When Caleb brought me breakfast, he discovered a man hiding in my apartment. He was shocked. Then, he was furious. He pointed a shaking finger at Hayes’s nose and shouted, "You shameless homewrecker!" Hayes looked at him with utter disdain. "Kid, I knew her before you were even born." Caleb looked even more horrified. He turned to me. "Wait... so, am I the side piece?" Hayes smirked. "No. You’re number four. Get in line." 1 I woke up to see Hayes standing by my bed, wearing nothing but grey sweatpants and my floral apron. I thought I was still dreaming. Until he reached out, touched my forehead, and asked in that cold, crisp voice of his: "Still hungover?" I jolted awake like I’d been electrocuted. "Why are you in my house?" "I made oatmeal..." We spoke at the same time, then fell silent at the same time. Thankfully, a knock at the door broke the suffocating awkwardness. "I’ll get it." I grabbed a trench coat, threw it over my silk nightgown, and fled the bedroom. The person at the door was Caleb, a junior colleague from work. I was surprised. Caleb’s face was glowing with youthful energy. He was holding a bag of warm comfort food. "Morning, Nora! I brought coffee and those bagels you like from the corner deli." But his smile vanished the second he looked past me and saw Hayes. Hayes, being the psychopath he is, had taken off the hoodie he was wearing under the apron. Now, the floral fabric barely covered his broad, muscular chest. The apron cinched at his waist, emphasizing his V-taper. Below that, grey sweatpants. It was a look that screamed "we just had sex." Shocked and angry, Caleb covered my eyes with his hand and yelled at Hayes. "Who are you?" "Don't you know Nora has a boyfriend?" "What is this behavior? Put some clothes on!" The more he spoke, the angrier he got. But his voice was trembling. It went from rage to grievance, and finally, to choking back tears. I tried to explain. "Caleb, it’s not what it looks like." Nobody was listening to me. Caleb was pointing at Hayes, cursing him out. calling him a "shameless homewrecker." Hayes didn’t say a word. He glanced at the bagels in Caleb’s hand, then calmly grabbed my wrist and sat me down at the dining table. "The oatmeal cooled down. Eat." Caleb stormed over, snatched the bowl of oatmeal away, and laid out the bagels he brought. That was when Hayes finally looked annoyed. Caleb pointed at the door. "I’ll take care of Nora. You—whoever you are—get the hell out." He was acting like the man of the house. Hayes just let out a cold laugh. "I knew her before you were even born." I tried to de-escalate. "Caleb, he and I... we aren't in a relationship like that." But Caleb, immersed in his own heartbreak, had his own logic. He looked at Hayes. Then at me. Then back at Hayes. "So... am I the side piece?" "No," I said quickly. Hayes threw gasoline on the fire. "You’re the side piece's understudy. Number four." The apartment was chaos. Caleb looked at me, his expression shattering. He looked like a kicked puppy. I glared at Hayes. "Since when is he number four?" I tried to remember last night. I remembered getting drunk, calling Hayes, and him telling me to stay put. Before that... Caleb had confessed his feelings to me. But I vividly remembered rejecting him. I asked Hayes, "What exactly happened last night?" While Caleb was zoning out in shock, Hayes swept all the bagels into the trash can. Then he answered casually: "After you passed out, this kid texted you a confession. I thought he seemed sincere, so I accepted on your behalf." Hayes cleaned the table as he spoke. Then he looked up at me, a bitter smile on his lips. "Since you already have a side piece, I figured one more wouldn't hurt. I’m not the jealous type." I rolled my eyes. "Generous of you." Caleb seemed to reboot. His righteous indignation was gone. He looked at Hayes, his voice small. "If I’m number four... does that make you the boyfriend?" That question hit a nerve. Hayes paused for two seconds. "No," he said darkly. "I’m the mistress." 2 I fell silent. Technically, Hayes and I were in a shady, secret arrangement. But hearing it said out loud in front of an outsider made me want to crawl under the floorboards. Thankfully, Caleb was too traumatized to ask follow-up questions. He left shortly after. Hayes scooped a fresh bowl of oatmeal and slammed it in front of me. Seeing me stare at the door, he sneered. "Miss him?" "Want me to run down the hall and get him back for you?" The acid in his tone could burn through steel. He was mocking me, but mostly, he was hurting himself. As I ate quietly, Hayes finally snapped. He tore off the mask of indifference. "That kid really likes you. Why haven't you mentioned him?" "He calls you 'Nora' so casually. Did you know him in college?" "How much younger is he? You’re into interns now?" I didn't respond. Hayes looked like he was about to lose his mind. He pulled out the chair opposite me and sat down. Silence. Then: "You think I’m too old?" "I'm five years older than you... that's not exactly geriatric, Nora." "But I guess fresh meat is appealing." I rubbed my temples. "Can you stop making a scene?" Hayes opened his mouth to argue, but I cut him off. "Brother, please." I said it out of habit. It meant nothing. But Hayes stood up so fast his chair screeched across the floor. He stared at me, eyes dark. "You haven't called me 'Brother' in years. Why now?" " trying to break up with me?" Terrified that I might say yes, Hayes grabbed his clothes and fled the apartment before I could explain. I stared at the closed door. I thought about what he told Caleb: I knew her before you were born. It was true. Caleb is two years younger than me. The year he was born was the year my mother married Hayes’s father. I was two. Hayes was seven. Hayes hated my mother. At his seventh birthday party, he swore he’d kick us both out of the Sterling estate. My mother would smile and say, "He's just a child, I don't mind." In private, she ground her teeth so hard I thought they’d crack. She was desperate to have a son to replace Hayes as the heir. I did whatever my mother told me. She told me to suck up to Hayes, so I did. Even when he bullied me, even when he pranked me, I chased him around calling him "Big Brother." It didn't work. The year he hated me most, he locked me in the basement while our parents were away. Two days. No food. I almost died. Mr. Sterling couldn't ignore it anymore. He forced Hayes to apologize and demanded he treat me like a biological sister. What did Hayes say back then? He said: "I would rather die than like her." But years later... The man who begged me. The man who willingly became my dirty little secret just to stay near me. It was him. 3 The next day at work, Caleb cornered me in the breakroom. He’s the CEO’s son. We went to the same university. Now that he’s graduated, his dad put him under my wing. I tried to explain the previous morning. "You know I was drunk. That wasn't me accepting your confession on WeChat." Caleb nodded. "I know." I sighed, relieved. I thought the drama was over. Then he said: "But we can just go with it." He looked deadly serious. "Nora, I’ve thought about it." "If I can be with you, I don't mind being number four." "You’re amazing. It’s normal for guys to chase you." "I don't care about the other guys. I believe if I work hard, I’ll get promoted to boyfriend eventually." "I haven't met the others, but the guy at your apartment... he seemed old." "You’re young, beautiful. Can an old man like that keep up with you?" "Why don't you dump him and let me be the mistress?" Caleb scratched his head. "Being the 'mistress' sounds cooler than being 'number four'." Just then, the breakroom door swung open. Hayes walked in, face like a thundercloud. "Who are you calling an old man?" Hayes’s company had a contract with ours. He was here for a meeting with the CEO. He just happened to walk in on Caleb badmouthing him. "Did you forget who got you into that college prep school, kid?" "If it weren't for my recommendation letter, you wouldn't even be qualified to be number four." Usually, Hayes wouldn't stoop to arguing with a fresh grad. But the word "old" was his trigger word this week. "Biting the hand that feeds you. Is that how your daddy taught you business?" Caleb didn't flinch. He looked Hayes dead in the eye and scoffed. Knowing Hayes was just a "side piece" gave Caleb confidence. "We’re competitors now." "I’m just marketing my advantages to Nora." "I wasn't wrong," Caleb looked Hayes up and down. "You are older than me." "Who is the boyfriend and who is the side piece... that's Nora's decision." "If she prefers youth and dumps you for me, that’s just natural selection, isn't it?" Every "old" was a dagger in Hayes’s heart. He laughed, a cold, sharp sound. He pulled out his phone and dialed the CEO’s office. Minutes later, Caleb was summoned by his father. As he left, Caleb gritted his teeth and whispered, "Old fossil. Plays dirty." Hayes closed his eyes. When he opened them, he looked calmer. "It’s Dad’s birthday. Are you going back to the estate?" I nodded. "I have to." My mother had called three times to remind me. "Okay. I’ll wait for you downstairs." The elevator ride down was silent. Hayes was regretting everything. Accepting Caleb’s confession on my phone had been a strategic error. He did it because my actual boyfriend—the love of my life—was returning to the country this week. Hayes knew he couldn't compete with Dr. Ethan Cole. So, he tried to throw a wrench in the gears by adding Caleb to the mix. He figured Caleb was a harmless distraction. He thought, I can’t beat Ethan, but I can definitely beat this college kid. Now, he realized he’d just played himself. He didn't hurt Ethan. He just annoyed himself to death. Hayes sat in the car, unlit cigarette in his mouth. He needed the nicotine, but he wouldn't light it. I was getting in the car. And I hate the smell of smoke.
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