Page 34

Hailey

My eyes peel open after a horrific night's sleep.

I doubt I got an hour, which will make driving across the country interesting.

I let myself cry in the shower as long as I need, hoping to suppress my emotions when I face Max today.

He promised me a car. I think he'll keep his word, but I'm prepared for the worst. Maybe he'll try wearing me down until I stay, or maybe he'll act like a complete asshole.

I don't know. Everything in the past twenty-four hours has been so confusing, and I just want to get out of here.

I dry my hair, not bothering with makeup.

Who cares how I look now? I throw on sweats, grab my bag, and head downstairs, steeling myself for whatever conversation awaits with Max—if he's even up.

He might make me wait hours for the car.

Maybe I shouldn't have agreed to that. I don't want to feel indebted to him .

I find him in the living room, sleeping with Rosie curled at his feet. Yesterday morning, I'd have found it adorable. Today? It just fuels my anger. A small black duffel bag sits on the ottoman beside him.

I take a few steps in, and he wakes at just that. Rosie jumps off him and comes for pets. I silently focus on her for a minute to calm down before looking at Max.

"Did you sleep okay?" he asks.

"No."

"Me neither." He shakes his head and sighs. "I got some stuff you should take with you." He unzips the black duffel, and I gasp at what looks like thousands of dollars bundled in twenties.

"Max, I'm not taking that. Even taking one of your cars seems like too much."

"You're taking it. I won't sleep at night imagining you begging for money on the street."

My face flushes. He must think I'm so weak. I've already saved decent money from the job he gave me, and I haven't spent anything living under his roof. He acts like this makes up for lying to me the whole time.

"I'm not some gold-digging whore, Max. I don't need your money." The words are harsh the moment they leave my mouth. But I don't care anymore. Being here hurts too much, and I want to hurry this along.

He jolts up from the couch, hands trembling. "You think that's what I think of you?!"

I step forward, heart pounding .

"Why wouldn't I?" I growl. "All you wanted was sex, and you thought you could wave all your problems away with money."

"How dare you say this was only about sex? You know how I feel about you! I don't want to marry that fucking woman."

"After the hospital, you told me it didn't matter that I wasn't from a connected family. Was that all a lie?"

He swears and runs his hands through his hair, looking out the window. "It wasn't a lie... I mean, I'm supposed to get paired eventually, but I thought I... I didn't know that... I figured I would..."

"You lied to me." My voice turns cold. I'm beyond explosive anger. I feel done. Resigned.

"Fuck." He drops down, burying his face in his hands. "Just give me a minute to calm down and explain."

I should have listened to my instinct not to get attached. If we were just friends, none of this would be happening. Now my heart's breaking, and I don't think I'll ever trust anyone again.

I'm truly alone in this world, and until I get that through my thick skull, people will keep taking advantage of me.

"I just want to leave," I hiss through tears.

"Fine." He lifts his face, expression stone-like. "Take the bag. Please. If it's truly that offensive, donate it. Burn it. I just want it fucking gone so I can say I tried to help you."

I roll my eyes and zip it up. "I'll take it on one condition.

I'm blocking your number and don't want any contact.

I don't want you magically appearing where I'm staying.

" My voice cracks. "You have no idea how hard it was to open up to you.

I was conditioned not to trust anyone. Maybe that should have never changed. Maybe I should have never left."

"Please don't go back there," he pleads, gently gripping my wrist. "I'll stay away, I promise. But please, Hailey. They'll hurt you."

"I won't go back, Max. I know I can't after everything with Kaiser. I'm saying I should have never left in the first place."

We stay silent in the living room. Max breathes heavily, masking his emotions as I consider if there's anything else to say.

"I want to go. I need to be alone."

He looks up as if I've stabbed him. His eyes grow bloodshot as he sniffs. "Let me grab you the keys. You can take the car from that day you drove and we were stuck in traffic."

I follow him to the garage, glancing back at Rosie. She looks nervous about our behavior. I desperately want to pet her one last time, but that would break me down too much to drive.

I silently say goodbye, swallowing a sob.

Max opens the garage door and takes keys from the wall. He closes his hand around them. "This wasn't how I thought this morning would go."

I glare at the keys he guards.

"I didn't get to say everything," he says.

"Aside from the past twenty-four hours, this was the best summer of my life.

You have to believe I never wanted to hurt you.

I truly fell in love with you. I planned to get out of the marriage somehow, but I wish I'd just run away with you before all this. "

He raises his eyebrows pleadingly, as if those words would make me jump in the car with him now and let him leave everything behind.

But that's not fair to him; I know he loves his family too much.

He shouldn't leave. And I don't know if I could trust him again after lying about the betrothal and VOE's ransom offer for so long.

"I had a good summer, too. You've helped me in so many ways. Thanks for everything." I feel distant saying this. My feelings run deeper than I'm showing, but telling him I fell in love too would only make this messier.

Max clenches his jaw and nods, dropping the keys in my extended hand. "I won't contact you, but you know where to find me if you need me. I don't care if that's tomorrow or thirty years from now. I'll always be here. Waiting." He looks away from me, unable to contain his emotions.

My hand flies to my mouth as sobs break free. Max loads my bags into the car, taking his time to give us both space to compose ourselves.

"Is it okay if I hug you?" His voice breaks.

I nod, letting him embrace me one final time. I love it. I hate it. It's comforting yet devastating. I nuzzle against his chest, breathing in his scent once more before pulling back.

Max wipes tears from his face. "Take time to calm down before driving, okay? I'll head inside and give you space."

I drift to the driver's seat and watch him return to the house. The door slams with finality. I stare at it, waiting for him to come running out, but he stays true to his word and leaves me alone.