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Archer pressed a kiss on top of my head. “Yes you are. You’re an artist, and you’ve been working on your paintings and sketches. Which you’ll hopefully display in an exhibition soon, because you need to share your talent with the world.”
No doubt my chest and neck went red at his compliment. I dropped my gaze to the table, studying the scratched surface. “It’s not really a job, only a hobby.”
Carter, who sat at the edge of the booth, leaned forward to look at Devon. “I second Archer. Her paintings are amazing. But her drawings are even better.”
Carter was the only one with a glass of water instead of beer in front of him. He was still my bodyguard and had come to the bar with us to watch my back. But since all of Archer’s friends seemed to be Carter’s friends as well, he was happy to tag along.
The table only held Locked Security employees. Turned out working all the time didn’t leave a ton of opportunities to make friends outside of work.
But nobody seemed to mind, and they all got along well. I’d mostly been quietly observing, happy to sit next to Archer and listen to the deep rumble of his voice.
The waitress stopped next to our table, and everyone ordered another drink.
“You going to have a beer, old man, or you sticking with water?” Dean, one of the IT guys, called over to Carter.
Everyone chuckled, but Carter didn’t seem to mind. He threw a coaster at Dean. “Unlike some people, I take my job seriously. I’d also like to keep it. Which is why I won’t have a drop of alcohol as long as I’m on duty.”
“There are at least six people at this table who are trained just as well as you. I think we can keep her safe between us,” another guy, who I thought was named Ray, put in. There’d been so many names thrown at me when we first arrived that I’d forgotten most of them.
Carter sighed, as if he’d had this conversation before. “Kid, once you’re out of diapers, you’ll realize that the only person you can fully rely on is yourself. And there’s no way anything is happening to Thea on my watch.”
I ducked my head again, leaning into Archer. The last thing I wanted was for everyone to wonder why Carter was my bodyguard. Or for all the attention to turn my way as it now had.
Archer growled next to me. “Whoever wants to get to her has to go through me first.”
He’d been nursing his beer all night, only now ordering a second one. We’d been here for almost two hours. I felt terrible about making two people miss out on having fun because my husband made a gross error of judgment.
“I think it’s safe to say you’re the best protected client we’ve ever had. You must have really pissed someone off,” Dean said with a laugh, the rest of the table joining in.
Some of the tension left my body, glad the mood had lightened again. “I didn’t do a thing. That was all my husband.”
Everyone at the table went mute, and I realized what I’d said.
Archer tensed beside me, but when he spoke, he didn’t sound pissed or disappointed. “And that’s our cue to go home.”
Lifting his arm from around me, he took my hand. “Come on, beautiful. Let’s get you back to the apartment.”
Looking at the still-silent table with a wobbly smile, I waved as soon as we were out of the booth. “It was nice to meet you all. Enjoy your night.”
Everyone called out their goodbyes to us, and we walked out. Carter was on one side, Archer on my other one, making getting through the crowd easy. When we made it to the door, Archer pulled me to the side, and Carter went out first.
He looked up and down the street and then motioned for us to follow. Archer squeezed my hand that was still in his and led me outside. “Well, that went well.”
His words sank into my stomach like hot coals. I’d screwed up tonight, and I hoped I didn’t damage Archer’s relationship with his friends and the people he’d have to work with for the foreseeable future.
Following Archer outside, I stopped him with a hand on his arm. “I’m so sorry for telling everyone I was married. I made you look like you’re having an affair with a married woman.”
Carter frowned in confusion. “Isn’t that what he’s doing? Even if your husband doesn’t seem to mind.” He held his hands up when Archer narrowed his eyes at him. “Hey, just stating the facts.”
“It’s nobody’s business but ours what’s going on,” Archer said between clenched teeth. “Let’s get Thea home. We’ve been standing outside for too long already.”
They ushered me into the car, and Carter brought us safely back to the apartment before taking off. We ascended the stairs in silence. Every time I opened my mouth to say something, no words would come out.
Archer went straight to the bathroom once we were safely back inside his apartment. I stood in the middle of his spartan living room, wondering how I’d be able to fix things.
When he came back, he was only wearing his boxers, his tanned skin and delectable abs on display. “Bathroom’s all yours.” He stopped next to me, putting a hand on my waist before leaning in to kiss my cheek. “It’s difficult knowing you’re married to someone else and even harder to hear you talk about it. But I’ll deal with it. Just give me some time.”
“I’m so sorry for what I said. I wasn’t thinking.”
