Hailey
The pieces of my heart-so carefully held together, so desperately collected-trembled. They quivered, beating fast, erratically, as the fear of shattering into nothing but dust coiled around them, squeezing tighter with every passing second.
I held my breath. Struggled to maintain an expression-any expression-that wasn’t pure, unfiltered dread. And I hated myself for it. Hated how I felt this fear. Hated how close I was to begging him to look at me, to speak, to say something that would make this not real.
Maybe it was a joke. Maybe it was a nightmare. Please let it be a nightmare.
But Damien Black didn’t flinch.
Didn’t even bother to acknowledge me.
He just sat there. Casually eating his breakfast, his fork scraping against his plate-no, against my fucking heart, stabbing the very thing I had unknowingly placed in front of him to devour.
“Well, Madison, I guess I don’t share your excitement. Weddings don’t hold much value for me.”
Weddings.
My stomach dropped.
Wedding?
Coby’s expression faltered for a split second, like a bitter ghost from the past had just passed between them. I knew a little-just a little-about what haunted them. About Damien’s mother. About how she hadn’t been the ideal wife. Or the ideal mother.
A sigh slipped past my mother’s lips, but for once, she didn’t try to push the subject.
But I couldn’t stay silent.
“Engagement?”
The word barely made it out of my mouth. A whisper. A strangled breath.
I swallowed, trying to keep my voice steady, but my hands shook beneath the table. My pulse roared in my ears, yet in the excitement buzzing around me, no one seemed to notice.
Except him.
Except Damien fucking Black, who still didn’t look at me.
My gaze darted to my mother. Desperate. Pleading.
Please, Mom. Say something that won’t break me.
Please.
At my question, a flicker of light returned to her eyes-one that had momentarily dimmed at Damien’s lack of enthusiasm.
“Oh, I guess you really had no clue,” she chuckled.
No. I didn’t.
And I wish I had. I wish I had known-so I could have saved myself from this monster before I handed him my fucking heart.
“Damien’s getting married, Hailey. Can you believe it? And it’s happening this month!”
And just like that-
The pieces of my heart-
The fragile, trembling remnants-
Fucking shattered.
Splintered into nothing but dust.
Right there.
Right at Damien Black’s expensive, shoelaced feet.
I swallowed again, my throat raw, my hands numb, my breath barely making it in or out.
I forced my lips to part. Forced words out, even when my voice cracked.
“Oh… that’s… that’s wonderful.”
Lies.
“I mean… I had no idea, guys.”
Lies.
And then Coby spoke.
“Trust me, Hailey, we didn’t either.” He chuckled, completely unaware that I was drowning. “It’s just-Jenna’s returning from her trip to Turkey, and Damien and her… they’ve been dating for a while, you know? I never thought it was this serious until she called me, all excited, telling me that Damien proposed to her. Which, honestly, I’m still curious about, since she’s still in Turkey. But yeah, they plan to get married this month. It’s a bit rushed, with all the arrangements to be made, but I think we’ll manage, right?” He smiled.
And I knew-
I knew I was supposed to smile back. But it was so fucking hard. Because Damien still wasn’t looking at me. Because he hadn’t said a single fucking word to me. Because I was nothing but ruins beside him now. And maybe-just maybe-he had never planned to save me from the fall. Maybe he had always intended to drop me from the very start.
“Jenna?” My voice barely made it out. Barely survived the lump forming in my throat.
“Silly goose,” Mom chuckled, waving a dismissive hand. “She’s the one Damien’s marrying. Damien’s fiancee.”
Fiancee-The word rang through my skull like a death knell, rattling every fragile piece of me.
I managed to force a smile, despite how much it physically hurt. “Oh. Right.” I exhaled sharply. “Sorry, it’s just… a lot to take in all of a sudden.”
“No worries, we get it.” Coby grinned, taking a bite of his toast. “It was a lot for us too.” He and Mom exchanged a laugh.
They laughed. They laughed while I was drowning.
I dropped my gaze to my plate, barely aware of what was even in front of me. I gripped my fork, but my fingers were numb. Beside me, Damien remained eerily silent, still scrolling through his phone-or at least, I thought he was.
But every now and then, I swore I felt his eyes on me.
Felt the weight of that cold, grey stare burning into my skin.
Or maybe it was just my mind playing tricks on me. After all-I had been a fool all along, hadn’t I? A fool to believe he had a heart. That there was something good in him.
My breath hitched, and suddenly, my vision blurred.
No. No, no, no.
I couldn’t fucking cry.
Not here. Not in front of him. Not in front of them.
The second my chair scraped against the floor, I was already on my feet. “I think I’m full,” I said, clearing my throat. “You guys enjoy your breakfast. I’ll just-”
“You haven’t eaten anything, Hailey.” Mom frowned.
I forced out a chuckle. “Mom, I did.”
Lies.
“You know I can only take small portions at a time, and you put too much on my plate.” My voice was cracking. I swallowed it back. Buried it. “I’ll eat something later.”
“Hailey-”
And then, finally, finally, I found the courage to look at him.
Damien.
His phone was gone. His hands were empty.
And he was already staring at me.
How long had he been watching me?
His face was unreadable. No smirk, no indifference, no frustration-just blank. As if he weren’t the man who had touched me like he wanted to be under my skin last night.
As if I wasn’t standing here trying to breathe through the fucking wreckage.
I met his gaze, held it longer than I should have, then parted my lips.
“Congrats, Damien.”
His jaw twitched.
Good.
“You could have given me the news a bit sooner, couldn’t you?” I added, tilting my head, lips curving into a smile that ached. “After all, we’ve gotten so close these days. I didn’t expect this kind of treatment from my brother.”
That word tasted like acid.
And for the first time since this entire conversation started, something flashed across Damien’s face. Something dark. Something almost dangerous.
Coby laughed, oblivious to the hell unraveling between us. “Yeah, that’s rude, Damien. At least she deserved to know.”
“Forget it, Coby.” I waved a hand dismissively, still smiling like I wasn’t bleeding inside. “It probably just slipped his mind. He’s been so busy lately, after all. Barely coming home and spending hours at the office-working.”
“Oh really?” Coby turned to Damien, looking genuinely surprised. “Didn’t know my son was working that hard. Damien, your engagement is only a few days away-you should cut back a little, you know? You need that groom glow on your face.”
“Yeah, Coby’s right,” Mom added. “Try taking a break, sweetheart.”
I felt Damien’s entire body tense beside me.
Then-
“You guys are far too excited for something this simple,” Damien barked, his voice sharp, cutting through the air like a blade. “I guess I’ll let you be-I’m going to the office now. And I hope, Dad, when you join, you won’t bring this bullshit load of excitement with you. That’s a place of work. Not for wedding tears.”
With that, he yanked the handkerchief from his lap and threw it onto the table before stalking off, disappearing up the stairs without a single glance back.
I exhaled. A sharp, shuddering breath.
Coby and Mom looked at each other for a moment, and for a second, I thought they might actually notice something was wrong.
But then they laughed.
“Wedding jitters, I guess,” Coby snorted, shaking his head.
“Yeah, you can feel that too, right?” Mom mused. “He’s just trying to act underwhelmed. Can’t let us see how nervous he is.”
They didn’t know. They had no fucking idea.
And I?
I had nothing left. So, without another word, I turned and walked upstairs.
And the second I locked my bedroom door behind me-
I broke. The sobs clawed their way up my throat, tearing through my chest, shaking my entire body as I sank to the floor. I clutched my arms, nails digging into my skin, my shoulders trembling as I gasped for breath between each ragged cry. I had never handed my heart to someone just to have them rip it apart right in front of me.
But now I knew my mistake….
So I made myself a promise.
This is the last time, Hailey. Cry just this once. Just this once. And then never-never-again for a man.