Cardinal was still yapping, clearly not hearing me as she said, “Hayes is different from the rest of the guys. Out of all of them, I was afraid to meet him the most.”
That stopped me in my tracks, and suddenly, all thoughts of recklessness and buildings falling down left me. “Afraid?”
She nodded, looking at her lap. I waited as her memories came to her and watched as she sifted through them as if she were searching for an old recipe in an overstuffed recipe box. “The morning he left to hunt down Brandon in Vegas, I had been in Grayson’s office, editing photos to distract myself from…well, everything.” Her words fell quiet as her head lifted, her coils bouncing slightly with the simple movement. “He was so reserved, and I remember how scared I was just to even say hi to him. From his intense stare to his rigid posture. He was like a walking time bomb, and the last thing I wanted to do was say the wrong thing, set it off.”
Confusion hit me like a wave, rocking the very boat of logic I managed to latch on to in the last half hour.
“Then Grayson came in shortly after I blurted out an unneeded apology, and he left. That’s when I found out about Veronica.”
A second wave crashed, this one colder than the last. “Is that the woman who cheated on him?” I whispered, remembering the hatred in his voice when he told me about how he’d found her in his bed with another man. Just then, the front door opened and we heard their heavy footfalls, my question remaining unanswered.
“Margo?” Hayes called.
“In the kitchen!”
He and Grayson appeared by the telephone. As Hayes pocketed his cell, Grayson looked at the table, then to us, brow rising. “You both okay?”
“Why are you on the floor?” Hayes demanded, moving around his boss to get to me. He helped Carrie up first, holding his hand out to her, and immediately, I was transported back to the day he found us. I remembered how soft his voice had been when he spoke to us and how cold and hard it had been when he spoke to our kidnapper.
A stark difference. Night and day.
The truth and a lie.
“Temper, I need you off the floor,” he said gruffly.
Blinking, I was brought back to the present, finding his strong, rough hand in front of me, begging for me to grab it. I wanted to hold on to it, to him, for the rest of my life. I tipped my head back farther, diving headfirst into the dark green forest of his eyes, searching for his soul for the truth he’d been hiding from me.
Hayes was perfect in every way except for lying.
He was terrible at that.
And earlier, when he’d given me his heart on a silver platter, I knew that he’d been hiding the truth.
He knew everything about me, the good and the bad. Even if I wanted to lie, he would see right through it. But he’d offered me his heart, not his soul, and I hoped he’d let me in both before I hit the ground.
I grabbed his hand, and he pulled me into his arms, brushing some of my hair back. “Are you okay?”
“I will be soon,” I promised him, hands on his chest. I focused on the steady beat of his heart.
I didn’t want to lose it. His chest was warm against mine, his arms strong and tight at my waist, stable and unwavering. But deep in his forest green eyes, past the tall oaks and thick leaves,there was a lie, curled up on the moss, and it was calling out for me.
“Got an update for you.” Grayson’s deep voice cut through me like a knife and Hayes blinked, his walls snapping back up. His arms loosened and turned us to face the others. Grayson looked up from his phone, his eyes flashing with confidence as a slow, cocky smile I’d never seen before appeared on his face.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Jake did it, didn’t he?” Hayes drawled from my side.
My eyes snapped to Carrie, who was just as confused as me. Then I twisted my neck to look at Hayes’ profile, and then righted it again to look at Grayson, who let out a deep, warm chuckle.
“Yeah, he did it.”
Hayes grunted and turned me to face him. His eyes were still guarded, but they were warm. His knuckles brushed against my cheek. “Go get your phone and check your bank account.”
Butterflies of hope swarmed in my stomach, my pulse pumping under my skin. Without a word, I disengaged myself from him and went into the living room. I snatched my phone off the couch, pulled up the app, and said a little prayer. “Please, please, please,” I chanted, my thumbs punching in my passwords rapidly, my chest heaving.
As the screen loaded, the glimmer of hope that refused to be snuffed out days ago sparked in the darkness, like a firework lighting the night sky, adding to the beauty of the stars, my hope shined. When my account balances came into view, my hand slapped over my mouth and my knees nearly gave out. I caught myself against the back of the couch, my future suddenly not lost, but found in the spot where it was always meant to be. I looked up, finding the three of them watching me with a warm light in each of their eyes that reflected the hope inside me.
“It’s back,” I breathed, chest heaving. “My money is back.”