Page 59 of Blinded By Hate

“It’s fine. I was just enjoying the sun,” I say, making Hayden nod his head lightly and look down at my body.

I’m wearing a white bikini but I have a tank top covering the waist up.

I just don’t want Hayden to see the mark on my side and I know if he sees it, he will make a big deal out of it and demand the story from that night.

The night he only saw blood, but he thought it was from something else, not the tattoo.

Hayden is looking at me like he wants to rip my clothes off and own my world.

I put my phone on record. “Okay, first question,” I say, clearing my throat. “Are there any upcoming fights you are excited about?”

“No,” Hayden states and I cross off the question.

“The media is going crazy over your engagement to Nicole Earnings. Why did you decide to marry her in the first place?” I read off my notes.

“Because the girl I wanted wasn’t there,” Hayden states as he stares at me with a straight face.

“Hayden, you can’t say things like that in an interview.” I narrow my eyes at him.

Hayden looks away from me and stares down at the beach instead. “Wanna go for a swim?”

I raise any eyebrow at him, wondering what kind of drug he is on.

“What?” I say, making Hayden look back at me.

Hayden stands up. “Sorry, let me rephrase. We are going to go for a swim.”

I put my notes and pen to the side. “Hayden, you wanted this interview. I am here with a recorder, pen, and paper. I’m not here to go swimming with you.”

Hayden leans down so that he is at eye level with me. Him being this close to me awakens my nerves and makes me feel like fire is spreading throughout my body.

Fuck how does he do that?

“Just for a little.” He holds out his hand to me and like the fool I am, I take it. He helps me up and I take off my tank top.

Hayden keeps his eyes on me, his eyes burning holes into my chest. I swear I see them darken as he admires me. It feels good that even after so much time has gone by, he still stares at me like I’m the only thing he wants.

But I also can’t help but wonder if he is also thinking about everything that could possibly be wrong with my body.

Am I too skinny now for him?

Are my boobs too big from gaining weight from having Junior?

What’s wrong with me?

When I turn slightly his eyes go to where the tattoo I got for him used to be. It’s now ruined by a scar that Eric created when he dug a knife in my side. It hurt like a bitch and every time I stared at the scar, I would always cry because I felt so weak remembering that moment.

But I’m better now.

I don’t cry when I look at the scar, instead I don’t look at it at all.

Junior sees the scar sometimes and he always worries about it and wonders why it’s there.

I ignore Hayden’s eyes and instead walk past him to go in the water.

The water isn’t that cold. Hayden and I go deep enough to where the water is over our chests but we still have our feet touching the bottom.

“Do you like your job?” Hayden asks me, making me focus on him.