Total pages in book: 56
Estimated words: 53052 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 265(@200wpm)___ 212(@250wpm)___ 177(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 53052 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 265(@200wpm)___ 212(@250wpm)___ 177(@300wpm)
She grips my wrist tightly but doesn’t reply, merely watches her sister, whose eyes have widened in panic. Before I can press Holly further, the senator bends down on one knee.
“And now she’s my fiancée,” Cross says and without waiting, slips the ring onto Taylor’s finger, too smart to give her a choice in front of the now cheering crowd.
“That’s it. This bullshit is over.” I take a step, planning to hustle the woman I love off that stage while telling the senator where to shove his ring, when Holly grabs my arm.
“Don’t! Let her play this out,” she tells me. “Then he won’t see it coming when she takes him down. If you make a scene, Taylor is the only one who’ll pay. He’ll call her out in public.” She holds my arm tight. “Please.”
“No. This isn’t what your sister would want. Let’s go,” I tell Holly, and we make our way to the stage exit.
No sooner do I get there than Taylor glances over and meets my gaze. She shakes her head at Chandler before she runs to me, throwing herself into my arms.
“Come on, sweetheart. I’m getting you out of here.” I grab her hand and together, we rush into the crowd.
“She wants to share the good news with her family,” I hear the senator say into the microphone, trying to save face as he lets out an awkward laugh.
“Taylor!” a man’s voice calls from behind us.
“I’ll deal with David. Go!” Holly, who’s been keeping up with us, says.
I hurry us through the crush of people and duck behind a portable restroom stall. I grasp Taylor’s hips in my hand and look into her tearstained face. Shit. I brush the moisture with my fingertips.
I should never have let things get this far, but who the fuck knew Cross would pull this kind of stunt in public? “Are you okay?” I cup her cheeks in my hands.
She nods. “Even if I didn’t see you and Holly by the stage, I was running anyway.”
“I know.” She’s fucking brave, dealing with his bullshit. Wrapping one arm around her, I pull my phone from my pocket and call my friend, Carter, the attorney who will be representing Taylor.
He answers on the first ring. “Yeah. I saw the shit show on TV,” he says without me having to ask.
“Can you meet us today?” I kiss Taylor’s cheek.
“I’ll be at the office waiting.” It may be Saturday, but he’s a good friend.
“Thanks,” I mutter and disconnect the call. “Come on. We’re going to talk to Carter.”
Taylor nods. “I want this off,” she says, working the ring off her finger and shoving it into her purse, then pulls her phone from inside. “My cell keeps going off,” she says, pulling it from her small Chanel purse. She frowns at the screen. “It’s Chandler. Texts and calls.”
“Turn it on silent and ignore him. We have a lawyer to talk to and plans to make.” I take her hand and squeeze it with reassurance. “I’ve got you,” I promise her.
And I’m not letting her go.
We arrive at Carter’s office. He brought his partner with him because Robert James will be starting Taylor’s case while Carter finishes up his current trial. They’re dressed in jeans and T-shirts, weekend casual, and I’m hoping the laid-back atmosphere will help keep Taylor calm.
Grasping my hand, she explains the hold the senator has over her and turns the incriminating documents on Chandler over to the lawyers. We stopped by the bank to retrieve them from her safe deposit box.
After a lot of reading and questioning, both men seem optimistic on her behalf, but she fidgets and I know she won’t feel settled until their words are confirmed by federal officials. As high-profile attorneys with the right connections, they assure us she’ll be sitting down with someone at the Federal Election Commission soon.
By the time we walk out of the office, I see her exhaustion in the lines around her eyes and the dark circles beneath. She went into the day on edge, and everything that’s happened since has only added to her stress.
We step into the elevator, and I wait until the doors close. I’ve already formed a plan so I turn to her. “I think you should stay at a hotel for a few days,” I tell her. “I don’t want to risk you going home and having the senator or reporters waiting for you.”
She meets my gaze. “Can’t I stay at your hotel with you? I don’t want to be alone. I’m just so drained.”
My heart squeezes in my chest at the weariness in her voice. I pull her close and she sags against me. “As much as I’d like that, Cross can find you at my hotel, too. It’s listed under my name. Let me message Carter and ask if he can book you a hotel room so Cross won’t be able to find you. I can stay there with you.”