AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She banged on the door as she attempted to catch her breath.
Lee opened the door. “She’s here.” His eyes were puffy, and he opened the door wider.
She walked past him and found Gracie leaning forward on the couch. Her head in her hands, elbows braced on her knees. She looked up at her with tears in her eyes.
Tabitha shook her head and ran over to the woman. They held each other and cried.
She didn’t want to believe it. She couldn’t lose her best friend. She couldn’t survive this world without him.
Present Day
“No. Let me go, Max!”She pulled against his hold as he pulled her down the hall.
“Tabitha, he can protect himself.” Max held onto her as they rounded the corner.
Her eyes filled with tears. “I can’t lose him.” She shook her head. “I can’t do this again.” She gasped.
That helpless feeling took over. The one she’d only experienced once before when he was missing while serving. It had been the most depressing three months of her life. To this day, she still had nightmares about it. They never talked about it, but she knew that time was bound to haunt him too.
“Hey.” He stopped before they entered the ballroom. “He’s going to be okay. Take a deep breath. We need to go back in there and pretend everything is fine.”
She trembled on her breath and closed her eyes. There were a number of times she feared for Archie’s life. Every time she spoke to her parents while he was serving, she was afraid of hearing the worst.
She didn’t want to leave him. She wanted to make sure he was okay.
“He’s got a great team here with him. He’s going to be okay. For their plan to work, we have to go on with the night like everything is fine. Can you do that?”
She looked up at Max. Why was he shaking? “Are you scared too?”
Max smiled. “We’re going to get through this party. Think of it as an extra long video. We’re characters with a part to play. Channel that inner Danvers I know you have in you.”
She nodded, then took in a deep breath and blew it out. “You’re right.”
The fear was still there, in the back of her mind. She just needed to trust Archie, which was easy. He would always protect her. Who would protect him though? Who was making sure no harm came to him too?
She shook it out and put on a smile. “An act. We’re acting. I can do this.” She totally did not have faith in herself like her friend seemed to have.
Tabitha knew she just needed to distract herself a little longer. They entered the main room with smiles on their faces, as if they didn’t know a gun was all that stood between two men on the other side of these walls.
“Since one of the brands is sponsoring us, I think we should go and use the photo booth for content,” Max spoke up.
Everyone was quick to agree, but she zoned out the conversation. She kept the smile on her face and hoped she nodded at the right moments as they planned it all out. She couldn’t focus on it.
When she agreed to be Luke’s date to this event, she made sure he remembered they could just be friends. It wasn’t fair to him if she had feelings for someone else. He was a great guy, but her heart longed for another.
It had been months since she’d seen Archie. Matt did a fine job as her bodyguard. She was home most of the time and kept busy. When she had to go away, she kept it more local and the other guy named Tyler was there. She knew when it came to this event, the entire team would be here. It had still shocked her to finally see Archie.
The look on his face had her scared at first. Something was happening. Her first instinct was to run to him. Be held by him. Then she reminded herself that she wasn’t his. He’d pushed her away months ago and hadn’t reached out the entire time.
Then Ryan entered the hall. Knowing he was there and seeing him were two completely different things. Hearing about him being at the event, she was nervous and just wanted to keep her distance. Seeing that sneer as he looked at Archie made that anxiousness turn to fear.
Tabitha wouldn’t be able to rest until she knew Archie was safely by her side, or away from her ex. Either way, he had to be safe. She couldn’t lose her best friend.
“Hey Jill,” she lowered her voice. “Go with me to the ladies’ room.”
“Of course.” She hooked her arm in hers. “We’ll be back, gents. Need to powder the noses.”
Their friends laughed as the pair of them walked away. She avoided looking at Max. Something told her if he saw her face, he’d see the wheels turning. She just needed to make sure Archie was safe and not near Ryan still. Then she could get back to her friends.
