Chapter 6
HAILEE
Asudden cheer rips me from my thoughts, and when I spin around, I find Parker racing toward a smiling Bea. She takes Bea’s left hand in hers and gazes at—
“Oh my God,” I gasp as reality hits a beat before Parker pulls her soon-to-be sister-in-law into her arms.
“Did Rett just…” Hayden asks, his voice trailing off.
“Yep, I think he did,” I say, a laugh following.
Who’d have thought it?
Everett Donnelly is committing to one woman.
A few months ago, I’d have said it was impossible. But then Bea walked into his life.
Safe to say that he didn’t see her coming, but she’s the best thing that’s ever happened to him by a mile.
I always knew there was more to our angry grinder than he allowed the world to see, and watching him embrace it and fall head over heels in love with Bea has been an honor to watch. And, if I’m being honest with myself, I’m also a little bit smug because I had a hand in it.
Something needed to happen, and it needed to happen fast if Rett wanted to stay in LA.
The team owner wasn’t impressed with his behavior, and it was only a matter of time before they made a decision that would change Rett’s life all over again.
It was the last thing he needed. But their focus is on hockey and winning, not on how moving again would affect Rett.
I had to do something, but I was scrambling to come up with anything that would genuinely help.
And just when I thought I was going to run out of time, an unknown number lit up my cell.
And, well, the rest is history, I guess.
“Wow,” Hayden breathes as more and more people surround the happy couple to congratulate them.
“I need another drink,” I mutter. I don’t mean to say it out loud, but I realize a beat too late that I let it spill free.
“Hailee, are you okay?” Hayden questions before I’m able to escape.
Talk about a loaded question.
But here and now, there can only be one answer.
“Yes, of course. Would you like another?”
He shakes his head, and thankfully, he doesn’t say anything else, allowing me to escape.
I hop up on a free barstool and place my order.
The commotion behind me calls to me, begs for me to turn around. But I fight it. Being at a wedding makes me feel all kinds of things I’d rather not, but also witnessing an engagement?
I blow out a long breath, trying to banish the images that war to take center stage. I don’t need any of them in my head.
My childhood hopes and dreams can vanish right along with the memories of my past. All of them are pointless and a waste of energy.
My prosecco goes down a little too fast. It makes my head spin a little, and that’s enough to tell me that I need to call it a night.
I don’t lose control. Ever. And I’m not about to start while I’m surrounded by colleagues.
While everyone is distracted, I slip out of the ballroom and head toward the bank of elevators that’ll take me to my room.
I refuse to think about the fact that I’m running away, just like Hayden was earlier.
As the elevator doors open, I glance over my shoulder, half expecting to see him watching me go. But there’s no one there.
No one has noticed my escape, and no one is going to try to stop me.
With that sobering realization, I step into the elevator and press the button for my floor.
As I walk inside my room and my eyes land on my small carry-on, I almost convince myself to pack up all my stuff, call an Uber, and just go home.
No one will notice if I’m not here in the morning.
But then I pass the bathroom, and the huge tub with the jets gives me pause.
It would be a damn shame to waste it.
Shutting my thoughts off, I try to relax.
It’s not something I do all that often. I prefer to keep busy; that way, I don’t risk slipping into my own head.
I run the bath, pour in the entire bottle of bubbles I find waiting for me on the side, strip out of my clothes, pull up an audiobook on my cell, and sink into the water.
It feels incredible, but I can’t settle, and I certainly can’t focus on the voices floating around the room, no matter how deep and sexy the male tone is.
Instead, my head spins with thoughts of what’s happening downstairs. I question my decision to sneak out, but worse than that, I think of the guy I left behind at that table.
Is he still sitting there alone?
“Shit,” I hiss, hating myself for being so selfish.
But it’s a bit late to do anything about it now; I’m lying naked in a bubble bath.
I force myself to lie there longer, but instead of my muscles loosening with the heat of the water and the scent of the essential oils floating through the air, my tension only grows.
Eventually, I can’t sit still any longer, and I pull the plug and climb out.
Happy to have a distraction, I take my time removing my makeup and doing my face care routine. I also braid my hair, which I rarely bother with.
My cell taunts me on the counter, calling to me to reach out and make sure that Hayden is okay. I hold off as long as I can, but by the time I’m dressed in sleep shorts and a tank, my legs tucked under the sheets and my laptop beside me ready to do some work, I can’t ignore it any longer.
Hailee: I’m sorry for bailing, I…
Hailee: I hope you’re doing okay.
“Ugh,” I groan, throwing my cell on the bed.
Why is this so hard?
I just want to check in, but he’s not okay, and it’s thoughtless to ask if he is. He didn’t enjoy today. There might have been times when he wore a smile, but it wasn’t genuine. He’s hurting so badly that nothing can erase that.
I remember it. Those early days where the grief is so strong it feels like it’s going to swallow you whole and will never let you go.
There isn’t anything anyone can say that will make it better. There isn’t anything they can do, either.
Everything feels utterly hopeless. Your life feels like it’s over, and yet, you’re the one who’s still here.
Forcing the thoughts away, I open my laptop and lose myself in my emails.
It might be the off-season for the guys, but I don’t get the same luxury. Sure, there aren’t any games or press releases to schedule, but nothing else seems to stop.
By the time I come up for air, a couple of hours have passed.
It’s late, and I can only assume the party has drawn to a close, Linc and Parker slinking off to the honeymoon suite to celebrate privately.
I truly hope they’ve had the day they both always dreamed of. If anyone deserves it, it’s them. They’re so in love it’s almost sickening to watch. And it’s not just them. The other couples who have found themselves recently are just as bad.
Watching them threatens to crack a little of my confidence that no one out there is worthy. But then I remember, they’re the lucky ones.
I’m…well, I’m not.
I close my laptop and rest back against the headboard, and I regret it the second I do because my previous thoughts return.
When I was going through what Hayden is now, I was alone.
I didn’t have anyone to comfort me; they were all too focused on themselves and their own pain.
I’d have given anything for someone to come and sit next to me. They didn’t even need to say anything, just be there as silent support, so I felt less alone.
I have the hotel phone in my hand before I can stop myself, and I place my room service order, hoping that I’m not making a massive mistake.
Throwing the covers off, I pace back and forth, questioning my decision. But ten minutes later, when the door knocks, I’ve got a pair of fluffy socks on my feet and a zip-up hoodie hanging from my shoulders, ready to embark on a little midnight mission.
With two full mugs in one hand, I leave my cell behind and slip my keycard into my pocket.
The hallway is silent as I sneak toward the elevator, and when I get to the floor I want, it’s thankfully equally as quiet.
I pause at the door I slipped through earlier today and second-guess myself.
This is crazy.
Utterly fucking insane.
But…I’m here now, and the longer I stand out here, the more chance I have of getting caught.
I have two options: commit and knock or slink back up to my room and be consumed by guilt.
“Fucking hell, Hailee,” I mutter to myself as I lift my free hand and knock.
It’s late. He should probably be asleep. But with everything that’s happened, something tells me he’s wide awake.
Nothing but silence greets me, and I kick myself for being so impulsive.
There’s a chance he’s not even in there. He could be drinking in the bar with the guys, or much like I considered earlier, he could have left.
I knock again because I can’t leave until I'm sure.
I check that the hallway is still empty before leaning closer to the door and shouting, “Hayden. It’s just me.”
I’m not sure how he’ll know who “me” is, even if he can hear, but I don’t clarify.
Shit. What if he’s not alone?
The realization that he might have picked up a woman and brought her back up here has me stumbling backward.
Hayden might not have the reputation of some of the others, but no one could blame him for using the distraction right now.
I’m about to race back toward the elevator and return to my room to pretend this never happened when the door suddenly opens.
He stares at me and blinks a couple times as if he can’t believe what he’s seeing.
Honestly, I understand his confusion.
I can’t quite believe what I’m doing either.
“Hailee?” he questions, his voice rough.
“Uh, yeah, hi. I was just…”
“Are those hot chocolates?” His red-rimmed eyes drop to the two mugs in my hand with rapidly melting whipped cream and sinking marshmallows.
I look down at them as if I’d forgotten.
“Yeah. Two hot chocolates.”
“Is…uh…” He lifts his arm, rubbing the back of his neck as his cheeks turn pink. “Is one of them for me?”
“Yeah, yes. Yep, one of them is for you,” I say, rushing back and handing one over.
“Thank you, that’s really—”
Voices float down the hallway, and my heart lurches in panic.
I can’t be caught loitering outside Hayden’s room in my pajamas.
Holy shit. I’m not even wearing a bra.
He senses my panic and steps back, fully opening his hotel room door and urging me inside.
Without second-guessing, I follow him.
Everything inside is the same as it was earlier. The only difference is that the suit he was wearing is now draped over the chair in front of the vanity, and—
“Are you watching High School Musical?” I blurt, not expecting to see Zac Efron in a basketball jersey in the middle of the television screen.
“Umm…” This time, when I look at Hayden, it isn’t just his cheeks that are pink; the tips of his ears are too.