Chapter 29
Maverick let out a quiet, tired groan from his makeshift bed on the floor as he shifted to sprawl out on his side. I was staring out the window, watching the sunrise with Haley tucked in the crook of my arm and her head resting on my chest.
My mind kept replaying the conversation by the fire last night.
I never meant to unload on Haley. When she asked about Noah, I wanted to close myself off—to shut her out of that pain—but when I opened my mouth, the truth came pouring out instead. Everything I had buried surged up, raw and unstoppable.
Once I started…I couldn’t stop.
She was the first person I told the whole story to other than Nate, but even with him, most of what he knew he had to pull out of me over several sessions. With her…it was as if I’d been subconsciously wanting to tell her, waiting for the right moment.
Now, my chest felt strangely unburdened.
I always thought revealing the truth would only add to the guilt and shame gnawing at me, but instead, another piece of that crushing weight lifted.
Haley didn’t judge me, didn’t look at me like the failure I saw myself as most days.
She simply reached for my hand and, in her calm, gentle voice, told me it wasn’t my fault.
Maybe I didn’t fully believe her yet, but for the first time, I caught myself wanting to.
I felt Haley stir, and I turned to look at her shifting against my side. She inhaled a deep breath, stretching the sleep from her body before tilting her head as her eyes fluttered open to meet mine.
God, she looked beautiful, even just waking up.
“Hi,” she said, followed by a yawn.
I smiled softly. “Morning.”
She stared at me for a moment. “Sleep okay?”
I knew why she was asking. “Yeah,” I answered, my fingers brushing her arm. And it was the truth. Despite the emotional night, I had slept fine with her by my side.
I felt a cold, wet nose against my hand, and I looked to the side of the bed to see Maverick staring at me expectantly.
“You want to eat?” He barked in response, earning a soft chuckle from Haley.
I turned my head back, brushing my lips against her forehead before I threw the covers off me as Maverick jumped excitedly. “Alright, come on.”
We spent the rest of the day lounging around the cabin until it was time for us to head home to Bayport—I got Haley back to her townhouse with just enough time for her to shower and get ready before she headed to her mom’s house for their Sunday family dinner.
And while I half-expected her to bring up last night, even if it was just a small mention, she didn’t.
A part of me was glad, but at the same time, if she had, I think I would have talked to her about it. And that thought alone told me how much finally telling someone had helped.
A couple of nights later, I was sitting inside The Sandbar with Gabe, Lucas, Callie, Wes, Morgan, and Haley for Tuesday trivia.
Haley didn’t typically show up for trivia nights, but tonight’s was to raise money for a local women’s shelter, so she wanted to join in.
We both came after work, but we made sure to arrive separately.
She sat between Callie and Morgan on one side of the table, while I was between Gabe and Wes, directly across from her.
“Hey, I was going to ask,” Wes began as he looked at me. “How was your weekend trip to the cabin?”
My mind immediately flashed to what I’d been doing in that cabin…with his sister.
I managed to keep my expression neutral despite fighting for my life not to look across the table at Haley. “It was, uh…it was good. Relaxing.”
Wes smiled. “That’s good.”
“God, we haven’t been up there in forever,” Lucas added. “We should all make plans to go.”
“The cabin only has two bedrooms,” Gabe said. “We wouldn’t all fit, unless some of you are good with sleeping on the floor. Even so, it’ll be a tight fit with all of us. Blake here takes up a fucking doorway by himself.”
“That he does.” Wes snorted, clapping my shoulder. “Okay, so what we need is for Luke’s billionaire ass to just buy a four to five-bedroom cabin in the mountains that we can all invite ourselves to.”
“Oh, yeah,” Lucas said sarcastically with a nod. “I’ll get right on that.”
“I’m just making suggestions, my guy,” Wes quipped.
“So, what did you do up in the mountains all by yourself?” Callie asked me.
“Oh, uh…just hung out. With Mav. Did some hiking. Nothing crazy.”
“Nice.” Callie smiled. “I’m still bummed you couldn’t come with us Saturday to Charleston,” she said as she looked at Haley.
We’d been lying in bed together, just coming down from the high of our Saturday morning activities, when Callie had texted her, asking if she wanted to go with her and Morgan.
“Yeah,” Haley said. “Sorry. I had plans.”
“What were you doing?” Morgan questioned.
“O-Oh, I was, uh…with Marie from work. Girls’ day.” She sipped her drink, not making direct eye contact with anyone.
“Ah…” Morgan nodded, her gaze subtly shifting between Haley and me.
Morgan was perceptive as hell, and while she said nothing, I couldn’t help but wonder if she suspected something.
Later that week, on a Thursday night, I was standing in my kitchen, cleaning up after dinner. It was early March, and storm and tornado season had officially started. It rained all damn day, so I spent the entire day cooped up inside with Haley and Maverick, watching movies and lounging.
I heard Haley laugh and glanced over to see her giggling at Maverick snapping at soap bubbles.
Leaning my sweatpants-clad hip against the counter, I watched her for a moment.
She was wearing my T-shirt, which she had slipped on after we decided to have dessert before dinner, and her hair was down and slightly tousled from our fun.
She looked fucking gorgeous, her laughter filling the air like a tune I could listen to on repeat.
Despite the gloomy weather, she’d made the day better just by being there with me.
That’s how it always was with Haley around.
Warmer.
Lighter.
Brighter.
No matter how dreary everything else seemed, she felt like the sun. Even on cloudy days, the sun was still there.
I was snapped from my momentary daze when I felt water and bubbles splatter against my bare chest, and she laughed as Maverick bound over to me, trying to catch the droplets as they fell.
She yelped through a laugh when I feigned a step forward, and Maverick jumped with a bark, wanting to join in on the play before running back toward her.
I smiled to myself as I watched her laughing before she flicked more bubbles at Maverick.
The image of her in my kitchen, wearing my shirt, playing with my dog, so carefree and comfortable—it felt so…
natural. So right. I felt a deep sense of belonging at seeing her this way, like she was a part of my life.
Like she was mine. Like this was how my story was always meant to look—with her at its heart.
That thought jolted me. Because there were still outside factors at play when it came to us. Wes. Work. It was getting harder to push things aside, though. It was almost impossible to ignore the way she lit me up, especially as my feelings outgrew any walls I’d tried to keep up to ward them off.
Haley had slowly become the center of my everything. She didn’t just live in my thoughts. She lived in the cracks and crevices in between, where my moral compass seemed to end, and there was nothing but an aching sense of need for her and the peace she made me feel.
And with that thought, another feeling surged through me, unlike anything I had known before. I think I’d felt it for a while, but I hadn’t dared name it before, refusing to allow myself to acknowledge what it was.
But my heart wasn’t giving me a choice anymore.
It was love.
I was in love with her.
And that fucking terrified me.