I Forgot I Ever Loved You (Zoe and Hayden) novel Chapter 182

After hanging up with Cherry, Zoe scrambled out of bed and rushed through her morning routine, completely skipping breakfast. She was terrified Hayden might still be at the house. If he caught wind of the trending news online, she would be dead meat.

While she was dropping Lily off at school, her daughter suddenly spoke up. “The teacher said there’s a parent-teacher conference coming up. Mom, are you going to go?” Lily asked, her voice small and hesitant.

In the past, neither of her parents had ever attended her school events. Colin Zachs had always been the one to show up, pretending to be her father. But this time, she desperately wanted her mother there.

Zoe gently pinched Lily’s cheek, forcing a bright smile. “Of course I’m going. It’s my sweet girl's conference.”

Lily cheered, letting out a joyful squeal, completely forgetting her usual shyness. A sudden lump formed in Zoe’s throat. Attending a parent-teacher conference was the most basic parental duty—why was Lily acting like it was a miracle? Had she really neglected her daughter's needs that badly all these years?

After dropping Lily off, Zoe hesitated before steering her car toward the Easton Group headquarters. Unsurprisingly, the plaza outside the hotel next to the Easton building was already packed with a massive crowd. Some fans were even waving life-sized posters of “Blaze.”

Zoe’s blood ran cold. The moment she saw the mob, she slammed on the gas and sped away. Just as Cherry had said, it was a sea of people. By the time she safely arrived at Sterling Group, she shoved the panic to the back of her mind.

Meanwhile, Hayden had just stepped out of his chauffeured car at Easton Group when he was instantly swarmed.

“Excuse me! Are you the real-life Blaze, or is this just elite cosplay? You look exactly like him!”

“Oh my god, it’s the most accurate Blaze cosplay ever! Everyone, come get a picture!”

Hayden glanced down at his phone. The moment the cover loaded on his screen, the blood pounded so hard in his ears he thought he might have an aneurysm. He knew these artistic strokes and character designs far too well. It was Zoe’s smutty little comic.

Hayden’s teeth ground together so hard they nearly cracked. He had tolerated her drawing him out of pure admiration. He had turned a blind eye when she shared it with her best friend. But now she was using his body to make a profit?

Fans were still slapping the windows of his car, screaming for selfies. Fury erupted in Hayden’s chest. “Take the underground garage and use the private elevator,” he growled.

Zoe Lynd. There was going to be hell to pay.

It took significant effort for Hayden to finally shake the rabid fans. When he finally walked into the office, the atmosphere was suffocatingly weird. Eyes followed him everywhere—especially from the female employees. They looked at him with a predatory hunger, quickly averting their gazes the second he caught them staring. They gathered in hushed clusters, whispering and stealing flushed glances at him.