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

Chapter 689

"Come and eat," Xander called.

I didn't move, just watched him as he set the table. "Come on, give it a taste," he coaxed.

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Under the soft dining room light, he looked so much like Hayden. The way he moved, the way he stirred the soup earlier-everything about it was familiar.

You can fake a lot of things, but those tiny habits? The stuff you don't even realize you're doing? That's harder to fake.

So... Xander had to be Hayden, right?

That thought pulled me to my feet. I walked over and stopped behind him. Before I even knew what I was doing, I wrapped my arms around him, resting my face against his back. His body tensed, but he didn't pull away. Instead, he said softly, "The food's ready."

"You're Hayden, aren't you?" I whispered.

Xander didn't say a word.

Imoved around to face him, gently grabbing his shoulders to turn him toward me. "There's no one else here, just us. You can tell me the truth. Please... tell me you're Hayden. Okay?"

"I'm not," he said, his voice cutting through the fragile hope I'd been holding onto.

"I'm Xander," he repeated.

I let go

just... when you're wearing that apron and cooking like that, you're exactly like Hayden. Even the way you stir soup with your left hand, three times, is just like him." His jaw tightened, "That's just

smile. "A coincidence. Such a perfect coincidence it keeps

11

into the dining chair, stabbed a piece of roasted zucchini with my fork, and took a bite. The second it hit my

it immediately. "What's wrong? Is

answer right away. The issue wasn't the flavor. The

So, he wasn't Hayden.

edge of hope and doubt, over and over, until my emotions were rubbed raw. "Hm?" Xander prompted again,

the fork and lied.

it again," he said, already halfway

I

up something else," he insisted, like he had to prove himself-like being dismissed wasn't an

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Chapter 689

can," I said. "But save it for another night.

some reason, my

you're saying I'll get another chance to cook

I just stared at him, wondering if he really wanted to stay in my life. Then

the way he stirred it-three times, with his left hand-was exactly

The soup was rich, and almost