LOGIN**Leylie’s POV**The evening breeze was cold and windy, tugging at the scarf tied around my neck as I stood outside Grace’s apartment building. I hadn't spoken to her since that morning I’d screamed at her, blaming her for everything that had gone wrong with Hayes.I could have gone to my new apartment, the one I’d paid for with the money Hayes paid me in the club, but the thought of those empty, silent rooms terrified me. I didn't want to be alone with my thoughts. I needed my best friend.I climbed the stairs to her floor and reached for my keys, sliding the metal into the lock, but it wouldn't turn. My brows furrowed in confusion. I tried again, jiggling the handle, but it was stuck. Did she change the locks? Suddenly, the door swung open from the inside. I froze, coming face-to-face with a total stranger.She was striking, with hair as dark as midnight and sharp hazel eyes that scanned me with immediate suspicion. She leaned against the doorframe, her expression hard."Who are
**Leylie’s POV**I ran as fast as my legs could carry me, my vision blurred by tears. I didn’t stop until I slammed my bedroom door shut behind me.My hands shook so violently I had to clasp them together.What did I just see?The image was burned into my brain. Hayes. Ellie. His office. She was half-naked, straddling him, her skin flushed.Just minutes after he had kissed me, after he had almost taken me right there against the wall, he was doing the exact same thing with her.I felt so stupid. I’d actually told him I wanted him. I’d opened my heart, and he’d stepped on it."Ugh!" I groaned, hitting my forehead hard with the heel of my hand. How could I have been so blind?Grace had been right. She’d warned me that I would get my heart broken, and here I was, picking up the pieces.I couldn't stay here. The air in this house felt poisonous now.I stood up, finally knowing what I needed to do.I marched into the dressing room and grabbed my suitcase as I pulled clothes off the hangers
**Hayes’ Pov**What the hell just happened?I went into that room for a simple talk. I had seen the way Leylie was looking at me lately, those big, expressive eyes filled with so much sadness and hidden anger, and I just wanted to clear the air between us. I wanted to tell her I was still angry about the lies, but I also couldn’t keep treating her like she didn’t exist.But the second I touched her chin, all my logic disappeared. If Ellie hadn’t walked in when she did, I would have had Leylie right there against the wall, and I wouldn’t have regretted a single second of it.Why does she affect me like this? Why does one look from her make me forget every rule I’ve ever made for myself?I stepped into my home office and collapsed into the leather chair, staring up at the ceiling and trying to catch my breath. My heart was still racing. My body was still hard and aching from how close we had come.A light knock sounded at the door. It pushed open just an inch, and Ellie peeked in. “Can
**Leylie’s POV**I stood by the window, staring down at the well-kept garden below. On paper, my life was finally stable. Maya was settled in a good school, and for the first time in years I actually had a significant balance in my bank account. I should have been happy. But I wasn’t.I wished I could turn back the hands of time to that night I slept with Hayes — before the coldness started. Maybe then I would have done things differently. Maybe I would have told him the truth right there in that private room instead of letting the lie grow bigger and bigger until it came impossible to come clean.Now every day was a fresh kind of torture. I hated being in this house with him and his ‘guest.’ I hated hearing their voices drifting through the halls, her breathy little giggles, and the subtle, constant flirtations she aimed at him like a weapon.A knock at the door made me jump. I turned just as the knob twisted.Hayes stood in the doorway, looking unusually hesitant. He had one foo
**Hayes’ POV**I didn’t sleep.I was in the kitchen early, leaning against the counter with a cup of black coffee that had gone cold a long time ago, I hadn’t taken a single sip. My mind was a complete mess. I had brought a stranger into my home because she had the face of the woman I had buried five years ago. I knew it was irrational, I knew it was dangerous, but every time I looked at Ellie, it felt like I was seeing a piece of Melissa again.The sound of small, light footsteps pulled me out of my thoughts, and made me straighten up.Ava was coming down the hallway.She usually ran straight to me for her morning hug, her little arms wrapping around my legs with all her strength. But today she stopped dead in the doorway. Her eyes were fixed on the woman sitting at the breakfast table, sipping tea and wearing one of my old gray sweaters that looked too big on her.Ellie turned around slowly, a soft smile forming on her lips. “Good morning, little one.”Ava’s eyes went wide. She mov
**Leylie’s POV**I kept glancing at the clock on the wall, my eyes burning as the second hand moved closer to nine in the evening.Ava had been in bed for over an hour, but I couldn’t bring myself to move from the living room.I sat on the couch, staring at the K-drama playing on the TV—it was my favorite, but I had no idea what was going on. My entire focus was on the driveway outside, my ears straining for the sound of tires on the gravel.What was taking him so long? My fingers twisted together in my lap, my nails digging into my palms until it hurt.The woman we hit… she was just a look-alike. A coincidence. His wife had been dead for five years, but the look on his face at the accident scene told a completely different story. He hadn’t seen a stranger that day. He had seen a miracle.Suddenly, the low rumble of an engine outside made me jump to my feet.Shit! Should I stay sitting here like nothing was wrong, or should I go to the door?I felt ridiculous, like a teenager waiting
**Leylie’s POV**I spent the rest of Monday evening packing my life into two small suitcases. It wasn’t much. Most of what I owned had been left behind in Finnian’s mansion, probably thrown into a dumpster or donated to charity by now. I folded the clothes slowly, trying to keep my hands steady, bu
**Hayes’ POV**I've been in a horrible mood since my encounter with Red last night. I felt foolish and angry at myself for letting a stripper get under my skin like that. She was the first woman in four years to make me feel anything real since Melissa died. That’s why it hurt so much. I hate that
**Leylie’s POV**I ran out of the room, my vision blurred by tears that kept falling no matter how fast I blinked them away. I couldn’t breathe properly; my chest felt like someone was sitting on it, and I could feel myself starting to hyperventilate. In a panic, I reached up and ripped the mask of
**Leylie’s POV**I rushed into the bathroom and slammed the door behind me, fumbling to lock it with fingers that wouldn’t stop shaking. I pressed my back against the cold wood, chest heaving like I’d run miles, heart pounding so hard it hurt."What have I done?" I whispered into the empty room. "W







