERN-DAY ROMANCE WITH A TOUCH OF OLD-WORLD CHARM’,and‘BIG CITY GIRL GETS HER SWOONY COWBOY’,or‘COWBOYS DO IT BETTER. HERE’S WHY’.You two already have a catchy nickname. The media is referring to you as CarRhett. Get it? CarRhett.”
“God, that sounds awful.”
“Well, it’s trendin’. The fact you’re a country boy and she’s a New York City chef is the selling factor. Heck, you two are the most talked about people right now. And to think, barely anyone knew who the hell you were yesterday mornin’.”
I’m speechless.
Molly texted earlier this week to announce the story would be running in the coming days, but neither Carina nor I made a big deal out of it. We expected some buzz, but nothing close to this.
“Man, you need to get on the internet and see it with your own two eyes.”
“You’re right. Let me call you back.”
“All right.”
I hang up with Jenkins and make my way back inside Carina’s house.
“Babe––”
I freeze when I meet four pairs of eager eyes.
Oh yeah, I’d forgotten about them.
“Morning, ladies,” I say.
“Good morning,” Miranda says.
“Mornin’,” Allison says.
“Good,goodmorning, indeed.” Riley trails her eyes up and down the length of my body.
My gaze shifts to the other two women who are also… checking me out.
I feel as naked as I did on Basil’s set when he insisted I remove my boxer briefs for the bed shots because it would be a lot sexier.
I shut that shit down real fast.
Given how these three are ogling me, I’m happy I had the presence of mind to put on jeans and a t-shirt. “You’re here because of the news?”
