Page 78 of All Signs Point to Malibu

A song comes on and Sonia’s face lights up. She jumps up and grabs my arm, spilling my champagne as she drags me to my feet. “I love this song.”

“Oh, I’m not a dancer,” I protest as I try to resist being pulled toward the dance floor.

She refuses to listen and a second later, I’m surrounded by sweaty bodies moving to the hip-hop beat with nothing left to do but try not to look completely awkward.

Sonia’s body moves to the rhythm and I just try to match her.

“There you go, girl,” she says as she moves closer and we dance together. Male gazes on us suggest we’re causing a bit of a stir, or at least Sonia is, but I find I’m actually having a good time.

There’s nothing I can do about the wedding right now, so I give in and have fun. For as long as it lasts...

As the song ends and we fall back into the VIP booth, she pours another round of champagne and hands me the glass. “So...what about your love life?”

I nearly choke on the liquid as I shake my head quickly. “Nonexistent.” It’s true. The thing with Warren was just a one-time thing. It can’t and won’t happen again.

“I find that hard to believe. You’re beautiful and smart and successful. You must have guys sliding into your DMs all the time.”

If I do, I don’t notice as I never check my social media DMs precisely for that reason. I shrug. “Relationships aren’t a priority. I’m focused on my career,” I say simply and honestly. And no one has ever set my heart racing the way Warren does...

Something in Sonia’s expression changes slightly. “You think it has to be one or the other?”

She’s asking my advice and my gut twists. She’s teed it up. Here’s the perfect opportunity to put doubt in her mind about getting married while trying to launch her new acting career.

I hesitate.

Come on, Hailey! This is perfect!

My heart and mind are in conflict for a long, torturous beat as I stare at her.

She waits.

I smile and shake my head. “No. I think you could absolutely have it all.”

Sonia smiles in relief as she continues to relax and enjoy her champagne, and I realize in that moment that I’ve chosen to fail my mission.

Operation Breakup is over.

The loud, packed stadium is alive with hometown fans. Jerseys and foam fingers as far as the eye can see. On the court, the home team is on fire and the score is tied with five minutes left in the fourth quarter. Liam and I sit courtside, drinking beer and eating hot dogs as we watch the nail-biting game.

The face-off...their ball... Sanchez dribbles his way down the court, expertly dodging the defense on our team...

I get to my feet.

Block the shot...come on...

He dodges, jumps...and it’s blocked by Olivier.

Liam jumps to his feet, spilling his beer, and we high-five one another, chest bump, fist-bump, and celebrate with everyone around us. The crowd goes wild in the stands as the team celebrates on the court. The vibe all around us is electric and for the first time since he’s been back, Liam and I are actually enjoying a night out like old times.

As play resumes, we sit back in our seats. My phone chimes with a text, but I ignore it. It’s not Hailey. I’ve assigned her a particular ringtone—the boy band song—and she’s honestly the only person I’d be interested in hearing from right now.

I haven’t at all since the morning-after scene and usually I’d be breathing a sigh of relief, but I’m not. Instead I’m constantly checking my phone to see if the volume’s turned up, resisting the urge to reach out to her about some mundane thing and replaying that final conversation in my mind.

I should have handled things differently. Honestly. But I panicked in the light of day and well, she didn’t exactly make it easy for me to say that the night before hadn’t meant nothing.

Her lack of communication and the cold shoulder vibe she gave me at Malibu Moon earlier today said she’s not wanting a repeat of that night or a discussion about it. But damn, if she didn’t look hot in a white tube top and cutoffs...almost as though she were tormenting me.

Somehow Hailey Harris has found a new way to drive me up the wall.

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