Bye-Bye Jerk, Hello Mr. Right by Rosie Steppe

Hello 675

Chapter 674 Hayden?

It had to be him. That same silhouette I'd seen in the alley that night.

Last time, I blew it-I fell and missed my chance. Not this time. I stepped forward...and forgot about my busted knee. Yep, down I went, crashing straight to the floor.

"Wow, if you wanted me to catch you, you could've just asked," Cole quipped, smirking as he helped me up.

I ignored him, my focus glued to the stage. Without thinking, I yelled, "Turn on the lights!"

The models froze mid-rehearsal, and the backstage area stayed pitch black.

"I said, turn on the lights!" My voice was louder, desperate.

Ron walked in just then, eyebrows raised. "What's happening? Turn on the lights, now!"

His tone worked like magic. The lights flooded on, way too bright, making everyone blink like deer in headlights- including me.

But I didn't care. My gaze darted from face to face until it landed on the one in the center.

Hayden.

I'd dreamed of, cried over, whispered "I miss you" to in the dark. Right there, alive. But something was off-his eyes. The way he looked at me, like he didn't even know me. Confused. Uneasy. None of it mattered. Not his weird expression, not my throbbing knee.

Cole trailing

are you

shot toward the guy onstage, his voice shaking. "H-Hayden... You-you're alive? But how?

edge of the stage,

be Hayden. I was sure of it-completely, undeniably

catching on the name I'd repeated in my head so many

didn't even

to step forward, and he obeyed instantly, hopping off the stage.

turned to me, his tone formal and flat. "Ms.

like that, the whole fantasy

and high-pitched. It was all wrong. Hayden's voice had weight, that low, velvety tone that made you lean in just to hear it better. This guy? Nope. Not

too similar. The sharp angles of his jaw, those deep, intense

+25 BONUS

Chapter 674

pale and freakishly perfect, like

the tension. "Are we rehearsing or