BAILEE “That went better than I imagined it would,” Lacey said as Alex and Vivian left to return to the Elite office. My stomach growled as I stared at the brown paper bag on my desk, and I couldn’t resist rushing around to my seat to dig in. The paper crinkled as I opened it, and the smell of th
ALEXANDER Leaving Bailee was harder than I had anticipated. I had never cared before for anyone else’s input regarding how I ran my business as an individual. Their opinions on my actions were of little mind to me. The actions I took for the business were a different story. I would have meeting a
ALEXANDER “I told you she would break him,” Bash said, his voice coming through the speakerphone as I sat staring at Mason in my visitor’s chair. “She didn’t break me.” Mason snapped back, sounding appalled by the accusation. “You want her. You’ve never wanted anyone before, not for more than a
BAILEE I didn’t know the girl, but all day, I felt like I needed to call Vivian and apologize again for blowing her up like that, even though we had cleared the air back at the house. My careless accusation had caused her to get dumped and to fear for the security of her job within seconds of ea
BAILEE “I don’t think those are considered fan pages, then,” I mumbled instinctively, and Ben held my stare for a long moment before the corner of his mouth turned up, and he chuckled. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.” “I’m really sorry you are having to go through that,” I said, walking forward an
Ben stilled, looking down at what he had just packed for a long moment before realizing I was being sarcastic. “Very funny. Look, I leave tomorrow, and I don’t want to forget anything or run out. If the press catches me leaving the facility and running to the store for anything, they will spin it an
ALEXANDER My knee bounced as I stared at the garage door, waiting for her to open it and enter the kitchen. I didn’t like that she was supposed to be on bed rest, yet she was still going to work and driving around. At the very least, I wanted my driver to take her wherever she wanted to go, but s
BAILEE My body stilled as my hand closed around the small velvet box in his pocket. Everything in me was telling me to take it out. I needed to confirm that it was what I suspected, but I was also terrified that I would be wrong. What if I was just getting my hopes up, and it was just a pair of
HAVEN “She will be fine. I promise.” Bonnie said as I brushed the hair over Siri’s cheek to get it out of her face while she fought the urge to fall asleep on the break room couch. “I know she will. You are a good aunt. I’m not worried about leaving her with you.” I said, forcing a smile at my bes
BEN “Come on, you have to see they are related. Whatever happened that night must have triggered the restraining order nonsense.” Mason said, and I could see he was pushing for more information. “Nothing bad happened that night.” I insisted, pushing off my knees to stand and pausing when there wa
BEN “You’re not serious,” I said breathlessly, glancing at Haven’s tablet on the couch next to me as if it were her. “Deadly serious,” Mason said, and I watched as the court record pulled up on the computer screen. Right before me were our names, with me as the prosecution and Haven as the defen
BEN The tablet in my hand almost connected with the floor as I stared between the closing elevator doors and the little girl in Haven’s arms. There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that she was Siri. The protective way Haven was holding her and how the little girl had her face in Haven’s neck was a si
HAVEN Somehow, the massage today was worse than yesterday. It might have been the anticipation, but after Ben said that there were things he and I needed to work out, he went silent. I didn’t want to dive into it, so I stayed silent, too, wanting to avoid the conversation for as long as possible
BEN Today was supposed to be an easy day. Low weight followed by a massage… I don’t think I've had such a light-lifting day in years. Haven had me using ten pounds for most of the exercises, which made me laugh when she first told me I would be using them. But I would never doubt her again, not
HAVEN “Good Morning, Mrs. Nile,” I greeted Suzie and watched as she nodded in return. It was missing her usual warmth, and I swallowed hard as I passed her to the locker room to put my bag away for the day. After Cynthia had talked me down and convinced me running wasn’t the answer and that it
BEN I knew I was being rash, and when I got off the phone with Rob, I couldn’t find it in me to call my lawyer. Something wasn’t sitting right with me, and how Rob spoke about her was disturbing. He loathed her on a level that I hadn’t seen before, and I knew something else was going on that I di
HAVEN I had never driven so fast or recklessly in my life. My vision was blurred with tears, and I couldn’t seem to slow my heart or breathing down no matter how much I tried to do so. It wasn’t safe for me to be driving like this, and I was grateful that I made it home in one piece and hadn’t