“Oh my God, Shayla..” Jo came rushing over to me when she saw me on the floor. “Shayla? Shayla, look at me. Fucking hell, you’re freezing. Aimee!” She shouts out, and her brown eyes look down at me again. “Shay, what’s wrong? Shayla!” She yells, shaking me.
“What? What?” Aimee comes rushing out of her room and stops when she sees the state of me. “Jesus…”
“Aimee she’s freezing,” Jo tells her worriedly, and Aimee comes beside me and pushes my wet hair off my face. “What do we do?!” She shouts at Aimee, who was looking around the apartment.
“I don’t fucking know! What the fuck happened to her?” She retorts and Jo shakes her head shrugging.
“I don’t know. I just saw her like this. She’s hasn’t said a word, she’s not even responding to me.” Jo explains, looking at me, worriedly. It was such a weird
“No, she’s not.”“Aimee don’t lie to me. I just want to talk to her.” He says pleadingly, and I feel my heart aching.“She’s not here!” Aimee snaps hotly, and I can imagine her glaring at him menacingly.“You’re lying, her bags right there. Shayla?!”“Haven’t you done enough?!” Aimee shouts angrily. “I have never in all my years of friendship with that girl, seen her this broken!”“Aimee, I love her.”“Then let her go, Cole. If you genuinely love her, like you say you do, let her go, because you’re no good for her. She’s a fucking wreck, and I don’t even know where or how we’re going to help her pick the pieces this time.”“Please let me see her, just for a second.” He begs wretchedly, and I whimper unable to control the sob that escapes me.“You hear that? That&
“Great,” I utter, looking at him. “I’ll be at my desk then.”“Good.” He replies, staring at me intently. I tear my eyes away from his before I turn and walk out of his office. The next few weeks, I was required to work long days and nights alongside Cole on this hotel project. I sigh, dropping my pen in frustration, I rub my temples tiredly. Cole lifts his eyes off his sketch and looks at me with a little frown. “What’s the matter?”“I’ve tried multiple times to get this bit right, but it’s not working.” I groan, closing my eyes. Cole gets up and walks around the desk to stand over me from behind.“Show me.” He says, placing one hand on the table and leaning over me so he could see my sketch.“Here.” I tap my pen on the part I was struggling with. Cole’s eyes narrow while he studies my sketch, he bites his lip, and his hand covers mine that wa
It’s been over a week since Shayla, and I parted ways again. I thought walking away from her before was hard, it’s even harder now I’ve realised I’m in love with her. I can’t believe what a mess I’ve made of everything. I’ve lost her. Every single night I jump out of my sleep to the sound of her anguished sobs. Watching her shed a tear was always hard for me, but hearing such despair and suffering in her cry still haunts me. I don’t know what I was thinking, keeping the engagement from her. If I just told her from the beginning, she would be with me right now, but I was worried about her reaction, and instead, she got blindsided entirely and thought I was lying to her—which I wasn’t. Christ, I’m a mess, and I’ve never felt so low in my life. As hard as it is to admit to myself, Aimee was right with what she said. After hearing Shayla sobbing and the look of defeat in her eyes, when I saw her that day in her apar
I exhale and rub the back of my neck, agitated. “No, it’s not just that, Sophie. I thought we could get back what we once had but we can’t because I realised that what I want has changed. I’ve changed. All the yacht parties, and you and all your fake socialite friends pretending to like one another, when secretly you’re competing with one another. Who has the best clothing line, who will get married first, who has a bigger engagement ring? It’s shallow and materialistic bullshit, and I’m over it. I want to be able to come home after a long day and relax with my girlfriend— but I can’t do that with you, because you always want to do something, you always want to be somewhere. It’s exhausting. Your whole lifestyle is gruelling to me now.” I clarify openly. I wasn't lying. I was honestly so tired of all of it.Sophie stares at me for a long moment. She nods and wipes her tears away before she pulls something out o
“Sophie's pregnant.”I stare at Cole numbly, while my fingers lose the grip I had on the glass, which slips and smashes on the tiled floor. Did he just say Sophie is pregnant? Did I really hear him, right? I don’t even think I was blinking while I just sat there staring at him like some kind of an idiot. I think I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown.“Oh. Wow. Congratulations. I should, uh, c-clean the glass...” I mutter pathetically while I kneel on the floor attempting to pick up the shards of glass with my trembling fingers.“Shayla, what are you doing?” I hear Cole say as he hurries toward me, kneeling in front of me while I pick up the broken pieces of glass.“It just slipped out of my hand when you…uh, God, I’m so sorry.” I apologise.“Shayla, leave it. Stop, you’re going to hurt yourself, just leave it.” Cole frowns and reaches out to touch me, but
Cole shakes his head and looks into my eyes; his fingers combing through my hair, “Please don’t go. I’d rather see you every day, and have it kill me. I’d rather love you quietly from afar than have you walk away and never see you again, please don’t.” He pleads sorrowfully. “I know I have no right to ask this of you, if you have to hate me, hate me, I’ll take it. I’ll take you hating me any day over losing you completely.”“I wish I had it in me to hate you, Cole, it might have made this constant aching in my heart more tolerable, but I don’t think I have the strength to watch you get married and have a baby with her,” I sigh with a shrug. “I just can’t.”Cole drops his gaze from mine to my bleeding hand and licks his lips, “I understand.” He whispers woefully and frowns when he unwraps the cloth and sees more blood oozing from my hand. “The bleeding won&r
He closes his eyes and shakes his head. “No, I’m not. I’m going to fuck it up like I have everything else. I’m so fucking terrified Shay.”I lift my hand and stroke his jaw, “It’s okay to be scared, but you’ve got this.” I assure him, and he presses his lips to my forehead.“How do you still have so much faith in me after everything I’ve done?” He questions, pulling back and looking into my eyes with such devotion it stole my breath.“Because I love you, you stupid boy,” I whisper, and he smiles a little, but it doesn’t reach his eyes.“And I love you, you silly girl.” He whispers back and leans in kissing me softly on the lips. I sigh when he pulls back, and his eyes search mine for a moment.“You should go,” I tell him, and he shakes his head.“No, I’m not leaving. I’m staying with you.” He declares reta
I moan when I feel something softly comb through my hair. “Get up you goof.”“No,” I mutter my voice muffled my face currently pressed into my arms which are resting on my desk.“Cole, I need the blueprint, but your giant forehead is covering the part I need to see,” Shayla complains and taps my head with her pencil a couple of times. I smile into my arms and peek up at her, not fully lifting my head.“Excuse you, this forehead has expanded to capacitate the knowledge and wisdom my brain has accumulated over the years,” I tell her and Shayla narrows her eyes at me and tilts her head to the side while her lips curl into a smile.“Uh-huh, looks like a receding hairline to me, but whatever makes you feel better, big boy.” She says, pulling on the paper and glaring at me playfully when I don’t move. “Let go.”I grin at her, and she blinks at me. “Big boy?”
Twenty minutes later, the house smelt sensational with home-cooked goodness. Cole strolls into the kitchen while his wife cooks pancakes. He wraps his arms around her from behind and kisses her pulse. “As good as this food smells, I can’t wait to eat you later,” Cole growls in her ear hungrily, making her grin. “Shh, baby, the kids are going to hear you,” Shayla whispers back, looking up at him, and he matches her grin leaning close. “They’re not even in here.” Cole chuckles, kissing her softly. Shayla wraps her arms around her husband’s neck and parts her lips when his tongue silently requests permission to meet her own. “Oh, barf. Mum and Dad are making out again.” RJ grumbles, walking into the kitchen, followed by Alaia, who grimaces as they take their seats at the dining table. Shayla and Cole laugh as they pull apart. “Now you know how we feel watching you slobber all over your little ‘friends’ you keep bringing over.” Alaia retorts, making air q
Sixteen years later…On a beautiful Saturday morning in the month of August, Shayla Hoult rolls over in the bed she shares with her gorgeous husband Tristan Cole Hoult and smiles contently. At the tender age of forty-six, he was still every bit as handsome as he always was. She lay on her side and admired him while he slept. He still looked the same—but older with fine lines that came with maturity, which made him even sexier. The stubble of his beard had specks of grey, which she loved.“Why are you staring at me?” Cole mumbles, his eyes still closed, causing his wife to start while she was lost deep in her thoughts. Shayla smiles, her cheeks flushing ever so slightly, and reaches over to brush her fingers over his cheek. Cole smiles, peels his eyes open, and blinks, looking at his beautiful wife smiling at him lovingly.“How long have you been awake?” Shayla giggles when he wraps his strong arm around her waist and drags he
I exhale slowly, and Cole sits up and turns the night light on, blinking a couple of times till his eyes adjust to the light. “My water broke,” I tell him, and he shifts and pushes the covers off himself and gets out of bed. I watch him walk around the bed to my side, and he takes hold of my hand to help me sit up.“Are you having contractions?” He questions, brushing my hair away from my face, and I nod. “What do you need me to do?”I exhale slowly when another contraction comes. I wait for it to pass before I speak. “Call my midwife, then my mum. Tell her I’m in labour, and we’ll drop Laia to her.” I instruct him, and he kisses my forehead before he grabs my phone. While Cole was on the phone, I take off my wet clothes and change into a pair of grey comfortable tracksuit bottoms and one of Coles oversized hoodies. The pain was getting worse by the minute, and I was worried we wouldn’t make it to the hospital. “Cole, we have to go. Like right now.” I whimper, and he l
“Shay.” I lift my gaze from staring at my huge baby bump and look at my husband, who rolls over when I turn the night lamp on. “You okay?” Cole questions drowsily, and I glower at him.“Why won’t this baby come out.” I hiss angrily, and Cole groans, leaning up on his elbow and looks at me, his green eyes narrowed.“Maybe he likes it in there and isn’t ready to leave just yet.” He smiles, rubbing my bump, and the baby squirms inside me at his father’s touch. My due date was six days ago, and this stubborn child is showing no indication of arriving anytime soon.“I’ve had enough.” I whimper, agitated. “I’m uncomfortable. I haven’t slept a wink in days, and I’m swollen like a beached whale. Look at me.” I complain, gesturing to myself, and Cole lets his eyes wander over me, and he smiles. “What are you looking at?”He blinks, bemused.“You just said—”“You get this baby out of me right now.” I huff, and Cole scratches his forehead, his brows fu
Shayla pulls back and looks up at me, tears flowing from her beautiful eyes. “Did you...” She trails silently, asking me if I had something to do with her killing herself off, and I shake my head.“No, I had nothing to do with that. She obviously couldn’t handle being locked up. The warden did say girls like her are like fresh meat to a hungry lion.” I explain, brushing her tears away.“I did.” I turn and look at Sam, and Shayla frowns. “I may have visited the prison. A guard there is a friend of mine, and when he found out you were my sister, he did me a favour.” He explains with a shrug, stuffing his hands into the pocket of his jeans. “It wasn’t enough that she was locked away, I wanted her to suffer, so I had my artist friend paint a photo of you and Cole kissing on the wall opposite her cell, she’d be forced to stare at it, be reminded every second, of every day that she didn’t break you,” Sam tells her. Shayla pulls away from me and runs into her brother's arms.
“That was a great party. I’m a grown arse man, and I had a blast.” Josh chuckles, sitting back on the sofa, taking a sip from his beer. I smile and nod, looking over at my mother and Shay’s mother directing the kitchen's cleaning crew. Sam comes across with baby Trey in his arms and sits on the sofa with a tired sigh.“It really was. Shayla did a great job with organising everything.” I tell him, and Josh nods, looking over at the baby in Sam's arms.“How’s fatherhood treating you, bro?” Josh questions putting his beer bottle down and taking Trey from Sam.“Tiring man, but I wouldn’t give it up for the world,” Sam admits looking over at Trey curled up on Josh’s chest. “To think I was terrified of ever having one of those, now I can’t picture my life without him.”I smile in understanding. “Yeah, they really do change your life, especially if it's with the right woman,” I state, and both men nod in agreement.“I feel so left out. I can’t wait to hol
“Happy birthday, princess.” I croon, looking down at Alaia, who just rose from her sleep. She smiles up at me as soon as she sees me, displaying her two teeth. She’s always so happy in the morning, and this morning was no different. She’s just lying in her crib, kicking back with her hands behind her head. “Good morning, my sunshine.” I pick her up and kiss her cheek affectionately. “Is my baby girl one-year-old today?” We walk out of the nursery back to our bedroom, where Shayla was still asleep. “Let’s go wake up, Mummy,” I whisper, kissing her temple and smile when I see Shayla lying on her front, peacefully sleeping. I crawl up on the bed and lay Alaia down on her stomach, and she immediately crawls over to her mother. I lay on my side and watch as she makes cooing sounds, pressing her hand to Shay’s face, who stirs from her sleep and smiles.“Mm, good morning, birthday girl.” She sighs, lifting her arm and wrapping it around Laia, who tries to crawl over her. She looks o
We see Josh and Aimee in the waiting room, along with Jo’s father, “How is she doing? Any news?”Aimee shakes her head. “Not yet. We got here not long ago.” I sit beside her, and Cole walks over to Josh, talking to Jo’s dad, Phil. “Did you look in the mirror before you left the house?” Aimee grins, her blue eyes raking over me.“No, why?” I ask apprehensively and look down at myself.Aimee laughs, “You look fucked out, girl. You could have at least run a brush through your hair.” I stare at her dumbfounded and reach to comb out my hair with my fingers.“We left in a rush,” I whisper, unlocking my phone and loading up the camera. “Do I really look that bad?” I look at my reflection in the camera and gasp a little. My face was all flushed, my hair a tousled mess, my lips were swollen, and I had love bites all over my neck. “Oh shit.” I curse, pulling my hair over my shoulder to cover up the love bites.Aimee nudges me, grinning wickedly. When I look
Later that evening, Cole and I were sitting on our bed, me on my tablet and him on his, looking through emails. “Do you not think we’re going a little overboard with this birthday party?” I ask, looking away from the tablet to him, staring intently at a document on his device.“No,” Cole utters, typing away on the screen. “What my baby wants, my baby gets.” I frown.“Cole, she’s turning one, she doesn’t have a clue what she wants. She’s not even going to remember this.” Cole looks at me and shrugs.“She’s aware of more than you realise.” He replies, his brows lifting to his hairline. “Don’t you see the way her little face lights up when she sees Moana on the screen?” I smile and nod, “Or the way she sways side to side when she hears the song.”“That is adorable.” Cole nods, smiling, and leans over, puckering his lips for me. I lean in and kiss him softly.“Let’s give our baby girl the birthday she deserves.” Cole mumbles against my lips, and I grin