This One Moment (Pushing Limits, #1)(50)

The grocery store wasn’t busy when I arrived. I wandered up and down the aisles, delaying the inevitable trip home. Dwelling on how Nolan had said I was his heart and soul. Doing my best not to think about anything else.

As I inspected a red pepper, the subtle, spicy scent of someone’s aftershave taunted me.

“What the f*ck did you bring her here for?” a low, rough male voice said, as if sharing a secret.

I opened my eyes to see what was going on but was met by the fierce glare of a flashlight.

Something bumped into my side, jerking me from my memory.

“Sweetie, I told you to be careful with the shopping cart,” a mom gently admonished her four-year-old. The little girl barely reached the handlebar and looked perturbed that I’d been in her way.

I flashed her an apologetic smile, then scanned the area, searching for the source of my memory. The only people nearby were mothers and a male grocery clerk who didn’t look familiar.

“Oh my God, it’s her,” a female voice shrieked.

My head jerked up at the sound. A seventeen-year-old girl was glaring at me as if I’d stolen her boyfriend and she wanted to scratch my eyes out.

Her friend glanced between us, as confused by the girl’s outburst as I was. “Her who?”

“She’s the woman trying to steal Tyler Erickson away from Alyssa Graham.”

I’m not sure what made me cringe more, the way she screamed it or that the lies and my picture had already hit the Internet.

The friend looked me over, not thoroughly convinced I was capable of stealing Nolan from anyone who looked like Alyssa. Especially given the way I currently looked, with my hair in a messy post-sex-in-the-shower ponytail, barely any makeup, and clothes sitting on this side of comfy. Alyssa’s hair was always perfect. Her makeup was always perfect. Her outfits were always perfect. The paparazzi had yet to shoot a bad picture of her.

“Are you sure?” The friend scanned the vegetable section, possibly searching for Nolan.

“I don’t know why you’re wasting your time with him,” the shrieker yelled as I started to walk away, not wanting to be part of this conversation. “He’ll never leave Alyssa. She’s much better than you’ll ever be.”

Even though I shouldn’t have let it bother me, her comment still cut deep. She didn’t even know me, yet she was already judging me.

I hurried to the checkout, not daring to stay in the store longer than necessary, in case the shrieker decided to pelt me with cans of vegetables—the jumbo cans, which would do more than just bruise.

What I didn’t get was why the girl blamed me for trying to steal Tyler away from Alyssa. Didn’t it take two to cheat?

Or had the photo portrayed Nolan as the innocent party in the kiss? Had it made it seem as though I’d attacked him with my lips?

I knew I shouldn’t look, but I couldn’t help it. As soon as I got into my car, I Googled Tyler’s name on my phone and found the picture the shrieker must have seen. All I could tell from the photo was that a woman was kissing him. You couldn’t tell if he was kissing back or if he’d been surprised by the kiss—and you couldn’t tell it was me.

I searched through the other photos. None were of us in the cemetery, although I expected they would surface soon. The other leaked pictures had been taken at the sports center. You could see us clearly in them, and you could see I was the same woman who was kissing him in the other photo.

The entire trip home I debated whether or not I should check what exactly had been said about me and Tyler. At least then I’d be prepared for the next person who brought up the article.

Kayla’s song played on my phone. I let it go to voicemail. A moment later it played again. And as I pulled into my parking spot outside the apartment building, it played a third time.

Knowing that Kayla wouldn’t quit phoning me until I answered, I accepted the call.

“Finally!” she practically screamed, forcing me to pull the phone away from my ear. “I’ve been trying to get hold of you.”

“Sorry, I was driving.”

“Have you seen the article and pictures yet? The ones of you and Nolan? They’re all over the Internet.”

“I saw two photos of us,” I said, opening the car door. “But I haven’t read anything yet. Is it as bad as I think it is?” I winced. Of course it was, if the shrieker’s reaction had been any indication.

“Depends on what you consider bad. The article claims you’ve been spotted getting cozy with Tyler.”

I told her what had happened in the store.

“You’re kidding,” Kayla exclaimed, and once again I pulled the phone a safe distance from my ear. “Nolan’s caught cheating on his supposed girlfriend and you’re the guilty party? What about Tyler? Why didn’t she attack him for cheating on his girlfriend?” She practically spat the last word.

I opened the trunk of my car. The cold wind slapped my cheeks and nose as if it too was angry at me. “Welcome to the wonderful world of double standards. But I’m not so sure everyone will react the same way. The only one who will get everyone’s pity is Alyssa, and she’s not even dating him.” That was the most frustrating part of all of it. Meanwhile, Nolan and I would suffer the fallout.

It was no wonder the record label wanted to fuel the perception that Tyler and Alyssa were still an item. Anything to save the band and their upcoming album. Never mind that Nolan was a gifted singer, guitarist, and songwriter. Those should’ve been enough to stand on their own.