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Chapters (39)
  1. Dedication
  2. About the Book
  3. 1
  4. 2
  5. 3
  6. 4
  7. 5
  8. 6
  9. 7
  10. 8
  11. 9
  12. 10
  13. 11
  14. 12
  15. 13
  16. 14
  17. 15
  18. 16
  19. 17
  20. 18
  21. 19
  22. 20
  23. 21
  24. 22
  25. 23
  26. 24
  27. 25
  28. 26
  29. 27
  30. 28
  31. 29
  32. Epilogue
  33. Three Years Later
  34. A Note from the Authors
  35. Acknowledgments
  36. About the Author
  37. CoraLee June
  38. About the Author
  39. Carrie Gray

“Thank you. What were you even doing here?”

He gave me a sheepish grin. “I just wanted to make sure you weren’t punished. I’m glad I was here.”

“Me too.”

“He is a total dick. I don’t like how close he was standing to you either,” Oakley growled. I let out a sigh and nodded. The entire meeting wasn’t anything like what I’d expected. Dr. Haynes was supposed to be professional, the epitome of industry standards. Now everything I’d learned from him felt tainted by his blatant ambition.

Oakley held me in the hallway for a moment, stroking my back and peppering light kisses on top of my head. “You really are good at your job. Don’t let him get to you,” he added. “I really want to stay, but the coach arranged a meeting for me that I can’t miss.”

“What kind of meeting?” I asked, pulling away.

“Nothing to worry about. Are you okay to get home? I’ll stop by as soon as I’m done.”

“I’ll be fine. Go,” I urged, shaking my head free of the hurt. “I need to call my dad.”

Oakley kissed my forehead again before pulling away. “Okay. Text me when you get home. I’ll see you tonight.”

Even though the apartment was a short walk, I was exhausted from everything that had happened in the last two days. I ordered an Uber and let Bill with a red Subaru take me home. When we got to my building, I decided for the first time since the day I moved in to take the elevator instead of the stairs.

Thankfully, Shelby wasn’t home. She was like a goddess sent from above to save my ass in my moment of total weakness last night. But today, I just wanted to be alone. I ran a hot bath and tossed in a rose-scented bath bomb that made the water turn pink and smell like the bushes that grew outside of my childhood home.

I played thunderstorm sounds on my phone and eased myself into the steaming water. All of my muscles let go of the tension they had been holding on to so tightly. I couldn’t fight the tears anymore, so I let them fall, mixing into the pretty pink water. I sobbed until my eyes stung and turned red and puffy.

I cried in the bathtub until the water turned cold. Shaking from a mixture of emotion and the temperature, I stood up and dried myself off. I didn’t bother draining the tub before I walked back into my bedroom, slipped on a tee shirt, and crawled into bed. Even though it was barely lunch time, I fell asleep immediately.

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