Hayley stood back, her eyes widening, and her mouth opened in utter disbelief. She couldn't believe Leonardo stayed outside in the rain. The question of why lingered in her mind.Trying to gather her thoughts and figure out her next move, Hayley paused. Leaving him outside in such weather was not the ideal thing to do.Memories of how Leonardo had entered the rain the last time to rescue her after an encounter with her stepmother, Wendy, six years ago flooded back. Hayley remembered he fell ill for days after that night.Recalling his act of heroism that day, Hayley thought it was time to reciprocate the kindness. That would be his saving grace in this situation. Concluding, she exhaled.As her hand reached for the doorknob, hesitation crept into Hayley's mind. Was helping him the right thing to do after what he did to her five years ago? Her heart ached at the thought, but she pushed it aside, unwilling to let it sway her decision. She sighed again. Opening the door, Hayley met his
When Hayley caught sight of him, a gasp of shock escaped her lips. Her eyes were absentmindedly drawn to his well-chiseled abs, leaving her hooked to the spot.Hayley's gaze then hesitantly traveled downwards, but she quickly averted as her thoughts grew unruly.Her eyes returned to his piercing gaze, not wanting to be consumed by her lustful thoughts as she kept staring at him.Hayley's confusion was evident on her face as she demanded an explanation for his presence in her room."Why are you here?" Hayley heard herself ask inwardly, but outwardly she could barely form the words."There was no towel in the bathroom, mi reina," he replied as if reading her mind.Blinking back to reality, Hayley slowly regained her composure and her ability to speak. "You should have said so, instead of barging in as if this is your room," Hayley snapped, her annoyance clear in her tone.But Leonardo smirked mischievously, staring at her with a twinkle in his eye.Hayley's heart skipped a beat as he r
"Let's cuddle..."Hayley collapsed on his chest unexpectedly. She struggled to break free from his hold."No!" She adamantly refused. "Don't ever do this again!" She warned him sternly, getting away from him.Leonardo frowned sadly.Hayley's eyes snapped open as she recalled the response she had given Leonardo the previous night when he had asked her to cuddle. Though Hayley had been surprised and nearly wanted to give in, she eventually refused, reprimanding him. She had managed to escape him. The last thing Hayley wanted was for Leonardo to know he still had any effect on her whatsoever. Picking up her nightwear from her wardrobe, she had exited the room and went to the living room to wait.Hayley had patiently waited for the heavy rain to subside last night, but it never did as the minutes had grown into hours and hours into the next morning, thus she had ended up falling asleep on the couch in the living room, while Leonardo had slept in her bedroom that night. So much for she wo
"C- Clara, what, what are you doing here?" Hayley bolted up from her seat, her eyes still widened in disbelief as she walked over to Clara. Clara's sudden appearance caught Hayley off guard.Clara was miffed as she turned her gaze to Hayley who was now standing before her, blocking her view from seeing Leonardo. "What do you mean, what am I doing, Nina? Am I no longer allowed to come into your house? Have you taken me for a stranger now?" Clara questioned, clearly annoyed.Hayley exhaled nervously, realizing she shouldn't have asked her that. "I'm sorry. I mean..." She trailed off."Hello Clara," Leonardo greeted from where he sat, his deep voice resonating in amusement, causing anger to stir within Hayley at his thoughtlessness. Had it been she knew, she could have left him in the rain. His nonchalance to the difficult situation he kept putting her in only infuriated her and fueled her anger and hatred towards him. "What is he doing here? I don't understand." Clara voiced out, obvi
Tick, tick, tick, the ticking sound of the fancy wall clock was the only thing that could be heard in the serene office. Gazing at the stack of documents piled up on her desk, Hayley Forbes let out a weary sigh. She was to finish up all of them within the next six hours. She had procrastinated for too long and it was now time to tackle them.Feeling overwhelmed, Hayley threw her head back on the chair, not knowing where to start. Her thoughts swirled in her mind, she was anxious. Not because of the workload currently on her desk, but because of her conversation with Leonardo earlier that morning. "I want you back. Let's become a family again.""For how long do you intend to keep lying to them?"His words echoed repeatedly in Hayley's mind, causing her discomfort as she was unable to make sense of the images on the screen of the computer in front of her.Her vision began to blur, touring her into oblivion as she pondered on Leonardo's words over and over again. Hayley and Adrian had
Hayley staggered back, clutching her chest and crying even more as a piercing pain shot through her heart. It pained her Adrian was in love with her. It pained her that she couldn't love him. It pained her that she was lying to him. He didn't even know her real name. What kind of a person was she?Hayley lifted her head, wiping her tears with the back of her hands. She apologized pathetically. "I'm sorry, Adrian. I am so sorry." She sobbed.Adrian looked puzzled. Even though he was still in a daze of what was currently going on with her, he stepped towards her. He stretched out his hand towards her, pulling her for an embrace. Hayley couldn't stop herself as she leaned forward, hugging him tightly. Adrian exhaled deeply, patting her back soothingly, relieved she had hugged him. Tears trickled down Hayley's face in a silent cry. They stayed like that for a moment before Adrian chuckled softly, breaking the stifling silence. He started jokingly. "You know... You look so beautiful e
Hayley coughed nervously, clearing her throat and averting her gaze away from Adrian.Adrian chuckled, amused by Hayley's shyness. After a moment of awkward silence, Hayley slowly made her way back to her desk, taking her seat behind.Hayley laughed briefly, attempting to clear the tension in the air. She turned to face Adrian, her sad expression completely replaced with an amused one. Hayley started teasingly. "So... Mr. Lewis. To what do I owe the pleasure of your honorable visitation...Oops," Realization dawned on Hayley. "Don't tell me you heard me screaming from your office." Her face flushed with embarrassment.Adrian looked at her, scoffing in delight. He was relieved to see she had stopped crying and was back to her usual self.He approached Hayley's desk, a charming smile etched on his handsome face. He perched on the edge of the desk facing her."Well..." He sighed, his smile dissolving into a frown. "Sad news."Hayley's brows knitted together as she sat up straighter. "Wh
Hayley regained her composure, her breath hitching as she paused to catch it."L- Leonardo? Leonardo?" She called out, but no response came from him. Hayley knew he wasn't deliberately ignoring her. He had either fainted or fallen asleep in her arms.Hayley was annoyed. This was the last thing she wanted in her life at the moment. Why did he have to show up at her doorstep, sick and helpless, just after the minute she had finally decided to get rid of him and kick her out of her life for good?Hayley exhaled exasperatedly, controlling her growing annoyance. She hissed irritably, knowing she would have to take care of him at least for the night. Her goodness! She wished she could just throw him out and leave him outside, but that would be cruel and unlike her.Heaving a sigh again, the next thing Hayley did was pull Leonardo closer to herself, cautiously dragging him inside with her. He was heavy. Gosh! She dragged him with all her strength to the couch, eventually flopping his body on