Tyler: I swear to God. Answer me!
Since Gemma was nicer, I respond to her first.
Everleigh: I flew to Vegas, just got to Archer’s hotel room.
Instead of responding, she immediately FaceTimes me. Tyler’s scowling next to her.
“I told you to stay put!” he scolds.
“I couldn’t…”
“Ev, I thought something happened to you. Could’ve given me a heads-up,” he says.
I shrug. “Well, I knew you’d try to stop me.”
“Sounds eerily similar to what Archer did to you,” Tyler says, and I shake my head.
“It’s different, trust me,” I say.
Gemma speaks up. “So is Archer there?”
“No, but his stuff is, though.”
“How’d you even know where he was staying?” Tyler asks.
“I called Maddie.”
He rolls his eyes. “Of course you did. She’ll be gettin’ a nice little chat from me later.”
“You realize I’m thirty-four years old, right? Not a child. A fully grown woman.”
“After the shit I’ve seen and been through over the years, I don’t care if you’re eighty-fucking-five. If I tell you not to get involved in trouble, you should listen.”
“Whoops.” I shrug.
Gemma smirks, clearly trying not to take sides. “When’re you flying home?”
“I didn’t plan that far in advance. Only booked a one-way ticket.”
“Keep me updated,” Tyler says just as his phone goes off. “Wait, he just texted me.”
“What’d he say?” I shout.
“I’m safe. I’ll be home tomorrow,” Tyler reads, and there’s a collective sigh.
“Thank God,” Gemma says.
“So where is he?” I ask.
“Probably with Liam,” Tyler responds. “I’ll text him and find out.”
“Alright, lemme know.”
We say our goodbyes, and I pace the bathroom as my mind reels. It’s actually spacious, and the lighting is great.
As soon as the door creaks open, I race out and leap into his arms.
“Holy fuck!” Archer yelps as he catches me. I hang onto him as tight as I can as if he might disappear. “Everleigh?”
“I’m so goddamn pissed at you,” I murmur with tears falling.
“Baby, what’re you doing here?” He walks in farther, then sits down on the bed with me on his lap. “I can’t believe you’re here.”
I meet his concerned eyes. “I was a mess. How could you just leave a note? Do you have any idea how scared I was?”
“Sweetheart, I’m so sorry.” He slides the pads of his thumbs over my cheeks. “I had to make sure you’d be safe. If I had told you my plan, you would’ve never let me face Krystal.”
“Damn right,” I scold. “I had to track down Maddie just to find out where you were. No one knew anything.”
“It all happened so fast. I called Liam before I left, and he agreed to meet me here. He had a whole team of cops ready to back us up. He’s seriously badass.”
“So I’ve heard,” I say. Tyler shared a ton of stories, and Maddie mentioned the trouble he’d gotten into over the years.
Archer cups my face and presses his lips to mine. “I’m not happy you traveled alone, but I’m selfishly glad to see you.”
“You should know I’ll never accept you walking away from me, got it? Your protectiveness has nothing over how possessive I am of you.”
He flashes a crooked amused grin. “I’ll do whatever it takes to make it up to you.”
“Yes, you will,” I confirm. “But first, you need to tell me everything.”
Archer and I end up in the tub as he starts from the beginning. Even I’m amazed by how effortlessly Liam’s plan worked out, though I shouldn’t be too shocked. He’s a pro and doesn’t take shit from anyone.
“That fuckin’ bitch, Dana. I knew I should’ve fired her,” I seethe when he mentions she was involved. “My gut feeling told me something was off with her. The secret roommate. Her being there when the fire happened. She took pictures and kept tabs on me for that psycho. I hope they give her a harsh sentence.”
“Yep, you were right,” he says calmly as he rubs a washcloth over my back. “The detective said Dana was cooperating and wanted to make a plea deal. With her confession and testimony, Krystal will hopefully get prison time.”
“And what’s gonna happen to Dana?” I ask.
“Not sure, but if they charge her as an accessory, she’ll go to jail for sure.”
I didn’t necessarily hate Dana. In fact, I tried to be the best boss I could and even her friend. While I wasn’t perfect at that, I only wanted the best for her. It’s going to take me some time to heal from her betrayal. What did Krystal offer her that would convince her to turn against me?
Hopefully one day, I’ll get to ask her those questions.
Once we’re out of the water and dried off, Archer holds me under the covers like he does every night. I can’t imagine not spending the rest of my life with this man.
“So, you really wanna make it up to me?” I taunt.
He arches one brow. “What’d you have in mind?”