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

Chapter

723

"You said you'd been suspicious of Wayne for a while. What about Jace? You were working with him, but when he was surrounded by crocodiles, you just... stood there. Why?" I finally asked, a question that had haunted me for ages. Even though Jace and I had ended things, that moment stuck in my head, like a bad movie scene I couldn't skip. I'd even dreamt about it.

I'd asked Jace once, but his answer didn't feel real. Hayden's answer? That's the one I needed.

"Testing him," Hayden said, cool and straight to the point.

"Testing him? He's Wayne's brother."

"He is," Hayden said, not budging. "But not entirely. There were... other reasons.

"Like what?" I pressed, trying to stay patient.

I was sitting sideways, avoiding his bandaged arm. His face was out of view, but his voice stayed steady.

"Because everything pointed too perfectly at Wayne, like it was staged," he explained.

His words pulled me back to

events of that

as I moved into Wayne's villa. The danger seemed aimed at me,

wasn't random. The setup wasn't about me at all-I was just bait in a trap for Hayden. That's why, during the kidnapping, I'd been the only one to walk away

"Wayne liked you. Jace knew that. But since you and Jace were done, he had no reason to stop Wayne.

served two purposes for Jace: one, to 'prove' how much he loved you, risking his life and all

with me? That's why you

of the corner of my eye,

1/2

+25 BONUS

should've let the pretty nurses handle that," I teased, gesturing to his bandages." Pretty sure

"I didn't want any woman but you seeing me

1 froze, blinking.

just rizzed me

his arm lightly. "Be serious. What

he did

just about me. It was about control, ambition, and power. I was just the excuse they used

memory of that moment, when Hayden had

and still act so indifferent, like it didn't matter if I lived