Chapter 23
Hazel
The moment I woke up, I noticed two things—first, I was alone, and second, I was in a different place than where I’d fallen asleep.
I sat up and closed my eyes, replaying yesterday’s events.
The last thing I remember was Luke’s breath on my neck, making me shiver, and his arms pulling me closer.
Maybe I was dreaming. I glanced around and saw a water bottle on the nightstand and a note on the pillow beside me.
Had some business in town. Be back soon. Drink lots of water.
P.S.: Yes, we fell asleep on the balcony. In case you were wondering.
I smiled at Luke, reading my mind from afar. After downing half the bottle and taking a long shower, I stepped onto the balcony, only to be met with a shocking sight. Ethan was passed out, butt naked, on a lounger by the pool.
“Ethan!” I yelled. There was a grunt but no movement. “Are you okay?”
He reluctantly raised a thumbs-up and slowly peeled off his face from the polyester. Something was stuck to his cheek. A sliced mushroom?
“Are you aware that you’re naked?”
“Gentleman never tells,” he mumbled, not making any sense.
“Why are you naked?” I yelled out, probably waking up others in the neighborhood.
“Global warming?”
I chuckled and went in search of others. I headed downstairs, where the girls were already having breakfast.
“Good morning,” Ava said enthusiastically.
“Hi, girl. Slept well? Want some coffee?” Norah pulled out a chair for me.
Hmm... “Thank you.” Something was off. Did he tell them? A slick of underboob started to gather. Never a good sign.
“Maybe some water instead? Or juice?” Ava slid an omelet onto my plate. I eyed them suspiciously.
“Do you know something?” I asked.
“Whatever do you mean?” Ava exclaimed, overdramatically. Like an English newscaster.
“Luke told you, didn’t he?” A tired sigh escaped me as I slouched forward.
“Yes, first thing in the morning. Almost immediately,” Norah confirmed. I groaned, covering my face and dreading this day already.
Alex strolled in, looking happy as a clam. Engagement suited him.
“Morning. What’s up?” he asked, noticing me slumped in the chair.
“We’re discussing Hazel’s disappearance last night,” Ava said.
“What do you mean? Did something happen yesterday?” Alex said in an exaggerated voice, as if pretending he didn’t even know what country he was in right now.
“Oh. My. God,” I said, stunned by the theatrical fish paste coming out of his mouth.
“You’re an even worse liar than your mom when she pretended to like my zucchini bread,” Ava accused.
His fake, dramatic face turned into a smile. “Sorry, I did my best. We’re glad you’re okay, though,” Alex said.
“Don’t worry, I’m sure Luke already lectured you on how stupid that was. Today, we’re just relaxing,” Summer added, piling fruit onto my plate. I felt like I had three butlers serving me from all sides.
“You know I’m not in a wheelchair, right?” I muttered, digging into my plate. Turns out, I was starving.
“Well, you’ll need strength for tomorrow,” she said, grinning like a child tasting ice cream for the first time. I froze. Tomorrow. It’s my birthday tomorrow.
“Why?” I set my fork down. “And where’s Luke?”
“It’s a secret. Like that hospital visit yesterday you hid from us,” Norah added, fake anger masking real hurt.
“Okay, okay, no shaming today,” Summer jumped in my defense.
“Speaking of shaming, your husband’s asleep in the pool, butt naked. I tried to wake him up, but he just deflected by talking about the world’s rising temperature issues.”
They burst into laughter, filling my dizzy head with dopamine and speaking of the devil—Ethan appeared, covering his groin with an inflatable pool toy.
“Remind me to sterilize that,” Summer said just as he walked to her side, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek.
“Damn, I need a giant Tick-tack,” he groaned and took a big gulp of her coffee. “Why am I naked?”
“You tell us,” Norah replied.
“I was so drunk last night, I’ll need years to recover from this hangover,” he grumbled, dragging himself upstairs.
We moved to the patio couch and spent the next hour chatting.
Something about them reminded me of Mady, and I realized how much I missed her.
She had this fire inside her—always had.
As a reporter, she chased stories the way some people chase storms, addicted to the rush of truth.
She never hesitated to call bullshit when she saw it.
It was a wonder I could hide anything from her.
I couldn’t hide anything from Luke, though.
“So yesterday, did you come home safely? Everything went okay?” Norah leaned in.
“Yeah, it’s hospital policy to drag this thing out way longer than necessary. It was just a mild allergic reaction. It happens to me from time to time. Never, even. So rarely, I’m glad I even remembered to take an EpiPen with me.”
“I’m sure Luke already gave you the speech, but I’ll say it once more just to make sure you get it through your thick skull. You really don’t have to be embarrassed or ashamed about stuff like that. Things beyond your control aren’t your fault. God knows we’re not perfect,” she chuckled.
That was hard to believe.
“I’m sorry. I’m not good at asking people things.” It came out almost as a whisper.
“Well, we can’t force you to trust us, but we’d love it if you did.” She gave me a supportive smile and bumped my shoulder.
“I swear it’s not you. It’s my wiring,” I sighed. “But I’m genuinely grateful Luke looked out for me last night. He didn’t have to. He’s a good guy.” I wanted her to know I wasn’t dismissing him or what he’d done for me.
“That’s our Luke,” she said, her smile softening with something close to nostalgia, like she was replaying a reel of inside jokes and shared memories. All the moments I wanted to be part of.
“He just seems so different here,” I murmured, more to myself than to her.
Norah glanced over. “Different how?”
“Well, back home he’s that guy—corporate golden boy, never tied down, walks of shame every weekend, but here.
..” I trailed off, struggling to put it into words.
“Here he’s just... real. Relaxed. Kind, even.
Like he’s not trying so hard to be something.
He hasn’t even hit on anyone.” The last part bothered me more than I wanted. It didn’t used to do that.
“Do you think maybe it’s because of you?” she said, sowing seeds of false hope in me.
“Not really. I mean, he flirts with me like he does with half the country. But I’m not into the hit-and-go lifestyle. He knows that.”
“Maybe that’s why he’s different. Raw and honest. Because he knows you’re not playing games. He doesn’t have to pretend, you know?” Norah said casually.
“Pretend? Why does he need to pretend?”
“Why does anyone? We all pretend sometimes, usually, to protect ourselves from something. In Luke’s case, he’s so afraid that he’d eventually end up as miserable as his parents, he’s nipping it in the bud.”
I don’t want a relationship, and I don’t need one.
I don’t need a person in my life to spend half of my income and tell me that I should drink less caffeine.
Luke’s words replayed in my head. Something inside me cracked. As if I didn’t know it already. One-night stands were all he could offer. Even though he was great, and funny, and interesting, and...
“But people change,” Norah interrupted my train of thought, trying to.
.. I don’t even know what. Tell me not to lose hope?
Tell me that I could change him? That wasn’t my responsibility.
You couldn’t change people if they didn’t want to.
I’d learned that the hard way, and I wasn’t going to fall for it again.
I nodded, grateful for my sunglasses.
“But whatever you feel in your heart, you’re right—Luke is a great guy,” Norah said with a smile, leaning closer. Her voice softened as she added, “That’s why we’re so happy he invited you here. Maybe you’ll be able to show him he’s more than what he lets others see. Maybe he’ll believe you.”
Her words lingered, as if she’d placed something fragile in my hands. This whole talk was a dangerous territory for me. It made me feel things for Luke I wasn’t prepared to feel.
Because even if he let his guard down and believed this could go somewhere, who’s to say he’d ever think I was worth the effort it would take to climb over the walls I’d built around myself?