pter 131 

+25 BONUS 

“What?” I blurted out, shocked, then muttered under my breath, “He’s lost it, hasn’t he?” 

“Ms. Kay, Mr. Johnston’s been acting kinda crazy lately.” Gavin confessed. And just like that, it all clicked- the wedding dresses, the rings, everything. It was all Jace, probably with Gavin handling the dirty work. 

“What is he even trying to do–gross me out?” I snapped. 

Gavin went quiet for a sec before saying, “Honestly, I have no idea what Mr. Johnston’s thinking. But one thing’s clear–he doesn’t want to lose you. He really does love you.” 

“Gavin Lawson,” I said, using his full name, my tone dead serious, “it’s one thing for other people to say that, but you? Do you actually believe he loves me?” 

Gavin didn’t say a word. 

“He can keep being crazy all he wants, but I’m not playing his game,” I made my stance clear. 

“Honestly, I’ve always felt guilty. If it weren’t for me… you and he wouldn’t have ended up like this,” Gavin said, his voice thick with regret, still shouldering the blame for everything that went down. 

“Honestly, I should be thanking you,” I paused, thinking for a second before continuing, “If that whole mess hadn’t happened, I might not have had the guts to break up with Jace. But you need to get it–it wasn’t just that one thing. Jace and I have been a mess for a while, and you should know that.” 

“But the final blow… was because of me,” Gavin muttered. 

“I’ve said all I can. If you still wanna beat yourself up over it, that’s on you. As for Jace, if he fires you for what you did today, then take off. The world’s big, and with your skills, you’ll find something better,” I tried 

to reassure him. 

“Have you already found a new job?” Gavin asked. 

“I don’t think it’ll be hard to find one,” I replied, keeping it vague. I wasn’t about to add more drama to the 

situation. 

Jace was acting like a total maniac, and I was honestly scared of what he might do if he found out I’d already lined something up. 

After I hung up, I closed my eyes, still trying to process the fact that Jace had gone off the deep end enough to think proposing was a good idea after everything that happened. 

It was clear–I needed to cut things off even harder to shut down his delusions for good. 

Thinking back to the call I made to Hayden last night, I finally worked up the nerve to text him again: [I’m sober–now. When can we talk?] 

No reply. It was 10:30 in the morning–Hayden was probably busy at work and hadn’t seen it yet. 

Not wanting to wait around, I got up, showered, and started getting ready to head out. 

But just as I finished my shower, a message from Hayden popped up: [Come to the amusement park.] 

The amusement park? Again? 

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+25 BONUS 

Chapter 131 

Remembering what Gavin had said about Jace planning to propose, I quickly shot back: [No. Let’s meet somewhere else.] 

Hayden responded almost immediately: [My time is limited.] 

I was just about to consider whether I should compromise when another text came through from him: [ Worried about the proposal?] 

Even Hayden knew? What kind of scene was Jace making at that amusement park? 

I typed back a quick reply: [I don’t want drama.] 

Hayden: [Avoiding it won’t help. He’ll just try again. Come and deal with it once and for all.] 

His words made me smile. 

Was he offering to pretend to be my boyfriend? 

Reading his message again, I realized he had a point. Even Lena had said the best way to get Jace to back off was to show him I’d moved on. 

So I replied with just one word: [Okay.] 

To make sure I looked totally different from how Jace usually saw me, I raided Lena’s closet and found this bright yellow spaghetti–strap dress. I let my hair down instead of my usual ponytail and even swiped on some bold red lipstick. 

The result was wild–I barely recognized myself. I looked like a whole new person, almost like some kind of enchantress. 

I’d never dressed like this before because Jace didn’t like it. Sure, he knew I was beautiful, but he didn’t want other guys noticing. 

When I got to the amusement park, I texted Hayden, and he showed up fast, jogging over to meet me. The moment he saw me, I caught him swallowing hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing.