Page 73 of Stealing Forever

“And Sailor doesn’t knowher. Addison lost her right to call herself a mother the second she walked out the door and never came back. She has no right to speak down to you, and I have absolutely no problem telling her that. This also isn’t her house, sweetheart. Never has been.”

“I don’t wanna make things more strained with your family. Sailor deserves to have both her mother and her father and I can’t get in the way?—”

“What family, Hailey? My family is Sailor, and now,you. Addison sure as shit isn’t a part of that. You and Sailor are theonly people who matter. I don’t give a shit if Addison thinks I’m being a dick. She doesn’t have the right to show up on a whim, let herself intomyhome, and be rude to my girlfriend.”

A small smile appears on her face. “Your girlfriend? Is that what I am?”

“No, sweetheart, you’re so much more than that, but for fear of scaring you off, we’ll leave it at the girlfriend title for a while.” Bringing my lips to hers, I kiss her. It’s soft and brief, but now doesn’t feel appropriate to kiss her as passionately as I’d like to, even if I do feel the need to remind her how much she means to me.

“You can’t possibly mean that,” she whispers, looking at me wide-eyed. “We’ve only been dating for a week.”

“What can I say? I’m a man who knows what he wants, sweetheart. And trust me when I say my ex isn’t going to get in the way of what’s developing between us. I’d never allow her to.”

Hailey snuggles deeper into my side and sighs deeply. The whirlwind of the last hour or so replays in my mind as I start to process everything. Nothing about Addison showing up makes any sense—the only logical explanation is that she saw one of the videos of me and Hailey and is using it as her attempt to have success at fame.

Wrapping my arms around Hailey, I rest my head against hers and we listen to the sound of the birds chirping. My backyard offers a moment of peace before the storm returns the moment we walk back into the house. I stand firm on what I said—I’ll never let Addison get between us. We have something incredible, and I’ll protect it with everything I have.

But while I sit here and hold her, a jarring realization hits me like a Mac truck. How far is Addison willing to go to get what she wants? I might not let anything get between us, but what if Hailey does?

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

It feels like forever since I’ve been at my own house, surrounded by things that are solely mine. But the silence is deafening, and even though I’ve only been here a few hours, I’m not enjoying the alone time. Sailor’s laughter isn’t coming from the next room. There’s nothing on the TV to keep me company. I tried to play music on my phone, but even that didn’t breathe life into me like it normally does.

Staring at my reflection in the mirror, I put my diamond stud earrings on. I’m all dolled up and ready to go on a date with myboyfriend. I should be more excited, but I just feel so unsure.

It’s been a week since Addison showed up, and even though Declan put her up in a hotel so she wouldn’t be tempted to be at his house all the time, I haven’t stayed over either. Her coming back has put distance in my heart.

Logic tells me he doesn’t want her. His words and his actions say the same, but just knowing Sailor’s mother is back in the picture so soon after we’ve started our new relationship together has me retreating.

I’m not intentionally withdrawing, but I also don’t want to be the woman standing in the way of them reuniting their family.

With that being said, I can see right through Addison, even though she puts on a sickeningly sweet persona in front of Declan. Acting like a perfect woman, a perfect mom, and even pretending like she’s a perfect “friend” to me while he’s around. She smiles at all the right times, laughs in all the right places, but when he’s not present, her glares are menacing, her words are cutting, and the seeds of doubt she’s planting in my mind are growing faster than ivy.

I hate it. I hate it so much because I know in my heart Declan cares about me, and that my bond with Sailor isstrong.

But I still can’t help feeling like the other woman—a mistress intheirrelationship. The engagement ring may be gone, but the ghosts of their past float around haunting Declan’s home, whether he wants them there or not.

Tonight, though, Declan says is all aboutus.

He’s taking me out again, this time to a ritzy seafood restaurant, then a walk through downtown Bridge Point.

It’s a far more public setting than we’ve gone out in before, and for some reason that feels monumental. Like hewantsto be seen with me.

Like I said, his actions are reflecting his words, and while that should be reassuring, there’s still a pit in my stomach.

I want to be with him, and I want things to work out between us so badly, but there’s two people in a relationship, and it’s not just about what I want. And my lack of self-confidence loves to tell me he’ll eventually leave me for her.

Choosing a deep crimson lipstick, I paint it on my lips, pursing them after it’s applied. Pushing open my closet doors, I grab a flowy black dress and pair it with my favorite strappy sandals to make it feel slightly more casual.

The clock on my phone reminds me Declan should be here any minute, so I toss my makeup back in the bag and go wait inmy small living room. The tick of the clock echoes through my home, and I lean against my couch.

Scrolling on socials, I inputbaseball kissinto the search bar, pulling up countless videos of me and Declan. Watching them makes me feel better—it’s easy to see the chemistry between us—it serves as a good reminder to ground myself and stop lettingherwin.

I’m giving Addison exactly what she wants. She’s inflicted doubt. Uncertainty. She wants to weasel her way back into Declan’s good graces, and presumably into his bed.

Am I really going to let her?

Declan is a man worth fighting for, and she didn’t. She did the opposite and left without a word.

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