Chapter 26
HAILEY
“I’ve added fifteen more prospects to our list,” I told Annalise. My temporary boss nodded at me in relief.
“You’re a godsend, Hailey. Thanks! It’s late. Why don’t we call it a day?”
“Sure, boss. See you tomorrow.”
I wasn’t particularly looking forward to leaving the office. It wasn’t anything to brag about—just a small venue in downtown Houston where I, Annalise, and two other employees made cold sales calls to potential prospects and handled the few clients we had.
But going back to my rented apartment just reminded me of how empty my life was right now. I felt empty.
During the day, I pulled myself together, but when I was alone, I couldn’t pretend I was okay. I was as far from okay as I’d ever been. I was miserable—away from my family, with a job that bored me to tears… and a broken heart.
I hadn’t spoken to Reid in two weeks. After our conversation in the coffee shop, I just didn’t know how to talk to him, what to say to make things better.
So I sent him a voice message, explaining everything the best I could.
“Reid, I’m sorry about Houston. I understand why you’re mad, but please, don’t think you don’t matter. You do. A lot. I love you. You know I do, and it wasn’t my intention to make you feel unimportant. I just honestly didn’t see another way out.”
I loved this man. But I was pissed at him. He hadn’t answered my message. That could just mean one thing. He was giving up. My damn heart just refused to heal. The cracks still felt wide open. When I stepped inside my tiny apartment, I almost felt like crying.
“No, you will absolutely not cry again. You’re healthy. Your family loves you. The media outlets in LA are already forgetting about you. You’ll go back to your old life soon enough.” Old life minus Reid. And just like that, the cracks widened.
But I refused to wallow any longer. There had to be a way to move on, right? But even the thought drained me of energy.
No, I might not want to wallow any longer, but I wasn’t ready to move on either.
I went straight to the bedroom, changing into unflattering yoga pants and a large T-shirt, then slid into bed, intending to watch something on Netflix to take my mind off everything.
Grrr… why did every show in the “recommended for you” section make me think about Reid? I didn’t need any more reminders.
I was just about to play some Christmas movie, just because, when Val called.
I chuckled. My sisters called every evening.
Jace called me at least once a day, using one excuse or the other.
I was ready to bet they’d made a schedule to check up on me.
I’d call them out on it if I didn’t enjoy it so much.
I absolutely needed all the love I could get.
All the love. I could use some hugs too, but one didn’t always get what they wanted, right?
“Hello, sis,” I greeted, pushing the laptop to one side.
“Am I interrupting anything?”
“Just a night of Netflix. Business as usual.”
“Uhhh… want me to watch it with you? We can break down every detail over the phone.”
I snickered. Val and I had a habit of dissecting movies.
“It’s no fun if we don’t do it in person.”
I really needed one of Val’s hugs. My sister gave the best hugs. And I’d only see her in another two weeks.
“Hmmm… we could always video chat?”
“Don’t you have a husband to entertain you? Why are you worrying about my sorry ass every evening?”
“Hey.”
“You thought I wouldn’t be able to tell?”
“I was hoping.”
“Val, I’m a big girl. I don’t want you to worry about me.”
Could I take all the doting and fussing but not the worrying?
“I’m your older sister. That’s my job.”
“Put Carter on the phone.” I used a stern, take-no-prisoners tone.
“Yikes, okay, got it. You’re playing the tough card. I pinky swear that I’m not worrying.”
“Uh-huh. You really expect me to believe that?”
“Well, no, but promise you won’t tell Carter anything. He’s already stressing about the pregnancy more than I am.”
“Fine, I promise.”
“Hailey, it’ll get better. Trust me.”
“I miss him,” I admitted, biting my lip. “And I don’t want to.”
“Oh, damn, girl. I want to jump in a plane right now and come to you.”
“I wish you could,” I whispered.
“We’re going to have a full-day sister program when you’re visiting.”
“Yes, yes, yes. I want extra cuddles.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“I can’t wait.”
I chatted with Val for a few more minutes, and then turned back to my laptop, deciding not to watch anything romantic after all. A horror movie, yeah, that could work. That would get my mind off romance.
Blinking away the burning feeling in my eyes, I curled on one side, pressing Play. It had to get better. I just had to hang in there until it did.
Reid
“Look who’s alive,” Bianca exclaimed when she opened the door to our parents’ house. “We were wondering if you’d make it at all.”
“Of course I would. I don’t miss dinner.”
“Well, you did miss my one million or so calls.”
“I’ve been busy.” While that was technically not a lie, it wasn’t a good enough excuse to let my family’s calls go to voice mail.
Stepping inside, I hung my coat.
“You’re always busy. Never dodged my calls before.”
“I haven’t—”
Bianca crossed her arms. “It wasn’t a question.”
I groaned. She was on a mission. Clearly, she had something on her mind. There was no point trying to fight it. The least painful way was to just get it over with.
“You knew I was going to roast your ass because of Hailey.”
And there it was.
“Bee-Bee.”
“Don’t Bee-Bee me. A family dinner was the only excuse I could think of to get you out of your cave.”
“Darling, you’re here,” Mom exclaimed.
I felt Bianca’s eyes burn the back of my head as we walked to the dining room. Dad was already at the table.
I suspected something wasn’t right when I caught my parents exchanging a glance. When they then exchanged a look with Bianca, I didn’t just suspect. I was sure.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“Darling, we’ve been concerned,” Mom began. “We’ve heard that things between you and Hailey are not right.”
I popped open the top button of my shirt, suddenly not getting enough air.
Not right was an understatement. She’d left without even a phone call.
She sent me a voice message, and then next thing I knew, Cameron called and informed me that Angela had officially taken me on as a client while Hailey was in Houston.
That had felt like a punch to the gut. I still hadn’t recovered.
Mom watched me expectantly, clearly waiting for an answer.
“They’re not,” I said shortly.
“But you two were so happy,” Mom insisted.
“Look, I don’t want to rehash this.”
I couldn’t even think about it, because I couldn’t get rid of that sinking feeling that I’d made a fucking terrible mistake.
“What are we having for dinner?” I asked, hoping everyone would take a hint.
Bianca smirked. “Souffle as starter, but we’re mixing it up, starting with main course, which is called ‘roasting Reid’s ass.’”
“Bianca,” Dad admonished.
“What? It’s true.”
I narrowed my eyes at the three of them. “You’ve asked me here to dinner to give me a hard time?”
I was willing to do anything for my family. Always. But right now, I couldn’t do this.
“Of course not,” Mom said. “We’ve asked you here to help you.”
“Help me?” I parroted back.
Bianca laughed. “Told you he’d be shocked. Worst case of know-it-all syndrome I’ve ever seen.”
“Son, your mother and I have been married a long time, and we’ve had our share of ups and downs. We know a thing or two about what it takes to make things work.”
I couldn’t argue with that. I just couldn’t… talk about it. Even being here was hard, and I didn’t get why until I realized that last time I’d been here to dinner, Hailey had been with me, and fuck, that had been the perfect evening.
Would I relive this deep hollow feeling every time I came to this house? I couldn’t do it. I didn’t want to be here without her.
I didn’t even want to be in my own home without her.
“What went wrong exactly?” Dad went on. Bianca tsk-tsked, rolling her eyes, as if they’d already been through this. Wait a second. How did Bianca know anything? Had she talked to Hailey?
“Reid?” Mom pressed.
I didn’t want to relive the memory, but I knew if there were two people I could count on to give it to me straight, it was my parents.
It was hard to put into words what had snapped inside me that day in the coffee shop, but the second I’d realized she’d already said yes to Cameron, I saw red. She’d talked so nonchalantly about it all, as if I wasn’t even a blip on her radar, not even an afterthought.
“She’d expected me to what, just sit around and wait to see where the dice would fall?” I asked no one in particular. I just needed to vent.
“Son, I know that you like knowing everything in detail. That you always like to map out twenty steps ahead. You have all the reasons to want to be in control. You’ve taken on an enormous responsibility, and not only managed, but thrived.
Very few things in life are in our control, though.
Most of the time, we just have to adapt, make the best of a situation.
And fight. Even when we don’t see the road ahead, or the destination, we can’t stop fighting. ”
“Especially when it comes to the person you’re supposed to be with.” Mom sighed. “You can’t let Hailey go, Reid. She’s the best thing that ever happened to you. And your children would look adorable.”
I chuckled, but then shook my head.
“It’s not just about me,” I said quietly, staring at the table. “It’s about her too. She just left me a voice message and that was that. Her boss was the one who told me she’d left.”
“You know Hailey better than we do, Reid. But I can tell you one thing. That woman loves you.” Mom’s voice was soft, calming me.
She was right. I did know Hailey. Thinking that no one would be around forever anyway was her defense mechanism. I’d told her I understood that. Then I went ahead and completely bailed when she needed me.
Fuck, I’d done everything wrong. I was such an idiot.
“What if she doesn’t want this anymore?” I asked.
Mom gave me a determined look. “Would she still be coaching Bianca and us about what to tell reporters if she didn’t care?”
“She did that?” I croaked out.
“Yes. And I have to say, that girl knows her stuff. No one calls a second time.”
“You didn’t even tell me that reporters bugged you.”
All I had hoped was for my family to not get caught in a shitstorm, and I failed. And yet, because Hailey was with them every step of the way, they were treading these treacherous waters without drowning in them. She had coached them, even though I’d completely let her down.
I focused on Bianca. “Have you been suspended again?”
She tilted her head. “I got very close but didn’t. Guess who did get suspended, though? Felton! Ha. A teacher passed by us when he went on one of his gossip sessions.”
“Jesus, I’m sorry, Bianca.”
My sister shrugged. “You know who you can thank for me knowing how to shut everyone’s mouth? Hailey. So, let’s get to the important stuff. I have Hailey’s Houston address,” Bianca said.
“How?” I asked suspiciously. “Hailey would have no reason to give it to you.”
“The Connor girls.”
“You’ve been in contact with them?”
“Duh. We’ve been keeping an eye on you two, thinking you’d eventually… you know, come to your senses. But you’re not, so… clearly, it was time to take matters into our own hands. So, chop, chop. Let’s get this dinner over with quickly. Lots to do, lots to plan.”