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HAYLEY: TODAY
(Present Day)
San Francisco, California
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I WAS HOURS AWAY FROMwitnessing the most over the top wedding in the history of weddings. The future Mr. & Mrs. Statham had somehow managed to make this one day event cost over ten million dollars, and the details definitely reflected the costs.
Everything was custom-made for the occasion and everything looked as if it belonged in a fairytale wedding magazine. From the millions of flowers petals that clung to the aisle in their bright pink, yellow, and white colors to the chairs that bore multiple silk sashes with “S” broaches, to the building that my brother literally had built just for this occasion.
I’d honestly never seen my brother look this happy in his life, and I knew without a doubt that he’d found the person he belonged with for eternity. (And I was also slightly jealous that he’d beat me to it.)
“If your brother has this much money to spend on one day,” Kelly said, adjusting my headband in the bathroom mirror, “I think we should totally let him fund our next café. I’m just saying.”
I laughed. “He asked me about that a few days ago, actually. He offered me to give me five hundred thousand dollars, strings-free for our next café.”
“Because he believes in the café that much?”
“No, because he wants me out of Statham Industries.” I laughed. “He said my last few good weeks of good work don’t make up for all the bad weeks before.”
“Is he firing me, too?” She smiled. “I’ve only been here for a few weeks.”
“He’s willing to throw in an extra two hundred thousand if you quit,” I said. “Something about you spending more time on Video-Chat with me than doing any actual work?”
We both laughed.
“Are you going to say something to Corey today?” she asked. “I saw him out there staring at you. He looks pretty sexy.”
“He always looks sexy.” I shook my head, hating that despite our current estrangement, my recent dreams were all filled with images of him making love to me. “But no. I think we’ll just be associates with time.”
She gave me a blank stare.
“What?”
She opened her purse and pulled out her phone, showing me a text Corey sent her minutes ago.
Corey: Kelly, can you please tell Hayley that she looks absolutely stunning today, and that if she thinks I’m not going to talk to her while we’re at this goddamn wedding, she has another thing coming? Thank you.
I reread the message and rolled my eyes. “He could’ve texted me that.” I pulled out my phone and saw that he did, in fact, text me that.
“You don’t have to forgive him,” she said. “But you still have feelings for him, and you should at least hear him out.”
“I may do that after the wedding.”
“You may?”
“Yes.” I was still slightly upset. “I may.”
She finished adjusting my headband and I told her I’d meet her at the reception after the wedding was over.
I headed down the hallway, back toward the bridal suite. I was halfway there when Corey stepped in front of me. Looking as cocky and confident as he did that night at the rooftop party, he locked his green eyes on mine—daring me to move away.
“Hello, Hayley,” he said.
I didn’t speak, and I tried not to smile at how much sexier he looked up close in his black tuxedo.
“You look beautiful,” he said, looking at my dress. “Absolutely beautiful.”
