All Chapters of Mr. Hayes’ Secret Heir: Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

I knew Chase joked around a lot, but I also knew he wasn’t the type to say things without meaning something underneath.So throughout my entire shift, all I could think about was what he meant by family pressure.During my break, I even searched Mason online again hoping I would find something that explained Chase’s warning better, but there was nothing useful. By the time my break ended, my head already hurt from overthinking everything.I had just finished cleaning one of the hallways when a guest stepped into my path.At first, he smiled politely. “You’re very good at your job.”“Thank you,” I replied while trying to move around him.He moved too. “Why are you in such a hurry?”l“I still have work to do.”He looked me up and down slowly in a way that made my skin crawl. “A beautiful woman like you shouldn’t be doing this kind of work.”I sucked in a breath knowing the kind of man he was. I had worked this job long enough to spot men like him early.“I’m perfectly fine with my job,”

Chase and I left Kate and Tyler’s place late in the evening.Before leaving, Hannah and I exchanged numbers and promised to keep in touch. She seemed like the kind of person that was easy to get along with.I expected Chase to drive us straight home, but instead he pulled up in front of a bar.I looked at him. “Seriously?”“You look like somebody that needs alcohol. Come on.”Thankfully, the place wasn’t packed. Just low music, dim lights, and people focused on their own conversations.After we settled in and got served, Chase faced me properly. “Okay. Tell me why you sounded depressed earlier on the phone.”I exhaled heavily. “Mason fired me.”“He finally did it. Took him long enough.”My jaw dropped. “Excuse me? You do realize being fired means I’m officially jobless now?”“You’ll survive, Mia.”“I don’t want to sit around doing nothing all day.” I let out a breath. “I like being busy.”“Okay. That part I understand. But you’re still not going back there. What was his reason for fir

Today I woke up a single woman. Still lying in bed, I stared at myself in the mirror across the room before grinning. “I’m officially not Ruben’s wife anymore.”It finally happened. Yesterday, the divorce got finalized. It’s done. Ruben and I are done.I got out of bed and did the same happy dance I’d already done at least six times since getting the news.Still grinning, I grabbed my phone and tried calling Mason again, but his line still wasn’t going through. I’d been trying to tell him myself in case his lawyer hadn’t updated him yet.What was supposed to be a short work trip had somehow turned into weeks. According to Mason, the issue at the Canada office was serious enough that he wanted to make sure something like that never repeated itself again before returning.I decided I’d try again later and made my way downstairs. Chase was in the kitchen sitting beside a huge cake with TO NEW BEGINNINGS written in bold icing across the top.My mouth fell open. “Is that mine?”“Yes. All y

"I see we're playing with food now." Mason's voice came from the kitchen entrance, amused, his eyes going from the pancake on his shirt to me."That was meant for Chase," I said, already reaching for a napkin. "I'm sorry.""It's fine." He waved it off and moved to the coffee machine, unbothered, starting to brew himself a cup.The kitchen settled into silence after that. Just the sound of the coffee machine and the occasional stolen glance when one of us thought the other wasn't paying attention. My mind kept wandering back to last night, no matter how many times I tried to think about something else.Mason was the one who finally broke it. "I'll be wrapping up everything here in Chicago soon," he said, not looking up from the machine. "Which means I'll be heading back to LA. Have you thought any more about moving with us?"“I want to,” I admitted. "I would love to be closer to Lior. But I don't want to be a burden, Mason. You've already done so much and I don't want to keep taking ad

Mason burst six balloons before walking over to us, his eyes on me. "Am I free to join?""Sure," I replied."There are rules before you join," Chase said, gesturing at the empty seat beside him. "We're currently trauma bonding. So if you're joining, you have to share."To my surprise, Mason actually sat down. For a while, he just turned the thumbtack over in his fingers before speaking. I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't what happened next.He started talking about us. Recounting everything that happened that summer. He told it like I wasn't sitting right there.At one point, something he said made me want to respond, to explain myself, and I opened my mouth, but Chase's hand closed over mine. He gave me a small shake of his head.Snapping my mouth shut, I allowed Mason to finish. When he was done, nobody said anything. I hated that I was the villain in his sad story, even though Mason had narrated it without anger or bitterness."That girl," Chase asked. "Do you still l