The Wicked

Two months later

Living in California is nothing like living in North Carolina. Everything moves faster here, like everyone is constantly rushing to get to wherever the day is taking them. It’s overwhelming. I went from growing up as no one, to a small-town atmosphere, to Washington for school, then back to my small town. I didn’t realize people even lived with this much urgency. Hayden makes it easy, though. He’s made for this lifestyle, always answering emails and rushing around like his ass is on fire.

My little CEO boyfriend.

Tomorrow, I start my new job. That’s one good thing that came from moving across the country, besides being with the man I love; no one knows my history here. Luxington High did a good job keeping my mistakes secure, probably because of James Monroe, but whoever it was, I’d thank them if I could. Although I’m not going to be teaching yet, I found a position at a private school in Pasadena in the front office. Hopefully, after I put the time in, get to know everyone, and pay my dues, it’ll lead to a teaching position.

Who knows?

The future is mine. For the first time in my life, there’s nothing hanging over my head or trying to drag me under the water.

Hayden tried to get me to work at Monroe Financials again, but I told him there wasn’t enough money in the world that would make me agree to him being my boss. He’s controlling enough as it is, and I don’t need to bow to him outside of our intimate moments. No thanks.

Levi moved into a house down the street from us, and it feels like I have two boyfriends to take care of most days. They’re a package deal, I knew that coming in, and Levi keeps Hayden balanced.

We’ve all sat down to plan which football games around the country we’re going to go to, so we can see Carson and Logan. I’m excited to get to know them – I know Logan is special to my man, and in the brief exchanges I’ve had with her, I understand why. Carson I’m still trying to figure out, since we haven’t connected much. Being in the NFL, he’s always busy with practice, games, press or whatever else he has to do – but he’s known Hayden for their whole lives, and I’m dying to hear some embarrassing stories.

Hayden and I also made plans to visit Washington, so he can see where I went to school, and so I can reconnect with Katie. I’ve always resented how much I shut her out when I moved to Luxington, but now that I’m in a happy and positive state of mind – it’s time to mend all of my broken bridges.

I wish my parents were alive to see me happy. I know they would be proud of where I ended up, and I can feel them watching over us as we learn how to grow together. Hayden’s dad too, no matter how awful he was when I knew him, I know he wanted the best for his son at the end of the day. He wouldn’t have left everything to Hayden otherwise, and I feel like giving Hayden his company was his way to make up for everything he did.

Hayden doesn’t like to talk about it, and Logan has helped me learn more about how to deal with the grief he carries inside of himself daily because of his parents.

Everything feels… right. Life has fallen into place, and for the first time in almost five years, I don’t feel half empty. Instead, I’m fucking overflowing. I have everything I didn’t know I wanted. Looking back at my return to Luxington after college, I realize that this was my future all along, this was what was waiting for me when I stepped off that plane, it just took a long, hard, fucked-up road to get to it.

I wouldn’t have it any other way, though. Even all the bad shit, because it made me who I am today. And it made Hayden into the incredible man I want to spend my life with. If we hadn’t been so toxic, so explosive and unhealthy, he wouldn’t have gotten the help he needed at the right time, he wouldn’t have gotten sober, and he wouldn’t have found his happiness. Anything could have come of us. He could have ended up dead, and I could have ended up with some boring life that doesn’t light me on fire.

We were made to complete each other, that I know. Where he lacks, I fill, and vice versa.

Chewing on my lip, I load the dishes from my lunch into the dishwasher, running over what I’m going to wear for my first day of work tomorrow. Laughing as I start to feel déjà vu, I shake my head and close the appliance. I grab my phone from the counter, then I hit shuffle on my playlist before I slide it in my back pocket. I need noise to drown out the inevitable anxiety that’s settled in my stomach.

As I finish cleaning the kitchen, I sing along to the music, dancing around the room. The doorbell rings as I’m finishing up, and I hit pause on my phone before I go to answer it.

When I pull the door open, the sun hits me in a way that makes me squint, so it takes me a second to realize there’s no one standing on the other side. I look around, wondering if maybe I imagined the doorbell, but then I look down at the ground and find a vase of red roses sitting on the mat.

Picking them up, I look around the front yard again, feeling like someone might be watching me, but when I don’t find anyone, I step inside and close the door behind me. I put the vase down on the entry table, grabbing the card that’s sticking out and opening it.

I am yours and you are mine.

I smile, reading the sentence twice more as I start to feel butterflies attacking my insides, but it’s short-lived, because the sound of the doorbell ringing again makes me jump. Putting the card down on the table, I pull the front door open and find Hayden standing on the other side. He’s dressed in a suit, but the top three buttons of his shirt are undone, showing the tattoos on his chest.

“What are you doing?” I chuckle, holding onto the door.

He smiles, holding out a hand for me. “Come with me.”

“Where?” I ask, looking over his shoulder. “Why aren’t you at work?”

He wiggles his fingers. “C’mon.”

“Can I get some shoes?” I ask, pointing at my bare feet.

Hayden shakes his head. “We aren’t going far.”

Raising a brow, I take his hand and step outside with him, closing the door behind me. He leads me down the front steps and through the grass, then around the side of the house toward the road. “H, where are we going?”

He shushes me, laughing softly. We walk a block down the street toward the beach, and onto the little sandy path that leads out to the ocean. His fingers tighten around mine, and I look over at him. When he smiles, so do I.

“You know I love you, right, P?” he asks, licking his lips nervously.

“Yeah…” I answer, looking at him curiously. “I love you too.”

“I didn’t know happiness until you came crashing into my life.” He walks slowly, still leading me. “It was like parts of me were muted, and it wasn’t until I met you that I could hear them clearly.”

My stomach flips and heart warms, my body suddenly feeling jittery from nerves. Following his gaze, I look out ahead as we step onto the soft sand. The strip of beach we’re stepping onto is covered in red rose petals, and my stomach falls to my ass. “Hayden…”

He pulls me after him as I pause mid-step, and he smiles at me.

When we’ve stepped into the field of rose petals, he turns to face me, grabbing my other hand to hold both of them between us. “You are all that I want, P. From sunup to sundown, it’s you. You’re my soul, my heart, my fucking world.”

I bite onto my lip painfully, my heart pounding under my ribs. “Hayden.”

He lets go of my hands, and grabs both sides of my face before he kisses me. His lips are soft and tender, and when he pulls back, he smiles for a breath before he drops to one knee in front of me.

My hand flies to my lips, and I stop breathing. “Hayden.”

Looking up at me, he squints from the sun before his smile widens. “You are the best thing that’s ever happened to me, Penelope. Before you, I didn’t know what love was – you taught me how to feel, how to breathe, and how to exist. I never want to spend a day without you. It’s you and me, baby, forever. You are my forever.”

He slides his hand into the front pocket of his pants and pulls out a little black box, looking back up at me as he opens it. Inside is a ring, a large oval-shaped diamond sitting in the middle, and my eyes fill with tears as I gasp.

My throat starts to swell with emotion, and I whisper his name.

“P, will you marry me?” he asks, staring at me from the sand. “Spend the rest of your life with me?”

A sob rolls through me, and I press my hand to my mouth harder.

He chuckles, and tears fall over onto my cheeks.

“Yes,” I breathe, nodding my head over and over.

Climbing to his feet, he slides his hand around my face, then he kisses me hard and fast.

When he pulls back, I press my fingers into the soft flesh of his back, pulling him closer to me. “I love you so fucking much, Hayden James Monroe.”

He kisses me again, then looks deep into my eyes. “I love you too, until my last breath.”

Smiling up at him, I slide my arms from around him and wiggle my fingers. “Put that ring on my finger.”

Chuckling, he pulls the ring from the velvet box as I hold my left hand out for him, then with shaking hands, he slides it onto my finger. The sun catches the diamond, and it sparkles almost blindingly as I hold my hand up to look at it. Everything feels the way it’s supposed to be.

Looking at Hayden, everything from the last five years rushes through my mind. Watching him go from a tortured, empty shell of a boy to a vibrant man so filled with love has been the best adventure he could have taken me on, and no matter what, I’ll cherish that.

He cups my face with his palm. “Say it, P.”

I place my hand on top of his. “Say what?”

He grins, leaning in so his words caress my mouth, and he pulls me back to when we fell in love with five short words. “Tell me I own you.”

Kissing him, I slide my tongue against his before I look into his eyes. “You fucking own me, H. Heart, body, and soul. I’m yours.”