Searching for Hailey Bradshaw

Chapter 19

By Wednesday, Hailey realized she wouldn't be able to continue with her life if she didn't make at least one more attempt to resolve things with Daniel. She needed closure if nothing else. She had to at least hear him say the words "It's over."

Knowing that was probably exactly what she was going to hear, Hailey walked determinedly to his room anyway. She tapped lightly on his opened door and could see straight in across to where Connell was stretched out on his mattress and frowning at his homework as he jotted down some notes.

"Hey, hey, hey," Connell called happily when he glanced up. "Look who's come to see me."

As Connell squirmed off his bed and hurried toward her, Hailey risked a glance inside at Daniel's side. He'd been sitting at his desk, typing away at his laptop. When he lifted his face to see who his brother was addressing, he paused. Hailey watched the muscles in his shoulders tense and his eyes frost over.

Nope, that wasn't a good sign.

"Thought you'd miss me," Connell said, pulling—or rather dragging—her into the room. "So, what's been up with you the past few days?"

"Mmm," Hailey murmured. She couldn't even pretend to small talk .

Sensing her distress, Daniel's brother immediately took control of the situation. "Well, I know there's lots to discuss but I'm running late. So, we'll chit chat later, okay?"

Before Hailey could even bob her head in consent, Connell kissed her cheek and whispering, "Good Luck," in her ear. Then he winked at her and nudged her toward Daniel's bed.

"See ya," he called, waving goodbye to his brother and closing them in the room alone together.

Hailey listened to the door latch. Swallowing, she nervously knotted her hands at her waist and turned to Daniel.

He ignored her and started typing on his laptop again. Letting out a silent breath, she backed toward his bed and gingerly sat down on the edge.

He proceeded to act as if she wasn't present. Hailey was okay with that for a minute. It was nice to be close to him again. She could almost pretend nothing was wrong. Doing just that, she took a moment to imagine he was merely working on an article and as soon as he was done, he was going to spin around with that devastating smile of his and ask her about her day.

But after a minute of clicking away on his keyboard, he spun around and shot her a nasty look. "If you're going to say anything, will you get it over with and get out already," he snapped.

Meeting his challenging glare, she meekly said, "I'm sorry."

He stared at her for a second as if waiting for her to explain or start making excuses, but she didn't. She was sorry and that was all. Making excuses seemed petty.

Realizing she wasn't going to speak anymore, Daniel snorted and turned back to his computer screen, returning to where he'd left off, once again ignoring her.

Hailey watched him for five seconds before her temper tweaked. "I know what I did was wrong and I'm trying to apologize," she said.

"I heard you," he answered, not pausing in his work.

Surging to her feet, Hailey set her hands on her hips. "Will you turn around and look at me?" she demanded.

He stopped typing, but he didn't turn.

"I had reasons for my actions," she said, standing up for herself, though she wasn't sure why. She didn't approve of what she'd done any more than he did.