My Unexpected Vow: California Billionaires Book 2 by Harlow James (children's ebooks free online TXT) 📗

point. It might be fun to mess with him a bit. With a pleased grin on my face, I start thinking of ideas as I stare out into the backyard, accepting that this is my new reality for a while.

* * *

“Waverly Ann Morgan. What did I tell you about Vegas? Are you out of your mind? You got married?”

I wince as Janet chastises me, hands on her hips and crook in her brow. “Believe me, Janet. I know, okay?”

“And Hayes? After all the stories you’ve told me about that man, you must have been three sheets to the wind to have married him.”

“Ha. More like I took down an entire bottle of tequila.”

“Yup, that’ll do it.” She shakes her head and then lets out a harsh breath. “So what happens now?”

It’s been a week since I moved in with Hayes and I’ve been dreading seeing Janet because I knew she’d sense that something happened the moment her eyes landed on me. The woman knows me so well now, I can’t hide anything from her.

“Well, I’m living with him so it seems real, at least to his parents, but Wes and my friends know it’s not.”

I follow her back into the kitchen, preparing to serve lunch this afternoon. I can’t cook worth a damn, but I have no trouble serving food to those in need.

“Is he at least being a gentleman?”

My smile surprises me. “Yes, he is. Believe me, Wes scared the shit out of him, so other than his normal annoying comments intended to drive me insane, we’ve been fairly civil.”

“So you’re really going to see this through?”

“For six months, and then we’re done.” I briefly explain our reasons for staying married and the timeline we agreed upon.

“I understand, and you know I’m here to support you, Waverly. I just hope this doesn’t derail all of your hard work. You deserve everything you’ve been passionately pursuing since I met you.”

One day back in high school, I saw a homeless woman on the street in downtown L.A., a normal sighting given the homeless population decorates the streets everywhere you turn. But this woman called to me, and I can’t explain it. It was something about the look in her eyes, like she had no trust left for anyone in the world, as if she’d been let down one too many times. And that resonated with me on such a deep level, the memory of her haunted eyes is still etched in my mind.

So I followed her when she started moving, wondering where those sad eyes were leading her, if she had anything or anyone solid in her life that brought her joy, and that’s when she lead me right to the Rescue Mission. I walked in after her and noticed a room full of people that for some reason, I felt like I knew them. Obviously, money and necessities were not something I longed for, but a safe place where I felt wanted and needed was, and I took it as a sign that this was somewhere I could donate my time to people that would appreciate it. Janet took me under her wing and groomed me into the seasoned volunteer I am now, but I keep my little hobby to myself. I’ve never wanted recognition or backlash for why I’m here—it’s not anyone’s business but my own, and I like having something real that makes my heart feel full on a deeply personal level.

However, being here sometimes only reminds me that there are only two people in this world that I feel I can truly count on—Wes and Emma. Sadly, my parents don’t even make that list since their children have never seemed to be a priority to them except for when it was crucial to their image. Needless to say, I haven’t been one to let people in because I don’t feel like I can trust them to stick around. Maybe on some subconscious level it’s why my relationships have always been superficial, or why I choose men that I know aren’t consuming enough to hurt me, even though the sting of being cheated on did do a little damage. But it wasn’t leaving Brett behind that wounded me—it was the feeling of not being enough yet again.

“My eye is still on the prize, Janet,” I reply, helping her move trays of food to the serving area. “Even though I’m in this weird limbo stage of my life and I have no idea what’s going to happen next, I’m woman enough to own my mistakes and see them through.”

“I know. And who knows, maybe this will all work out for the best,” she says. “Love can make everything click into place sometimes.”

“Yeah, not sure how being married to a man I barely tolerate will bring me joy and luck, let alone, love. There will be no love between Hayes and me.”

I can tell she’s sensing something from my words by the smirk that graces her lips. “We don’t find the meaning of life and who we’re meant to be on our own, Waverly. There will always be someone or something that will help us see it. I don’t believe in accidents, even when tequila is involved.” I laugh and she lets me finish. “The universe is too powerful to let anything happen without a reason for it.”

I roll my eyes, even though her warning has my heart beating harder. Surely Janet can’t possibly think that me marrying Hayes was all part of some grand plan to get me to see the light about where my life is headed… right? “Whatever you say, Janet. Just know you’ll probably be seeing even more of me over the next six months so I have somewhere to escape to so I don’t end up on that tv show, Snapped.”

A high-pitched chuckle leaves her lips as she flips her long, grey ponytail over her shoulder. “Something tells me you’ll be fine. I recall everything you’ve ever told me about Hayes, but