I Forgot I Ever Loved You (Zoe and Hayden) novel Chapter 77

Zoe woke up with every muscle in her body screaming in protest.

Stripping off Hayden's shirt, she caught a horrifying glimpse of the marks littering her skin in the mirror. It was a disaster.

Recalling their intense clash in the bathroom last night, Zoe was so mortified she wanted to disappear.

She couldn't believe she had actively yielded to his demands like that.

But she had.

Back in college, catching a stray glimpse of one of Nadia's spicy romance comics had sent her heart racing for three days. She hadn't even been able to make eye contact when cleaning up the apartment.

How did she turn into someone completely uninhibited?

When she headed downstairs, Mrs. Gable had prepared a lavish spread of oatmeal, milk, and fresh sandwiches.

Mrs. Gable's eyes inadvertently drifted to Zoe's neck. The glaring hickeys peeking out from her collar were impossible to miss, making the older woman pause.

The relationship between the mister and missus...

Was it really this passionate?

"Sleep well?"

The deep, resonant voice nearly made Zoe jump out of her skin.

Hayden strolled down the stairs, dressed flawlessly in a crisp white shirt and tailored black trousers.

She blinked, caught off guard.

When she woke up and didn't see him, she assumed he had already left for the office.

Reaching the bottom, Hayden took the seat directly across from her.

Zoe stole a quick glance at him. He looked like he had just rolled out of bed, his voice still thick with morning gravel.

As he had walked past her, she caught the faint scent of tobacco. The unbuttoned collar of his white shirt clearly revealed a few faint red scratch marks—undoubtedly her doing.

Zoe flushed furiously and buried her face in her bowl of oatmeal, too utterly embarrassed to speak.

Hayden leisurely tore into his breakfast. His long, elegant fingers dipped a piece of bread into his coffee before he slowly ate it.

His movements were incredibly refined, making the simple act of eating look like a magazine spread.

Zoe sped up her eating. Every extra second spent in this man's presence made her feel like she was suffocating.

Especially since Hayden was staring directly at her.

"Apologies for being a little rough with you last night."

Boom!

Zoe felt like her entire world had just crashed down.

A passing maid had very obviously heard him and quickly covered her mouth to hide a giggle.

Hunt?

Or maybe...

"Call me your husband."

Ignoring his injury, Hayden roughly yanked her back into his arms.

Zoe's eyes widened in sheer shock.

Offended by his shameless demand, she decided to throw reality in his face.

"We have an agreement. No one is supposed to know I'm Mrs. Thorne in public. Did you conveniently forget that, Mr. Thorne?"

Hayden ignored her sarcasm, his grip on her waist tightening progressively.

Zoe winced as it ticked and hurt at the same time, completely unable to break free.

She ground her teeth in frustration.

Hayden remained perfectly composed, totally unbothered by his own hypocrisy.

"Public means out there. Being at home doesn't count."

"..."

Zoe was completely speechless.