Page 52 of Forever my Love

ChapterSeventeen

Hailey felt nervous. Not because Reece’s parents, Luke and Amber, were sitting across from her. No, the only reason she felt nervous was because Reece was walking away from her and she wanted more than anything to blurt out that she loved him.

Her palms grew sweaty and her heart raced each step Reece took away from her.

“He’s going to do great,” Amber said, touching her arm.

“I know.” She sighed and realized that there would be better times to admit her feelings for the man who had stolen her heart.

“He’s got this,” Luke added. “Carrigan is a little crazy, but our son has a calmness about him that the Carrigan boy doesn’t. Reece will wait for the perfect moment and”—Luke swung his arm as he smiled—“knockout.”

“You think Reece will knock out Carrigan?” Amber turned to her husband. “Since we’re in Vegas, care to make a little wager on that?”

Luke laughed. “You’re on.”

Hailey watched the older couple flirt, but instead of feeling awkward, she found it all very amusing that two people who had been together for so long still acted like they had just fallen in love.

She’d never had a couple as a role model. She didn’t know what marriage should or could look like. Sure, there were movies and television shows. One of her favorites after they had left home was Everybody Loves Raymond.

Although the show had been funny, it really hadn’t given her a clue as to what loving someone really meant. This, sitting across from her, was a far better example than any actors could portray.

This was real love. Something she believed she felt for Reece.

After they left the bar area, they decided to head back to the tables. Since she was up almost nine hundred dollars, she sat at the blackjack table and had Luke teach her the ropes.

He quickly lost fifty bucks while she gained thirty.

Gambling was fun, but she did wonder if she would be having as much fun if she was losing, like Reece had pointed out.

Since they still had an hour until they had to take their seats for the fight, they decided to get something to eat.

It was amazing how comfortable she was around his parents. They laughed and joked about Reece and Hannah’s childhood. She listened to stories about how the sister-brother duo used to play jokes on one another.

She knew firsthand how close Reece was with his sister. She and Harper were just as close, so she understood perfectly.

After dinner, they made their way down several long hallways. It wasn’t hard to figure out where the fight was taking place, as the walls were covered with pictures of Reece and his opponent.

The hallway led into a massive room. They rode the elevators down to find a sea of people waiting in line.

Amber gasped. “Do we have to wait in that?”

“No, Aaron said he’d meet us at the private entrance.” Luke looked around and then motioned towards the side.

Aaron was standing just outside a doorway, looking down at his phone. When he spotted her and Reece’s parents, he perked up.

“There you are.” Aaron shook Luke’s hand and then hugged Amber. “How was your flight?”

“Good,” both of them answered.

Then Luke turned towards her and hugged her. “Good to see you again.”

The man had practically ignored her the night before. Suddenly, he took her arm and started leading them through the doors as he handed Luke a couple of passes.

“Here’s yours,” he said to Hailey and then stopped in a dark hallway and helped her put it on over her head.

She wondered why he was giving her a bunch of attention all of a sudden. She supposed it was due to all the images of her and Reece everywhere.

When they stepped into the massive empty room and she saw the ring in the center, she felt a wave of excitement rush through her.