Chapter 540

“The other big announcement today,” Chadwick declared, “is the union of the Hart family and the Drago family. Hayden will be marrying Yara Drago in three months.”

His words hit like a freezing cold slap, leaving me totally numb. So that was why Hayden really wanted to end things with me.

Yara Drago—yeah, I knew who she was. Thorsten’s sister, studying abroad. I’d come across her information once when I was looking into Thorsten. She was insanely smart and gorgeous, with a PhD and everything—a total catch.

I looked at Hayden across the room, letting a bitter smile cross my face before I spun on my heel and walked away. I moved too fast, wobbling in my heels as I reached the door, almost twisting my ankle.

They say when you’re down, even a glass of water can mess with you. Guess it’s true. Gritting my teeth, I limped out to the entrance and threw up my hand to hail a cab. I just needed to get out of there. Every second felt like I couldn’t breathe.

But before I could catch one, a car rolled up. The window slid down to reveal Wayne’s face.

“I’ll give you a ride,” he said, watching me closely.

I knew I probably looked a mess, and my first instinct was to shake my head. But he cut me off, “Rea, you’ve cleared the air with everyone else in the Johnston family. But you and I? We’ve still got things to talk about. Today’s as good a time as any.”

But whether we talked or not didn’t change much. To me, he was just like the others now—someone I’d learned to keep at arm’s length. I’d decided not to hate them, but loving them like I used to? That wasn’t happening.

Swallowing down the ache, I said, “You should already know where I stand. There’s nothing left to say.”

Wayne got out of the car, stepping right into my path. “Rea, just know that, no matter what, you’ll always be like a sister to me.”

I dropped my gaze, bitterness twisting in my chest. Why was it that the people who needed to care always drifted away, while the ones I didn’t want near kept showing up?

I clenched my fists, trying to block out Chadwick’s words echoing in my mind: ‘Hayden will be marrying Yara Drago.’

“Rea?” Wayne’s voice snapped me back to the present.

I looked at him, but my mind was miles away.

“Rea, my dad’s actions are unforgivable. As his son, I can’t excuse him, but I’ll do my best to make it right. I know nothing we say or do can really fix what we put you through. But we’ll keep trying.” Wayne said, sounding as sincere as ever.

I’d heard similar lines from Lindey and even Jace before. They knew I didn’t want apologies, but they kept pushing them anyway. I was too tired to argue, and right now, all I wanted was for this conversation to end.

So I just nodded. “Fine. Just… be there if I ever actually need help.”

“Do you need help now?” Wayne asked.

Technically, yeah, I needed a ride. But the thought of sitting alone with him in a quiet car made me feel way too vulnerable.

After a pause, Wayne tried again. “It’s late, Rea, and it’s not exactly safe for you to be hailing cabs alone.” He clearly still wanted to give me a ride, but I was set on refusing.

He seemed to pick up on that. With a soft, understanding smile, he took a step back, giving me space. “If you’d rather not, I won’t insist.”

Right then, a cab pulled up. I lifted my hand and gestured to it. “There. No need to trouble you.”