Chapter 406

I closed my eyes, finally letting the worry about him fade a little. “Where are you?”

“I’m outside the apartment.”

My stomach dropped. I could picture him standing there, all alone at the old place. He didn’t know I’d moved out. Of course, he went back there. I had moved out. Since I couldn’t get ahold of Hayden, he had no idea, so of course, he’d gone back to the old place.

“You didn’t have your phone on you. I asked Yuna, and she said you went home. Lena was in surgery, so I couldn’t reach her either,” Hayden explained.

I took a deep breath, letting my eyes drift over my new, unfamiliar apartment. “I couldn’t reach you either.”

“I know,” he replied, his voice soft.

A bittersweet smile tugged at my lips. Before I could ask why he’d been unreachable, he added, “I’ll explain everything when I see you. Did you move?”

Yeah, I had moved. And Hayden didn’t know about this place. He’d talked about renting somewhere new and asked me to move in with him. I had said yes. But with him being MIA today, I ended up here instead.

“Yeah, I moved your stuff too,” I said, glancing at his suitcase sitting by the door.

He didn’t own much. The apartment he used to rent across from mine was mostly furnished by the landlord, so most of it stayed behind.

He went quiet, and the silence made me nervous, so I changed the subject. “Take a cab to Jubilant Heights. I’ll wait for you at the entrance.”

“Okay.”

After hanging up, I changed my shoes and headed out. The apartment was new, barely finished last year, and the neighborhood was really nice. I walked around for a bit, just taking in the fresh air, before making my way to the entrance. There was a fruit store near the gate, advertising discounts on fresh produce. I wandered in and grabbed a few things, figuring I’d kill time until Hayden got here. Just as I was about to pay, my phone rang.

“I’m at the fruit store,” I said. And as if on cue, I saw his tall figure appear in the doorway.

I waved, and he strode over, eyes locked on me, making my heart race like crazy.

I hesitated and said, “Do you want anything? I just got…”

But before I could finish, Hayden grabbed my wrist, his touch sending a jolt through me.

“No need. Let’s go home,” he said, his voice low and husky.

Chapter 405

I blinked, still processing the jolt of electricity his touch had sent through me, and let him pay for the fruit. He led me out of the store, and we walked in silence for a while, heading deeper into the complex.

Finally, I couldn’t hold it in anymore. “I tried calling you, but your phone was off. I couldn’t find you, and last night… everything happened so fast. Matthew collapsed, coughing up blood, so I—”

I stopped myself. I had left him. Left without saying a word and went with Jace. I had my reasons, sure, but it didn’t change the fact that I’d abandoned him.

“I know,” Hayden said, cutting me off.

“I rushed back because of Matthew. His condition was serious,” I added, feeling the need to explain more, even though his calm responses weren’t helping my unease.

“Yeah.”

He was agreeing, but something still felt off. The fact that I couldn’t reach him earlier kept nagging at me, making me think maybe he was still upset. Maybe it had something to do with me leaving him last night. “So… why couldn’t I get through to your phone?” I asked.

“I’ll tell you when we get to your new place,” Hayden said, clearly teasing me.

I stopped walking, not in the mood for games. “Why can’t you just tell me now?”

He stopped too, turning to face me. His teasing expression dropped, replaced by something more serious. “What’s wrong? Are you afraid I’m mad at you?”

Chapter 407