"You shouldn't worry about that, Kendrick." Hailey's back ached from leaning against the headboard so she lay down properly on the bed. "I was on my toes all day anticipating your call. I thought you were ignoring me," she mumbled. "I wasn't." Kendrick gave a soft laugh. "I couldn't wait to speak with you.""Really?" Hailey smiled."Really." Kendrick nodded. Hailey bit her lips and ducked her head. Did that mean Kendrick also missed her? He said he couldn't wait to speak with her. Did that mean he'd been thinking about her all day? "Kendrick." His eyes never left her when she looked up. "You... Do you really care about me?" "Is that even a question?" Kendrick tilted his head. "Right now, you're my only priority, Hailey." His voice echoed in the room, the lights were turning dimmer. It was already late into the night. At his words, Hailey suppressed a sigh and one hand wandered to her chest. His only priority. Hailey already knew that. There were a lot of reasons for that. Yet,
That brought a smile to his face and Hailey sighed in relief. The worry in his eyes disappeared and his features softened. His question was probably to see if she was worried that they might not have another baby. And maybe that was true. But it would be harsh to voice that out. Hailey wasn't cruel to that extent. "Yeah, it's still early," Kendrick agreed. "Kendrick," Hailey murmured. "We can't lose hope. I'm sure you'll have more babies." That should make him feel better, and it really did; staring at his expression. "Now that you've known why she preferred girls." Kendrick brought her back to her earlier question. "I bet you'll strengthen your resolve on wanting a girl." Hailey looked away for a few seconds and she shook her head. "I won't change my resolve." She shrugged. "I won't also mind if it turns out to be a boy." She put on a small smile. "Really?" Kendrick asked."Really." She nodded. Maybe he had expected her to say the opposite. Hailey sighed inside before giving
Hailey's lips tugged up at the corner before pressing the exit button. Her call logs with Kendrick disappeared and on her home screen were several missed call notifications. And they were all from the same person.Her brows furrowed at that and she carefully sat on the bed. It seemed like all those calls came in while she was conversing with Kendrick last night. Why would Kara give her these many calls? Even in the middle of the night at that? Did something happen to her? She must have left the diner before calling her. Was she alright? Without dwelling on her thoughts, Hailey quickly pressed the callback button. It was weird enough that Kara had called her in the middle of the night. What was even weirder was the several missed calls. Hopefully, she was alright.The phone rang several times, then the beeping sound came. No response from the other end. And Hailey glanced at the bedside clock. Kara must already be at the diner by now. She must be busy cooking.Hailey hoped so. Her
"Hailey?" Kara called out to her but Hailey couldn't form a response. And Kara called out again. She called out several times. Hailey had lost count of it.Whether it was the lack of breakfast or the enormity that came with Kara's words, the sudden dizziness that hit her had an unexplainable source. And she staggered. She staggered toward the bed and gripped the headboard. "Hailey." Kara kept calling out to her. "Hailey, are you alright? Shit! This is a mess. I knew I shouldn't have told you. I'm so sorry, Hailey. Please don't do anything scary, keep a firm grip on your emotions, and please don't faint. I know this is hard to digest, but don't think too much. Hailey, can you hear me?" Hailey was already on the bed after catching the headboard on time. And she could hear all her friend was saying from the other end, but she couldn't register it. She just felt... Sick. "Talk to me, Hailey. Please let me know if you're alright. Do you need me to get help? Do you want me to get your
The woman's return now shouldn't mean that she cared. If she had ulterior motives, then Hailey would show her that she was too strong to be hurt twice by the same person. With that in mind, Hailey hardened her heart before the dam of her emotions had a chance of breaking free. She dried her tears and they no longer flowed. And she took in a few deep breaths to relax her muscles. She shouldn't cry for her. She wasn't worthy of that. She would be hurting herself as well as her baby if she kept on crying and wasting her emotions on the wrong people. She had let her baby down countless times by doing that. She was never going to let that repeat itself. Right now, she had to prioritize her baby above everything else. She'd be the most unreliable mother if she kept letting her baby down. She lowered her head to her bump and cuddled it. She wasn't an unreliable mother. She would never be. She'd do anything for her baby no matter what it took. And she was never going to abandon her baby d
Before bidding the securities goodbye, they mentioned something about having more guests in the house. And Hailey's eyes went back to where her own car was parked. Now she noticed an almost familiar car. As if she had seen it somewhere before. She didn't bother to ask the securities who they were. And she walked toward her car and tapped on the window."Aren't you coming out, Rick?" Rick slid down the window and she asked."I would like to stay in the car if you don't mind, Madam." His expression was blank. Hailey bit her lips to stifle her chuckles. Was he scared that if he went in with her the maids would surround him? She couldn't blame him for that. Therefore, she turned around and made her way into the house after casting a confusing glance in the other car's direction."Grandpa!" She called out when she stepped inside the living room. The servants were strangely out of sight and the place was too silent. They must be attending to their duties. Hailey's eyes wandered around
"Enough with that nonsense." Her grandfather's lips twitched in annoyance. "Sit down, Hailey. And all of you, leave us for a moment.""Father?" The middle-aged woman finally spoke up. She looked as if she would burst out of anger. "But we were here before her. Isn't it right to listen to what brought us first?""You know what is right and wrong?" The old man questioned her, his eyes narrowing. "I hate to give orders twice. You, take this woman and get out." Hailey's father looked helpless. And this was the first time Hailey had seen him not want to argue with her grandfather. Maybe he was too happy for that at the moment. He gestured to his wife, who looked about to retort, with a waving hand and said softly. "Let's give them some space, Dear. I'm sure it won't take long." The woman pursed her lips and glowered in Hailey's direction. Then she stood up and followed her husband outside the room. And before they could disappear behind the door, Hailey's father smiled at her, it almos
When she opened her eyes, she found her grandfather studying her carefully as if he was afraid she would burst. But Hailey was able to remain calm. "Why was she here?" She voiced out her inner thought. And despite being calm, her voice came out with a hint of anger. Her grandfather leaned back on his chair and shook his head with a big sigh. "She was here for you." He stared straight at her. "She was regretful."Hailey's knuckles turned bright as she gripped her bag. Here for her? Why would she be here for her? What did she want? And why did she come only now? And not five years or ten years or even twenty-four years ago? And was she truly regretful? "You have every right to hold a grudge, Dear." Her grandfather's tone held some sadness to it. "And I won't speak for her... I was also disappointed." Then he looked down and shook his head once more. "But you should have seen her... She looked desperate."'See her?' Hailey didn't want to see her. Her throat tightened all of a sudden