Greyson was gone when I woke up the next morning. I showered and fixed some cereal before heading over to my future alma mater. I could have done most of the paperwork online, but I was eager to see more of the campus. I didn’t get to see much when I took my tour and I wasn’t even sure I would be accepted at that point. It still hadn’t fully sunk in that I was going to be a student at the University of Southern California. I was going to be walking the same halls that my father did—possibly even attending classes with some of the same professors. My mother wasn’t thrilled that I wanted to follow in my father’s footsteps and get into Sports Management, but she didn’t want to hold me back from my dreams.
I wasn’t really interested in managing clients or representing them like my father did. I wanted to be involved in the Event Marketing side of the industry. It was going to take me an extra year to complete a program in Event Marketing and Sports Management, but I was pretty sure that it would give me an edge over the competition when I started looking for a job. There was definitely a market though—I just hoped there still was in five years. I’d never live in a mansion like Greyson, but I would have an income that let me live comfortably.
I completed the necessary paperwork, explored the campus a little bit, and was on my way back to the car when my phone lit up with a message from my sister.
Lorrie: How is it going? Did you make it to the campus yet?
Chrissy: Yep! I’m just about to head back to Greyson’s house. Hold on, I gotta take a picture of the car I’m driving. You’re never going to believe this!
Lorrie: Is that a Porsche!?!
Chrissy: Greyson let me borrow it…
Lorrie: Holy shit! Be careful!
Chrissy: I will!
Lorrie and I traded a few more messages and then I put my phone away before I cranked up the car. It was a beautiful day—well, to me at least. It was probably a normal day for people in California. I decided to do a little window shopping downtown and take the long way back. The car definitely had some horsepower. A quick press on the accelerator put me well over the speed limit. I decided not to push my luck. The last thing I needed was a speeding ticket. Downtown was nice, but I didn’t have any money to spend. I stared at stuff I would never be able to afford for a little bit, and then headed back to Greyson’s house. I had started to turn into the driveway when my phone buzzed. I dug it out of my purse and saw another message from Lorrie.
Lorrie: Mom wants you to call tonight if you can.
Chrissy: Is everything okay?
Lorrie: Yeah, she just misses you. I’m trying to convince her to get a cell phone so she can text—but you know how much she hates technology.
Chrissy: That’s an understatement. Okay, I’ll call tonight.
I let the car slowly roll into the driveway as I was texting with Lorrie. I hit the button to open the garage and kept rolling forward. A second later, something caught my attention and I looked up to see Greyson directly in front of me. I panicked and hit the brakes, which caused me to drop my cell phone. I didn’t even get to grab it from the floorboard before Greyson walked around to the driver’s side and opened the door.
“I thought we discussed this—no texting and driving.” He glared at me with a look of disappointment on his face.
“Sorry, I swear I didn’t while I was on the road!” I grabbed my cell phone and shoved it into my purse. “Just in the driveway…”
“Let me see your phone.” He motioned to me.
“What? Why?” I looked at him on confusion.
“I won’t read your messages. I just want to look at the time stamp.” He motioned towards me again.
Wow, he’s serious about this…
“See, look.” I pulled out my cell phone and showed it to him. “I literally just started texting her. The other ones are from when I was at school—before I even cranked up the car.”
“Okay.” He nodded and pointed to the garage. “Go ahead and park the car—try not to hit anything in the process.”
I felt a twinge of guilt, but I was also a little disappointed that he didn’t trust me. I hadn’t really earned it, and he did literally catch me texting while I was behind the wheel of his Porsche, so I tried to let go of my initial thoughts. Greyson was already inside the house when I parked the car, and for some reason—I had a strange feeling of dread when I walked through the door. It was the same kind of feeling I used to have when I disappointed my mother or got in trouble at school. I didn’t like that feeling, and I definitely didn’t like the stare I got from Greyson when I walked into the living room.
He looks hot-as-sin, even when he’s looking at me like I’m some sort of disappointment.
“Sit down.” Greyson motioned to the couch and his words were a command—not his request.
“Okay.” I swallowed a lump that tried to form in my throat as I took a seat.
“You’ve lost your car privileges for one week.” He leveled his gaze on me. “John will drive you anywhere you need to go, but I want you to know that I meant what I said about texting and driving.”
“Seriously?” I blinked in surprise. “I really wasn’t texting and driving! I was just in the driveway!”
“I believe you and your messages confirm that, but I need to be sure that you understand how serious I am about this. I lost one of my clients because they couldn’t keep their hands off of their phone while they were driving.” He shook his head back and forth. “He wrapped his car around a telephone pole because he had to swerve when a kid ran out in front of him.”