บททั้งหมดของ Love's Redemption: บทที่ 261 - บทที่ 270

Ron was so chill that he didn't feel like my boss at all—more like a friend.I smiled at him, then turned to Hayden. "You and Mr. Shane seem pretty tight. I've never seen anyone grab lunch with the boss right after an interview."I mentioned it because Steve had told me that the person supporting Ron had the last name Hart.My suspicion flared up again."Mr. Shane just wanted to get to know me better," Hayden said, taking a pause for dramatic effect. "I mean, a $1.5 million salary isn't exactly pocket change."I gaped. That much?I really didn't expect him to be worth that much."What? You don't think I'm worth it?" he asked, straight-up.I rolled my eyes. "No, that's not what I meant."After a beat, I asked, "So, what did you make at your last job?"Fifteen grand a month," Hayden said casually, and I nearly did a double-take. Ron was offering him, like, over eight times that."Wow, he's... definitely got guts," I muttered, not sure what else to say as Hayden raised an eyebr

I watched him, his face all flushed, a couple of beads of sweat on his nose. I couldn't help but smile.He turned away, clearly trying to recover, so I focused back on the road, deciding not to push my luck.The whole "hard" thing had left us both too stunned to speak.After a few awkward minutes, I remembered what he said about spending time together and decided to break the silence. "So, where do you wanna go?""Do you have plans this afternoon?" Hayden asked."Nope!" I answered way too fast, sounding like I was way too excited or something.Hayden's serious look melted into a smile. "Cool. I've got somewhere I wanna take you."I decided to stay quiet this time, trying to play it cool."I'll set the navigation. Just follow it," he said, like I'd already agreed.We ended up on the outskirts of town, in this remote area with nothing but overgrown grass and a lake shimmering in the distance."What are we doing here? Thinking of clearing some land and starting a farm?" I joked.

Hayden let me turn his face any way I wanted and kept going, "Do you know what you said back then?""I don't know, and you're totally making this up," I protested, refusing to believe I'd been that shameless as a kid."You said it was like stamping a seal on me. That after you kissed me, I was yours. And when you grew up, you'd marry me. You even made me promise not to marry anyone else." He paused for dramatic effect, then suddenly leaned down, bringing his face closer to mine."Kiki, I've followed your orders. I'm in my thirties now, and I've never been in a relationship. Never liked another girl, never even held another girl's hand. I've waited for you all this time, so you've got to take responsibility for me," he said, sounding so earnest and pitiful that I felt guilty just hearing him.I always thought Jace was my childhood friend, but now I realized I was wrong.Hayden was my real childhood sweetheart—the one who, despite the little time we'd had together, managed to leave

The way Hayden looked at me made my whole body feel like it was on fire.I thought back to teasing him last time, the way he'd tried to keep his cool. Lena's words echoed in my mind."Hayden, have you ever done it with anyone else?" He'd told me he'd never even had a girlfriend, but I needed to hear it again.His gaze darkened. "...No."That word made my heart skip a beat. "But do you want to?"His jaw clenched, and then suddenly, everything went dark as his lips crashed into mine.When Hayden's breath turned ragged, I already knew his answer.But he didn't push further. Instead, he rested his forehead against mine. "How long are you gonna keep testing me, or are you just trying to torture me?"Seeing his restraint, the way his desire fought with self-control, I reached up to touch his face. "Do you really want this? Is it just me?"Jace's casual rejection still haunted me, and I realized how deeply it had scarred me."Yeah," he panted, "only you."I closed my eyes, feeling

If there was no issue with the park itself, then the problem had to be with Jace.Thinking back to the nightmare and why I called, I asked, "Is this about Jace? Did something happen to him?"Wayne didn't answer right away. There was a pause before he finally spoke. "If you're worried, you should ask him yourself."Classic Wayne—cutting through the nonsense. Nobody's really clueless, after all.His words left me at a loss.Not wanting to make things awkward, he quickly added, "I just mean that even though you guys aren't together anymore, you've been like family for so long."I gave a small, humorless laugh. "Yeah, I'm just worried about making Tanya jealous."Wayne chuckled too."Rea, let's grab lunch sometime," Wayne suggested.Since he'd just said we were like family, I didn't see a reason to say no.After hanging up, I let out a sigh of relief. Looked like Jace wasn't in any trouble after all.But it was still weird that I'd had that dream. Was it because of what he'd ask