“Even better,” Morgan said, and whether or not he believed me, he happily accepted the champagne.
“You too make a charming couple,” said Dr. Kelis. He nodded stiffly. “Well done.”
I felt like I’d just been blessed by the Pope. I shot a glance at Will and saw everything Dr. Kelis did: how handsome Will was in his suit, his genuine smile. Being Will’s girlfriend would be easy and uncomplicated and happy. I could practically see it.
“We’re going to continue making the rounds,” Dr. Kelis said. “Enjoy yourself, Will. But not too much, since you’re on call tomorrow.”
“That’s my husband.” Morgan winked. “It’s his wedding night and he’s still thinking about the hospital.” The tease sounded like an old joke between them.
“Will do,” Will said nervously. “I mean, won’t do.”
When the grooms walked away to greet another couple, Will bent his head down and whispered, “A little intense, right?”
“A lot intense.”
He looked at our empty hands, then around at the ballroom. “So...we’ve checked all our boxes... Do you want to leave? I’ll get an Uber.”
“Lead the way, Dr. Laderman.”
As we waited outside the hotel for our car, a cool breeze blew past, rustling the trees that shrouded the valet circle and making me shiver. “Good old Texas. Fall is finally coming in.”
Will slipped his arm around me. “A good excuse to hold you.”
I glanced up at him and caught my breath. His smile was so warm. Before I could think, he bent down and kissed me, gently at first, and then when I leaned in, he deepened it. It took me a long, protracted second before I realized what we were doing.
“Oh, no.” I wrenched back. “We’re in public.”
“Shit. I totally forgot.” We both spun, searching the street in front of the hotel with the obviousness of the world’s worst secret agents. We were downtown, which wasn’t great, but as I scanned, I saw no camera flashes or telltale signs of paparazzi. Just a bunch of regular people going about their business.
“I think we’re safe,” Will said. “I’m really sorry again. I think it’s all the hospital shifts. My brain is melted.”
“No big deal.” I was being paranoid. It’s not like I was famous or anything. People weren’t following my every move.
Our Uber pulled up. Automatically, Will reached for my hand, then caught himself and shook his head. “See? This is why I’m a surgeon and not a spy. Can’t pretend for anything.”
“Come on.” I laughed, opening the car door. “Let’s get you out of public view.”
He caught the door. “Hey, Lex... Do you want to make this a one-stop ride?”
Oh—sothatwas how you propositioned someone. I swallowed thickly.You are not sad about Logan, I reminded myself.So what if he didn’t feel the same way? You have Will, andWill is great. Going home with him after a beautiful wedding is great. Everything is great.“Yes. I’m great—I mean, that sounds good.”
Twenty minutes later, Will and I were walking up the tree-lined path to my front door when he froze and patted his suit jacket. “Oh, no. I think I left my phone in the Uber.”
“He’s at the end of the street—run!”
Will spun and took off to hail the departing car. I continued up the sidewalk, clutching my yellow gown, talking myself up—having Will over was no big deal, this is exactly what you wanted—when I turned the corner and came face-to-face with Logan, sitting hunched over on my front stoop. He jerked up, a tired smile breaking across his face. “You’re home.” He blinked. “And you’re all dressed up.”
I stared at him, heart pounding. “What are you doing here?” Logan looked like he hadn’t slept for a week. His navy suit was rumpled and there were dark circles under his eyes. “Are you wearing the same clothes as yesterday?”
He rubbed his face, laughing bitterly. “Yeah, well, I haven’t left the office since I saw you.” He pulled something out of his pocket. “I did stop to get this on the way, though.”
It was a pack of red-tipped darts, topped with a red bow.Queen of hearts, he’d said. Numbly, I accepted it.
“Figured you might want to use me for target practice after how we left things.” He gave me a tight smile. When I didn’t smile back, still caught in shock, he cleared his throat. “Right. Look, I came as soon as I could. I know we need to talk, in person and probably at length, so I’m not going back to the office until—”
“I got it!” Will crowed, rounding the corner and brandishing his recovered cell phone. He did a double-take when he saw Logan. “Oh. Hey, man. What are you doing here?”
For all my powers of imagination, I couldn’t have dreamed up a more uncomfortable scene. My heart stopped its frenetic pounding and simply sank at Logan’s face—because for once, I could read his expressions clearly. Surprise, then a recoil, as if he’d been hit. Then his politician’s training took over and he masked it, producing a thin smile. Somehow, that smile was the most painful of all to witness.
