Chapter 155
“Who the father is… well, that’s her business. If you’re that curious, why don’t you ask her yourself?” I shook my head.
Demi snorted. “Yeah, right. I don’t have time for that drama. I’d rather spend my free moments swooning over Mr. Hart.”
Hearing Hayden’s name, I glanced at the clock. He still wasn’t back. “So, are you calling me after work now? Or sneaking off to the restroom again to avoid it?” I asked casually.
“Keira! What do you take me for? I’m not that kind of person!” Demi protested. “Besides, Mr. Hart’s been surprisingly chill lately—he let us off early again today.”
“Oh, really? How long ago?”
“About half an hour. I’m already home, chilling on the couch.”
As Demi talked, I calculated Hayden’s commute. He should have been back by now. But his apartment was still quiet. Maybe he was delayed.
“You guys are finishing work this early and not doing any overtime? Are you sure the project will be done on time?” I asked.
There was a pause, then I heard Demi swallow. “Mr. Hart said it would be.”
“And you believe him? Don’t let him fool you,” I warned. “If it doesn’t get done by the deadline, you’re the one who’ll get penalized. They’ll dock your bonus, not his.”
Demi coughed. “I think we’ll be fine. We’re already testing in Section D, and everything’s running smoothly—no new issues so far. Honestly, it’s just been about checking things off the list every day.”
She clicked her tongue. “It’s so weird, though. When you were still around, there were always issues popping up. Like, every other night, you’d be rushing to Mr. Hart’s hotel room to fix something. But ever since you left, everything’s been smooth sailing. Now I’m just over here, praying something goes wrong so I can… you know… hehehe.” She was indulging in naughty daydreams again.
I cut her off. “Maybe I’m just a bad omen. Mr. Hart and I never clicked, so we had constant issues. But now that I’m out of the picture, everything’s perfect.”
“Hmph,” Demi sounded unconvinced. “You’re not fooling me. I think there’s something going on between you two. Come on, be real—did you and Mr. Hart have a little… secret arrangement?”
Thinking of our fake relationship, I felt a twinge of guilt but dismissed it. “You’re talking nonsense.”
“Don’t hide it from me! Honestly, if something did happen between you and Mr. Hart, I’d totally support it,” Demi said, overly excited.
“Nothing happened, so stop making things up,” I shot back.
“Well, Mr. Hart’s moved out of the hotel,” Demi said, her voice secretive. “Word is, he rented a place.”
I feigned ignorance. “Oh, really?”
“Yeah, and get this—he’s sticking around Seavora for a while. Apparently, he’s looking into his father’s death.” Demi’s voice dropped. “Do you know anything about that?”
I honestly didn’t. When Hayden mentioned getting a place, I had no idea it was because of his father’s accident.
“I heard he died in a car crash.”
I’d lost my parents the same way. Hearing about Hayden’s situation made my chest tighten.
I made an excuse to end the call. After hanging up, I sat staring at the family photo on the wall. It was from years ago—me and my parents, all smiling. But a thought crept in, one I hadn’t considered before: Was my parents’ accident really just an accident?
I sat lost in thought until I realized it was almost seven. Still no sound from across the hall. Worried, I called Hayden, but he didn’t answer. Was he delayed? Or had he canceled our plans?
Not wanting to wait, I grabbed my wrapped gift and decided to go to the Johnstons’ alone. But as I stepped out of my apartment, I noticed Hayden’s door was slightly ajar. He was home? How had I missed him?
My curiosity overcame me. I walked over and gently pushed the door open. “Hay—” The rest of his name died in my throat as I froze, stunned by what I saw inside.