Page 138 of Chasing Hadley

Remorse reflects from his eyes. “She just said that when she called her contact, they said an early visit wasn’t possible. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s fine. It’s not your fault.” My hollow tone doesn’t match the raging storm rising inside of me.

It’s too much.

I can’t keep it bottled in.

Tears pool in my eyes.

Shit.

“I have to go home,” I sputter as a tear manages to escape my eyes. I push back from Blaise, but he threads his fingers through mine, holding me in place.

“Had.” He uses the nickname Londyn always calls me.

The sound of it causes the storm inside me to explode.

I break the fuck down, a sob tearing from my chest. This day, losing my sisters, getting beat up by my dad, learning I may have been kidnapped—it all pours out of me. Right here, in the Porterson’s living room. In front of Blaise and Rhyland.

I need to get out of here. But when I move back to bolt, Blaise pulls me against his chest and wraps his arms around me. For an instinctive second, I start to fight him. But as more tears pour out, I curl into a ball and grab onto the bottom of his shirt, holding on for dear life.

And that’s how I spend the next half an hour.

Sobbing like a baby.

And Blaise? He sits there and holds me, letting me soak his fucking shirt with my goddamn pathetic tears.

40

BLAISE

Haveyou ever had one of those life-changing moments when you know you’re never going to be the same again? That’s what today was. Life-changing. In a good way and also a bad way. It’s crazy when I think about it, how a mere twenty-four hours can be so changing—so significant. It makes me wonder what’d happen if you simply lost twenty-four hours of your life.

Like Hadley has.

Although, I think her amnesia was for a bit longer than twenty-four hours.

The worst part is that I wouldn’t put it past my dad to have taken Hadley. Mel’s owed him for a while. Perhaps he took Hadley as punishment. But then why give her back and not make Mel work off his debt? As far as I know, Mel just started working to pay back my dad. But maybe I’m more in the dark about my dad’s work than I thought.

“Is she okay?” Rhyland whispers as he quietly walks into the room with a bottle of water in his hand.

After Hadley sobbed into my shirt for a half an hour straight, I managed to get her to lay down on the sofa with me. Almost the instant we did, she fell asleep.

Right now, my arm is tucked underneath her head and her face is nestled in the crook of my neck. I’m not going to lie. It’s strange to be cuddled up this close with someone. But it’s not necessarily bad. Just… new and different and… calming.

“I’m not sure.” I softly brush my fingers through Hadley’s hair, turning my head to look at her. “She fell asleep about a half an hour ago, but…” I sigh. “I think until she gets her sisters back and takes care of this problem with Axel and our dad, she’s not going to be okay.”

“I know.” He sinks into the chair across from me and unscrews the cap from the bottle of water. “We’re going to help her, right?”

I shake my head. “I am. You need to focus on going to school and running your shop.”

“It’s your shop too. Sofie and Jay gave it to all of us.” He takes a swig of water then sets the bottle down on the coffee table. “I want to help. There’s no way you can handle all of our problems and hers.” He rests back in the seat. “Besides, I like Hadley and want to help her.”

I comb my fingers through her hair, my muscles constricting as I ask, “Like her, like her?

He wrestles back his amusement. “Would it bother you if I did?”

I want to shake my head, but instead, I just swallow hard.

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