Page 10 of Let Me Protect You

The door bursts open, and Summer comes inside with an apple juice box. “Mommy, I’m bored.”

Even with everything going on, I stifle a laugh. Kids never read the room.

“I think we’re bunking here for tonight, sweetie.”

“But there’s nowhere for me to sleep.”

I pat the bed beside me. “You can sleep with me.”

“But what about Mommy?”

“If we all snuggle really close, we’ll fit.” Thankfully the bed is a full-size, and it will honestly make me feel safer, too. It will be a tight fit, but we can manage. I can’t remember how many times Serenity and I slept on a twin bed together when we were younger.

A soft knock interrupts us, and Elias pokes his head in the already open door. “Can I come in?”

I fidget with my blanket, pulling it up to my chin even though I’m still in my wedding gown. But somehow, I feel more exposed than if I were naked. “Yes. Did you need something?”

Even after how we ended things four and a half years ago when I left for New York, he didn’t hesitate to protect my family and me. So, why did he ghost me on the day I left?

“Sully said we need to turn on the channel with Everlasting Love.”

“Why?” I haven’t thought about the show with everything going on, and now my heart pounds wondering what’s going on.

He taps on the screen, and a few seconds later, he angles his phone toward me. Victor is on camera, but I can’t hear anything. Elias lowers himself onto the bed opposite Serenity. The bed dips under his weight. He’s so close I can feel the heat radiating off his body, and my heart goes into overdrive.

Get a grip.

Anita’s familiar face pops on screen. Her lips curl up. “So, you’re willing to come back for a reunion if Harmony agrees? Are you hoping for her to regret her decision?”

Victor’s light blue eyes never waver as he replies, “If not marrying me was the right choice for her, no, I don’t hope for her to regret her decision. But if she has a change of heart, then I’ll happily still marry her.”

My jaw drops. If someone left me at the altar, I wouldn’t be so quick to forgive.

Anita turns back to the camera. “We’ll have some news on a special episode soon. Stay tuned.”

Elias turns off the screen. I practically scramble for his phone, but he pockets it. Is that really it? I can’t believe I’m hearing about this on live TV rather than them calling me.

My palms turn sweaty, and I wipe them down my wedding gown, beads catching on my skin. Someone already attacked me once. When Victor said he had to go clean up the mess I brought on him, I didn’t realize it would be to say something like that on television for all to see. How do I stay under the radar when Victor and Everlasting Love are bringing more heat to me?

What if the texter finds out I’m here and sends someone else? My entire body trembles, and I instinctively glance up at Elias. His familiar and steady gaze eases some of my shakiness. I can almost feel his arms around me, strong and steady. He’s already protected us once; I have no doubt he’ll do it again.

Elias leans in so close that it would be easy to fall into the safety of his arms and says, “You need to call them immediately and tell them no.”

I only nod in response, my gaze latched onto his lips.

He pulls my phone out of his pocket and hands it to me. The device chimes from within my hand, and I breathe in and out rapidly.

No. No. No. No. This can’t be happening.

I turn on the screen with my heart rampaging within my chest and open the new message. I blink as if it will erase the words in the text.

Unknown Number

I’ll show you what happens when dirt like you tries to climb out of the gutter. Who do you think you are to try protecting a man like Victor Barlowe? He wouldn’t think twice before chewing you up and spitting you back out.

I can feel Elias’s intense gaze on me even without looking up.

Turning off the screen, I hold the phone to my chest. Tears well in my eyes, but I refuse to let them fall. Whoever this is has already done enough to me. I can’t let them break me, too.