Chapter 176

I stare at the phone, motionless for a moment until I lift my gaze to Cole, who looks at the phone and then at me. That's who he's been texting all day. Sophie. Aimee and Josh exchange glances before they look back at Cole, and I stare at each other. I push my seat away from the table. "Excuse me," I whisper. Standing from the table, I walk toward the stairs.

"Shayla," Cole calls my name and pushes his chair back as I near the stairs. I feel his hand on my arm, and I yank it out of his hold. "Shayla, let me explain."

I look up at him, "Explain? There is no reason, nor an explanation feasible enough to justify your ex-fiancée texting you." I tell him and swallow the lump forming in my throat.

"I ran into her at the hospital a couple of days ago. I didn't go looking for her--she was just there." He tells me, and I brush my fingers through my hair. "She told me she lost her baby after everything that happened between us. She was upset and needed someone to talk to,