Chapter 53 Chapter LIII

Chapter 53 Chapter LIII
The woman takes a step closer to him, and when I see her lips touching his cheek while she greets him with a kiss, I snap.
“Poppy?” I call, making sure she’s still hearing me since I’ve been quiet for a while now.
“Yes? What’s going on, Hayden? You’re scaring me.”
“I was coming to visit Spencer at his office before heading home. And now I’m watching the most beautiful woman walk into his office. I don’t know what it is, I’m probably freaking out for nothing, but there’s something telling me he wasn’t expecting her here. Am I reading too much into this? Tell me I am,” I plead, looking away as Spencer lets the woman inside and closes the door behind him.
My heart is pounding like crazy against my chest, and I feel like I’m falling into a spiral.
“Hayden, chill out. I have no idea what you saw, but it’s probably nothing,” Poppy assures me, her voice low and serious now. It seems like I’m talking to a different person all of a sudden. “You don’t want to ruin what you have with Spencer because you’re jumping to conclusions.”
She’s right. I definitely do not want to do that. So, why am I feeling like my stomach just dropped to my feet, and I can’t breathe? Why am I imagining all these scenarios inside my head?
I trust Spencer. He’d never do anything to hurt me.
“Girl, listen to me. Don’t overthink this, okay? Let’s just do something together to distract you, and then later, you can ask Spencer if you want. Or even wait to see if he tells you something himself,” my friend suggests.
It’s the wisest thing to do. But I just know I won’t be able to get this out of my head, even though I saw nothing incriminating. Spencer can meet whoever he wants, whether it’s a man or a woman. I’m not that controlling. I don’t ever want to be that person.
“Okay, fine. You’re probably right. I’m just intimidated by her presence and beauty, that’s all. Should I still go there and offer my help, though?”
“What if this is an important meeting? You don’t want to ruin things for him, do you?” Poppy retorts, making me be reasonable. This is one of the many reasons I love having her by my side. She always makes me see the light and be rational instead of emotional—something I often do.
“Sure, yeah. So, should we do something?” Then I remember I didn’t answer her. “About the exclusive, I’m sure Spencer will be happy to grant that to you. I’ll talk to him later about it.”
“Yay, great. Thanks, girl. I love you,” Poppy muses, returning to her normal, cheery self.
“What would you do without me, huh?” I tease, grateful for the distraction she’s already giving me.
We decide to watch a movie while drinking wine at the ranch. By the time I get home after getting some groceries, Mom and Dad are on the couch watching the local news, while Chad and Lauren play Monopoly on the living room table.
“Don’t you guys work anymore?” I ask in a judging tone, eyeing my siblings as they look up at me. I’m just teasing them, of course, but it’s funny to see them getting offended by it and quick to defend themselves.
“I’m off duty tonight, sis,” Chad replies bitterly. “Not that I need to give you any explanation about my life.”
“Ouch!” I put my hand on my chest to pretend like he hurt me.
“And I don’t know if you remember, but I was involved in a fire incident. I’m still recovering,” Lauren muses, throwing the dice and turning her attention back to the game.
I chuckle to myself, collapsing on the couch between Mom and Dad.
“What took you so long to get home?” my mom asks kindly, turning to look at me. “You left the bakery before me.”
I consider lying to her, but I can’t make myself do it. At least, not completely.
“I went to visit Spencer at his office but decided against it since I thought he might be too busy. Then Poppy called me, and we decided to watch a movie and drink some wine, so I stopped by the market to get something for us to eat,” I tell her, ignoring the way Chad gives me a sideways glance.
Whatever he thinks he’s looking for in my face, he won’t find it.
“Can I join you?” Lauren asks, her puppy eyes turned to me. “I’m bored out of my mind in this house.”
“Hey! I’ve been getting my ass kicked at Monopoly for the last three hours just for you, sis. That’s a very ungrateful thing to say,” Chad whines.
“Don’t be such a baby, big brother. You can both join us. I don’t think Poppy will mind,” I tell them.
“Of course she won’t. She loves me,” Chad muses, a cocky grin forming on his lips.
I bark out a laugh, throwing my head back.
“What? She does!” he argues.
Both Mom and Lauren join me in laughing at Chad, and even my dad is shaking his head at my brother, a small smile at the corner of his mouth.
“Son, it’s not a good thing to fool yourself like this. Us men normally tend to come up short in our beliefs,” my father jokes, making the rest of us laugh even louder.
Chad shifts in his seat, turning to fully face us on the couch. He raises an eyebrow at us, challenging.
“I could get Poppy if I wanted,” he states.
“Get me to do what?” Poppy suddenly steps into the living room wearing sweatpants and a hoodie, her long auburn hair tied into a ponytail, with her glasses on, looking like the cutest thing on the planet. Her infectious energy can be felt as soon as she walks in, looking at us with an amused look on her face.