No Stranger to Scandal - By Rachel Bailey Page 0,62

car, she couldn’t hold the tears back any longer. She rested her head on the steering wheel and let them come. Tears for Graham mingled with tears for herself as they slid down her cheeks.

If you still love him, go get what you want. Life’s too short, too unpredictable to waste a second of it.

This time his words struck a chord deep inside her. Graham was right. She loved Hayden. It was as simple—and as gloriously complicated—as that.

She didn’t care if Hayden had some ridiculous idea about their suitability or his heart’s capabilities. She was going to fight for their love, fight for them. All the other reasons they’d thought they shouldn’t be together, they were molehills, not mountains. Anything could be surmounted if they did it hand in hand. If she’d learned one thing from Graham’s example, it was not to live with regrets. To make changes in her life while she could. Even if talking to Hayden again was destined to fail, she at least had to try.

She checked her watch—still early enough to catch a flight. She reached for her cell, dialed her travel agent and bought a round-trip ticket to New York. She’d just have enough time to get home, grab a couple of things and make the flight. She couldn’t take Rosie, so she’d need to be back in D.C. tonight. If things worked out with Hayden, Rosie would be part of their permanent plans, but for today, she’d have to wait here. Excitement fluttered in her stomach. She knew what she wanted and she was going to grab it.

When a light turned red, she drummed her fingers on the steering wheel. First order of business—she needed to work out what to say when she saw Hayden again. He’d been adamant this morning, so she’d need the perfect way to explain that nothing mattered more than the two of them creating a new family with Josh and their future children. Words swirled around her head, forming into sentences to convince him, then fell apart as she discarded them. Maybe on the plane—she’d have a bit of time on the plane to get the words just perfect. She should be thinking about what to grab at her house so that went as quickly as possible. Missing this flight was not an option.

She pulled up in front of her place, grabbed her hold-all bag and flung open the car door. As she stepped out onto the road, she hesitated. Someone was sitting on the concrete steps to her front door. Two someones. Her heart stilled. Two someones she loved. Hayden stood and picked up Josh, but he didn’t make a move to come over to her.

Her knees wobbled and she leaned against the car for support. His gaze met hers but it gave nothing away. He’d come back—did he need something, maybe some more testimony? Had he left something in her house? Clothes? His phone?

The plan had been to tell him what she wanted for their future, but that was supposed to happen after she’d had time to get it straight in her head. Make the words perfect so she didn’t ruin the chance. But he was here. Earlier than her plan. She was going to have to make the best of it.

She put her handbag up on her shoulder and set the keyless lock. Then she took a deep breath and pushed away from the car. One foot in front of the other. As she approached, Josh squealed and reached for her, but Hayden kept his hold on him.

“Hello,” Hayden said, a slight frown line marring his brow.

She straightened her spine and found a welcoming smile. “Did you forget something?”

“Yes.”

Her heart shattered and she only held herself upright through sheer force of will. He’d returned because he’d forgotten something. Though that didn’t mean she couldn’t convince him. “You’d better come in.”

She moved around him and unlocked her front door. If she could get them inside, she’d have a better chance of having a fair hearing for what she needed to say. Maybe lock the door behind them. She pushed the door open with a trembling hand. Rosie rushed at them and greeted everyone with the enthusiasm of a dog who hadn’t seen people for hours, standing on her hind legs and wagging her curly tail.

Forming her argument in her mind, Lucy walked into her living room. It was a safe place for Josh to crawl around on the floor so she could have all of Hayden’s