Hayden and Natalia were on their way to the apartment when he received a text message. He groaned when he read it, and Natalia looked at him in question. "What's wrong?" She asked. "My mom wants me to go to their house for dinner. She won't let up even though I told her I'm busy." He had no desire to see them and listen to them complain about his relationship. Natalia got a mischievous grin on her face. "Don't disappoint your parents. Do you think they would mind one more for dinner? How about I go with you?" Hayden laughed before leaning down to kiss her. "Great idea. I'll text her back and tell her I'll be there. We'll let it be a surprise that I won't be alone." He quickly sent his text as the car came to a stop. When they got upstairs, they took a quick shower and dressed for dinner. Hayden wanted to go early so they could get back home. He wore a pair of black pants with a white button-up shirt. Natalia was in a dark blue dress that came to her knees. "
Two weeks had passed since Natalia and Hayden had begun their relationship. Hayden and Will were now working out of NC. Natalia had given Hayden an office, and they set up a desk for Will near him. It was working well for them even though they had agreed it would be temporary; Hayden wanted it to be permanent. He liked the atmosphere at NC. Natalia had the respect of her employees, and he could tell they all had her back. That says a lot about a CEO. Being an outsider looking in, it felt more like a family than a boss and employees. When he stopped by his office at Sumner Enterprise to collect some of his items for his office at NC, it felt very stifling to him. He noticed Will also picked up on the differences and seemed more relaxed in their current location. While looking over a contract in his office, he saw a courier with a large manila envelope at the front desk. He didn't think anything about it and went back to work. However, a few minutes later, Natalia came in
Three days later, Hayden and Natalia were packing his belongings in his apartment to move into hers. They had already signed the updated lease that added him as a co-tenant. While placing his knick-knacks in boxes, Natalia found pictures of him when he was a child. She smiled, looking at them and her mind went to the future, wondering if they had children would their son look like a young Hayden? "What are you smiling at?" He came up behind her, looking over her shoulder. Hayden saw a picture of himself playing baseball when he was about eight years old. "I found these old pictures of you. You were a cute child." Natalia wondered where he stood on having kids one day. "I was at a baseball camp in that picture. Those were some of the best days of my life. Anything that got me out of my parent's house was a good time. Do you like kids?" Hayden thought about Natalia walking around with his baby in her belly, and it excited him more than he wanted to admit. He would like
Hayden and Will were almost to NC when they noticed ambulances and police cars everywhere. Hayden tried to see what had happened, but there were too many people. He heard someone say somebody fell into traffic and got hit by a car. As he continued toward the office, he heard something that made his blood run cold. "It was that woman Natalia, something. You know, the one they call the ice queen." Hayden spun around and pushed people out of his way to get near the curb. He froze when he saw Natalia lying unconscious on the street. Paramedics were putting her onto a stretcher. "Natalia? No, please." He yelled as he rushed forward, only to be stopped by a policeman. "Sir, you need to step back." The officer said. "That's my girlfriend, Natalia Crawford. I'm the only family she has. Let me go with her." The officer saw the desperation and tears on the man's face, so he waved him through. "Please tell me she's okay." He cried as the paramedics lifted her into the ambula
Hayden had been sitting next to Natalia for over two hours. Doctors and nurses came and went, but he didn't move. He was not leaving her, no matter what. As he sat there looking at her damaged body, the rage in him was building. He turned when he heard a knock on the door, expecting it to be medical personnel, but it was a detective who he was familiar with. Detective Dennis Barber had been with the NYPD for twelve years. He was known for being thorough on cases when others thought there was no foul play. When Dr. Garnier had called and said her findings were inconclusive on if Natalia Crawford had been pushed or not, it had piqued his interest. Then she added that Hayden Sumner was her boyfriend and stated he may know of people who wanted to harm the young woman. Dennis knew he had to take this case. He had worked with Hayden before and knew he was one of the few good billionaires in the city. "Good evening Hayden. I've been assigned Natalia's case and wanted to talk to you for
Hayden quickly texted Dennis to tell him that Cara was at the hospital to visit Natalia. He responded, telling him he wasn't far and would be there in a few minutes. Hayden looked up when the woman walked into the room, looking nervous. "Hel...Hello Mr. Sumner. I'm Cara, Natalia's friend." Cara held her hand to him, but he refused to let go of Natalia. After a few awkward seconds of him staring at her without moving or saying anything, she put her hand down. "If you're her friend, why have you not seen her in four years?" Hayden asked coldly, making her retreat a few steps backward. Cara wanted to leave, but she'd come too far now. "I...I've been busy. I'm married and have two small children. She never came to see me either." She said in her defense, crossing her arms. Cara was trying not to look at Natalia. She looked even worse than she imagined. "Why are you here now?" Hayden asked through clenched teeth. The more nervous he saw her getting, the more he knew s
Cara cried the entire way to the police station. She realized she had made a mistake. She should have never come to New York. Now she didn't know when she would ever see her children again. When they got to the station, she was taken to an interrogation room and left alone. Dennis made a call after securing Cara. He wanted to know if they had any luck getting Shania. He was concerned that she might disappear if they didn't catch her before she learned of her cousin's arrest. "Hey, Mason, did you have any luck?" He asked the officer who was sent to Shania's apartment. "No, she's not here. I'm watching her building to see if she comes home, and I have someone monitoring her credit card activity. In the morning, getting a warrant may be a good idea, so we can also track her phone." Dennis rubbed his head while holding back his groan. He liked Mason because he was thorough, but sometimes he didn't know when to stay in his lane. "Already in the works, kid. Let me know
Hayden slept in the chair beside Natalia's bed all night while holding her hand. He woke up every time someone came into the room. When morning came, he looked a little worse for wear, and one of the nurses took pity on him. She brought him a large cup of hot coffee from the coffee shop in the cafeteria. "Mr. Sumner, I brought you some coffee. I didn't know how you took it, so it's black, but I can get you cream and sugar if you'd like." Hayden looked at the nurse, who was short and round with grey hair, and gave her a small smile. "Black is fine. Thank you." He said with gratitude. "You're welcome. My name is Linnette, and I'll be Natalia's nurse today, so if you need anything, please let me know. Would you like for me to have some breakfast brought up to you?" He looked at her in surprise. "You would do that for me? I was willing to starve if I had to so I wouldn't have to leave her side." Linnette patted his shoulder. He reminded her of her son, who she estima