Chapter 599
My passport was still back at the hotel, waiting for me. Yara shot me a quick look, then flicked her gaze to Hayden before returning to scrolling on her phone. Hayden didn’t even blink. He totally ignored me as if I hadn’t said a word. I didn’t bother repeating myself—he definitely heard me.
Sure enough, half an hour later, we pulled up to the hotel. Just as I was about to open the door, Hayden’s voice cut through the silence. “Yara, go up with her.”
Guess he was still freaking out about the whole Hernan kidnapping thing. But Yara just shrugged. “I’m hungry. I’ll grab something to eat.” She wasn’t having it.
Hayden shot her a look, but Yara didn’t even flinch. She just walked off, like it was no big deal. She was fearless. I guess that’s part of what made her so… irresistible to Hayden.
I mean, someone once said a woman shouldn’t make a guy the center of her world. Only then will he value her. Maybe there’s truth in that. Looking back, I definitely gave too much weight to Jace and Hayden. But realizing that now? A little too late. I’d already tripped twice.
I chuckled bitterly to myself and stepped out of the car, heading inside. Hayden had sent Yara with me so he didn’t have to be alone with me. And even though I told myself I shouldn’t care, there was this annoying part of me that kinda did. And as much as I didn’t want to go up by myself, I certainly wasn’t going to ask him to come along. No matter how nervous I was, I wasn’t about to admit it.
I walked into the lobby and flagged down a bellhop. “Hey, can you help me with my bags?” He nodded, but before I could say anything else, Hayden was suddenly next to me. “Forget it. I’ll do it.”
If he wanted to tag along, fine. He was probably the safer bet anyway. If anything went down, the bellhop wasn’t going to be much help, but Hayden? Yeah, he could definitely throw down.
I glanced at the bellhop. “Still, let him come along. Just so there’s no misunderstanding.” Hayden shot me a look, but I just brushed it off and led the bellhop to the elevator.
The three of us went up. After what happened with Hernan, I wasn’t about to go into that room alone; I made sure they both came with me. Since I’d barely been in the room before Hernan took me, my luggage was still packed, so it was just a grab-and-go situation.
The bellhop wasn’t wasting his time either—he ended up hauling my bags while Hayden and I followed behind in awkward silence. We made it back downstairs, bags in the car… but Yara still wasn’t around.
Hayden tried calling her. No answer. You could practically see the tension in his face as he turned to me. “We need to find her.”
“I’m staying put,” I shot back, refusing. “You go check on her.” If he was worried about his fiancée, he could go looking. I wasn’t going to tag along.
Hayden got out of the car, but then he opened my door and said, “What if Bruno’s people show up and you’re here alone?” That was a low blow, but… I guess he had a point.
Sighing, I reluctantly climbed out of the car and followed him to the shop Yara mentioned. We peeked inside… but no sign of her. Hayden’s whole vibe shifted. His pace quickened as he went up to the counter and asked the cashier. The response was worse than we feared—Yara had just left.
My stomach dropped. Hayden dialed her number again, walking outside like he was on a mission. Her phone was still off, and he came back to ask for the security footage. The cashier started playing it, and just as Yara appeared on the screen, Hayden’s phone rang.
We were standing right next to each other, so I heard the voice loud and clear: “Hayden, your girl’s here having coffee with me. You want to come pick her up?”