Chapter 24
Chapter 24
Late at night, in a swanky private room on the second floor of a bar, Alex was surrounded by his buddies, all taking turns in at drinking game.
Layton noticed Alex seemed off and said, “Hey, Alex, you’ve been so busy with Haley lately. What’s the deal tonight?”
Alex drained his glass of red wine and shrugged. “She’s a handful
“A handful?” The others looked at each other, as confused as Layton
Layton finally got it. “You mean your little girl?”
Alex rolled his eyes. “Who else?”
With a smirk, Layton leaned in. “You know, girls grow up. If you can’t handle her, maybe it’s time to find her a good man.”
Alex shot back, “She’s just a kid! Where do you get these ideas?”
Layton shrugged. “Come on, she’s twenty already. Maybe I should meet her. I’m kind of into her.”
Alex put his glass down and stared at him, his fists clenched. “You’re way too old for that. If you even think about it, you’re in
trouble”
Layton laughed and backed off. “Who’s calling me old? We’re the same age!”
He continued, “So, you don’t want to find her a man, but you can’t keep her around if she’s always driving you crazy. What do you really want? You don’t have a thing for her–Do you see her as a sister?”
As Layton’s gaze probed him, memories of Ellie’s words came back to Alex: “Tll say it a hundred times, a thousand times- the Warren family has been good to me and you’ve all treated me well, but you’re not my family and that’s not my home.”
Feeling agitated, Alex got up and left the room..
The others looked at each other, then at Layton. “Layton, is everything okay? Why did Alex leave like that?”
Layton poured himself some more wine and glanced at the door. “He’s just dealing with his little troublemaker. She’s got him stressed out.”
Ellie was busy as usual, but today felt different.
She wanted to put some distance between herself and Alex, deciding not to drag him into her attempts to win over Haley
anymore.
Tonight was Haley’s birthday, and Aaron was planning to propose. Ellie believed that Haley wouldn’t throw away their two- year relationship for something material.
Once they were engaged, she figured Alex would finally back off They could just say hi when they crossed paths and then go on with their lives.
Afiera
a long day at the hospital, Ellie felt a knot in her stomach when she realized she hadn’t received an invitation to Haley’s birthday party.
As soon as she clocked out, she rushed to find Aaron. She learned he had called Haley multiple times, but she hadn’t picked
Your dream car game is herel
12:
- up. “You should try calling her again, Ellie urged. ‘Maybe she’s it being a little difficult and wants you to sweet–talk her.”
