Page 2 of Heart Breaker

“Scroll,” Harper instructs.

I do as she says, scrolling through the long list of headlines accompanied by photos that all show the exact same thing: Me and Wes leaving a restaurant in Deep Cove last night with his older brother Jesse and Madeline. It had been Jesse’s birthday, so Mads had made a last minute dinner reservation and asked me to join them. Noah and Ford, the other Winters brothers, were tied up with work, so it was just the four of us. It was a nice enough evening – Wes wasn’t exactly talkative, but I had fun catching up with Mads and Jesse. It definitely wasn’t what these photos make it out to be. In one shot, Madeline has her arm looped through Jesse’s and he’s laughing at something she’s saying. Wes and I trail behind them, his hand resting lightly on the small of my back, his head tipped down toward mine. And I’m looking up at him with full doe eyes like we’re in on some secret together. If you didn’t know us, you might think we were a happy couple. Maybe even a happily married couple. My chest tightens.

“You’re seeing it, right?” Harper asks me.

“I’m seeing it.”

“Now open one of the stories and watch the video.”

I do as she says, scrolling down the article until a video appears. I click it, and a reporter’s voice fills my bedroom. “Wes, are the rumors true? Did you secretly marry Charlotte Hart?”

The camera zooms in on Wes on his way into the Cove office. Tall, intimidatingly broad, and completely unbothered. There is no denying that the man is beautiful. He’s the kind of guy you notice instantly and then can’t look away from. Dark brown hair styled just enough to look effortless falls perfectly into place. His jaw is sharp and defined, like it was carved with intention, and those intense eyes—the darkest slate gray I’ve ever seen.

He’s not in a suit, but somehow, he looks even more powerful without one. A fitted black T-shirt with jeans that hug all the right places, and a sleek bomber jacket that pulls it all together.

He pauses when the reporter calls his name. And then the reporter asks again. “Are you married to Charlotte Hart?”

Wes looks straight at the camera and says, evenly, “I’m not commenting on my personal life.”

The clip ends and my jaw drops to the floor. “That’s it?” I ask. “Did he really just ‘no comment’ that question?”

“That’s it,” Harper says. “He didn’t deny it. And honestly, looking at these pictures, I can see how the rumor started. You look married.”

I scroll down to the next photo and then I see it. On my left ring finger is my grandmother’s engagement and wedding ring set, the one I wear almost every day. “Oh my God.”

“What?” Harper asks.

“The rings.”

“Yup. Grandma’s rings. See what I mean?”

“This is insane.”

I throw the covers off and swing my legs over the side of the bed, pushing to my feet. I need coffee for this. Immediately.

“You are trending,” Harper says, sounding amused.

“Harper, this isn’t funny.” I stare at the screen as I walk to the kitchen. At the photos. At Wes’s calm, unreadable face. “I can’t believe he just let the entire internet think we’re married.”

“Yep.” Harper pops the ‘p.’ “So, for the record: it’s not true?”

I huff out a breath. “Of course it’s not.”

“Okay, but hypothetically,” Harper says. “If you were secretly married, you could have done a lot worse than Wes Winters. Some girls get ghosted, and you somehow get fake married to the hottest guy in Deep Cove. How does that even happen?”

I drop a pod into the machine and start a cup of coffee. “I have to go. I’ll call you later.”

“Why?”

“Because I need a shower and about twenty minutes to process this before I go ask Wes what the hell he thinks he’s doing.”

“You’re going to go ambush him at Cove?”

“Yes,” I say. “I feel like getting married is something I should have been consulted on.”

“Charlotte—”

I hang up before she can try to talk me out of it.