Page 34 of Make Your Save

“Hey, Had?”

She turns back to look at me, her soft, hazel eyes finding mine from the front door. “Yeah?”

“You will be back, right?”

A soft laugh escapes her. “Yes, silly. I’ll be back before you even get the chance to miss me.”

I watch her as she slips out through the door, leaving Lucy and me by ourselves. An unusual feeling of dread pricks at my skin. The thought of missing her is uncomfortable. How quickly she’s become someone I find myself wanting around. She’s been the pillar that’s been keeping me standing since Lucy came into my life over a week ago.

And in a few short months, she’ll be walking out of that door again...

Except that time, she won’t be coming back.

Hadley’s curled up on the couch with her brand-new blanket wrapped around her body and her new slippers sitting on the floor. We both grabbed slices of pizza and took them out into the living room after getting Lucy settled in her bassinet. We have the baby monitor set upin her room, but with how often she wakes up, it just makes it easier having her close by.

“I don’t think I’m going to be able to convince the guys that this engagement is real.”

Hadley chews on a piece of pizza, bobbing her head as she swallows her bite and takes a sip of her water. “Yeah, I figured that would probably be a hard sell. I don’t think you should be asking people to lie for you, but I think being honest with them about the situation is best.”

“They won’t have an issue with it,” I tell her, knowing my boys. They’d be the first to step up with some bullshit fabricated story, as long as it isn’t hurting anyone. They already know about Lucy and the current situation.

“Okay, so there’s one group of people.” She pauses, tilting her head to the side. “What about your family?”

I chew on the inside of my cheek, immediately feeling guilt. “I haven’t even told them about Lucy yet.”

She freezes, her eyes widening as she stares at me with a shocked expression. “You...haven’t told them.”

“No,” I admit, shaking my head at her as I finish my slice of pizza. “It’s not exactly the easiest conversation to have over the damn phone.”

“Hmm,” she murmurs, screwing her mouth. “Actually, that might not be a bad thing. You could drop both bombs on them at once. Two birds, one stone, you know?”

“That could work. If I hit them with two shocking things at the same time, maybe they’ll cancel each other out.”

Hadley stares at me for a moment before her face cracks. Laughter spills from her perfect lips and I watch the way she tilts her head back. The sound that comes from her penetrates my eardrums and I store it in my brain for later. I love hearing her laugh.

“That might be wishful thinking, but I don’t know that you really have any other choice.” She lets out a sigh and shrugs. “Unless, you want to try the same approach as your teammates?”

“I think it’s better if they don’t know the truth...at least not right now.” I toss my plate onto the coffee table. “I’ll tell them the truth about Lucy and when it’s time for you to move, I’ll just tell them things didn’t work out or something.” I turn my hands over in defeat. “I’ll worry about that when the time comes.”

“Okay, so this seems like a solid plan, so far.”

“What about your apartment?” I ask her. “You’re going to have to move in with me for it to be believable.”

She swallows, her slender throat bobbing with the movement. “My lease is up at the end of the week. I was going to see about extending it, and I still can if you don’t actually want me here. We could just make it look like I live here and then I can just come when you need me to?—”

“Hadley, stop. Move in with me,” I say in a rush, not bothering to think my words through before I speak them. “It makes the most sense. It saves you money, it solidifies the appearance of our fake relationship, and then you don’t have to worry about going back and forth.”

“Are you sure?” she asks, her eyes bouncing between mine.

“I’m one hundred percent sure.” I pause, my eyes now searching hers. “The real question is whether or not you are. Are you positive this is what you want to sign up for? It’s just temporary. As soon as Lucy’s custody is assigned, we can pretend this never happened. According to my lawyer, it should be handled before you leave.”

She stares at me for a moment and time feels like it stretches from seconds to minutes to hours before she finally speaks.

“That little girl needs to be with you, Rowan.” A smile spreads across her perfect lips and warmth spreads beneath my rib cage. “Let’s do this.”

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

HADLEY

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