A flicker of disappointment shed in Wayne’s eyes, but he nodded and raised his hand to g


    down a cab for me. When it pulled up, he even opened the door.


    As we drove off, I nced back and saw Wayne’s car trailing us–not too close, not too far, just


    keeping


    watch.


    The driver nced at me in the rearview mirror, smirking a little. “Rough patch with your boyfriend,


    huh? He seems like a good one. You’re upset, don’t want to ride with him, so he’s just following


    quietly to make sure you’re safe.” The guy was a little too chatty.


    I looked out the window. “He’s not my boyfriend.”


    He blinked, surprised, and thankfully took the hint to stop talking.


    I focused on the passing streetlights, letting the silence settle.


    But then I caught a glimpse of another car in the rearview mirror, right behind Wayne’s. My heart


    stuttered. It looked like Hayden’s car.


    Chadwick’s words came back to me. ‘Hayden is going to marry someone else.‘


    I shut my eyes, telling myself I was seeing things, but that ache in my chest only tightened. After a


    few moments, I opened them again, and Hayden’s car was still there.


    It wasn’t my imagination. He was really back there.


    Shouldn’t he be inside celebrating, soaking up all the congrattions with the Dragos? Why was he


    out here following me?


    I needed to know for sure if it was really him. Leaning forward, I tapped the driver’s seat. “Um, sir,


    could you, I don’t know, maybe swerve a little? Like… make a sudden turn?”


    “What?” He looked at me like I’d asked him to drive off a cliff.


    “I just want to test my boyfriend,” I said, shing an innocent smile. The driver gave me a side–eye,


    like he was thinking, ‘Girl, you’re changing your story by the minute.‘


    He didn’t know I was actually trying to test someone else.


    But he just shrugged. “Alright, making lovebirds happy adds ten years to my life. Buckle up!” And


    with that, he floored it.


    The car shot forward like a rocket, making me lurch back into my seat. Before I could process the


    speed, he spun the wheel hard, throwing us into a crazy swerve. We even did a full 360 right in the


    street.


    It was the kind of stunt you’d only see in a movie, yet here we were, pulling it off in real life.


    By the time we screeched to a stop, I was dizzy, barely able to tell up from down. The driver


    turned to me, grinning. “Well, looks like your boyfriend showed up… ar, uh, both of them.”


    “Real” Wayne called out as he yanked open my door.


    But I barely looked at him. My gaze went straight to the other side, where Hayden was


    opening the opposite door.


    When he saw I was fine, his tense expression softened just a bit. He almost stepped back, like he


    was going to walk away.


    “Hayden!” I called, stopping him.


    He turned to face me, his eyes guarded.


    “What’s this about? Why are you following me?” I asked, fighting the burn of tears at the edge of my


    eyes.


    Hayden’s jaw clenched. “I need to talk to you.”


    That familiar ache in my chest tightened. Was he really here to exin his engagement?


    “What do you want to say?” My voice shook.


    Hayden’s gaze shifted over my shoulder,nding on Wayne. Then he nodded. “Step out.”


    I climbed out of the car, closing the door behind me. For a second, I caught Wayne’s hurt look from


    across the hood, but I didn’t let myself think about it.


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    I turned and walked straight toward Hayden.