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Not flirting at full throttle with Haisley went against everything in his nature. Being so close to her this morning while forcing himself to behave like she was nothing but a counterpart in this case—rather than the woman he loved—had almost killed him. Changing tactics with her had seemed like the best option after she’d confided in Jasper that their past relationship had felt like nothing more than an extended hookup. She genuinely fucking believed that she hadn’t been his everything. That he’d merely viewed her as a good time.

She’d be shocked to know he’d been ready to propose.

None of that helped him now. Jasper couldn’t tell Haisley that she had everything wrong. But Nash could. And he could win her back, starting by respecting the boundaries she’d set yesterday—no matter how much it killed him.

He’d use Jasper as recon, to check in with her, make sure she was staying safe, getting the emotional support she needed…and then hope like hell that when the time to come clean rolled around, she understood he’d been trying to help and support her, not bullshit and hurt her.

But either way, he refused to lose her without putting up the fight of his life. Somehow, someway, he would convince Haisley Rowe that he loved her. Once she knew the truth… Well, what happened next was up to her.

Ethan laughed. “She might have mentioned you once or twice. What’s it worth to you?”

Nash slanted his roommate an annoyed glance. “What do you want?”

“You do my laundry for a month, and I’m an open book.”

“You’re a rat bastard. I’m not washing your sweaty underwear or sticky sheets.”

“That’s the deal. Take it or leave it.”

“Motherfucker.” Nash wasn’t looking to be the kid’s bitch, but he would absolutely bend his pride for help in winning back Haisley. “Fine. But I’m not folding.”

Ethan laughed. “Sucker.”

Nash hurdled the sofa and crossed the kitchen floor in a handful of steps, grabbing the kid by the throat. “You better not tell me you punked me.”

“Lighten up, dude.” When Nash let go, Ethan rolled his shoulders. “I’m just yanking your chain. To be honest, I didn’t hear that much, just that you being all straight-up business this morning confused her. She doesn’t know where she stands with you.”

As he’d suspected. “Thanks. Give me your laundry.”

“I’m not going to make you do it. I just wanted to see how much this woman meant to you.”

“Son of a bitch.” Nash stomped back to his dinner.

Ethan trailed after him. “Sorry. You okay?”

“Fuck, I don’t know.” He scrubbed a hand through his hair. “You want to know what Haisley means to me? Everything. When she left, it fucking crushed me. I thought we were on the same page—until she took off. Why is communicating with that woman so hard?”

“It’s not like you’ve been lonely without Haisley, dude. You get laid a lot.” He grinned. “Almost as much as me.”

“And it’s all empty. It’s all…” His insides twisted. “Meaningless. That’s great for a while. But…man, once you have someone who means something, it’s different. And going back to those empty fucks? It’s just… You’re going to fucking laugh, but some mornings, I’d wake up and roll over and think—for just a moment—that I had Haisley back. Then I’d open my eyes and see someone else. No matter how sexy or sweet or snarky or whatever the woman beside me was, she still wasn’t Haisley. And I kept wondering what the hell I did to not only drive a wedge between us, but to make her flee two thousand miles away.”

Ethan dropped onto the sofa beside him. “Shit, man. I’m sorry. I just thought… Hell, everyone thought you were just hooking up. You didn’t take her out or bring her to the company parties or act like you had a thing for her. So I thought?—”

“That I just wanted to nail her. Apparently, that’s what she thought, too.” And Nash felt like an idiot. He’d so zealously guarded his time alone with her that he hadn’t stopped to think about how she might perceive his behavior. But she’d never pushed back, never asked him to take her out or show her a good time that didn’t involve his bed, some cuffs, and his stiff cock. She’d been so fucking perfect for him in every way.

And he’d been an idiot.

Of course Haisley had assumed she was his favorite hookup, not his treasured submissive or his girlfriend. He hadn’t given her any reason to think he loved her or wanted to marry her. It seemed so fucking obvious now, but in the moment…he’d only thought about being as close to her as possible.

Well, that wasn’t the whole truth. The very first night they’d spent together, she’d been adamant that she wasn’t looking for a relationship. For months, he’d been searching for a way to tell her that he wanted more than sex with her. And he’d been afraid of being too honest and losing her.

“What are you going to do now?” Ethan asked.

“Everything I can.”

“I’d ask if you need relationship pointers, but I’m the guy who lost his high school girlfriend to his dad, so?—”

“You’re making that up.” He had to be.