Page 31 of Protecting Lanie

Lanie forced herself to lift her gaze, scanning the room. Vinnie was gone. Her pulse pounded. Where was he? What did he mean? Her grip on the phone tightened, her breathing uneven.

"Lanie."

Archer’s voice. Low. Controlled.

She swallowed hard, locking the screen before slowly turning to face him.

"Yeah?"

His blue eyes burned into her. "You’re shaking."

Damn it. She had to pull it together.

Lanie forced a smile, slipping the phone back into her clutch. "It’s nothing," she said lightly. "Just the champagne. I probably should’ve eaten more."

Archer didn’t move. Didn’t blink. The air between them thickened, charged with something heavy.

Then, after a long, excruciating beat, he nodded once.

"That’s five more.” He murmured. “Stay close.”

Lanie nodded, as shivers ran up and down her spine. Her fingers curled around his arm as he led her deeper into the masquerade. She pasted a polite smile on her face, willed herself to breathe, to pretend.

But inside? Inside, she was screaming. Because Vinnie was here.

And he was waiting for her to make a mistake.

CHAPTER 9

ARCHER

Archer watched the shift in Lanie’s expression, the moment her defiance faltered, just for a second. It was all the confirmation he needed.

She was hiding something.

From the second they stepped into the masquerade, Archer had felt something was off. Now he was certain she was hiding something. While he understood why she had developed some of her bad habits, it was his job to correct them. She didn’t have any real tells unless you knew her, and he did. It was in the way she held herself too rigid, the way her fingers trembled against his arm, the way she avoided his eyes when she thought he wasn’t paying attention.

The problem for her was, he was always paying attention.

Lanie tried to slip past him, but his grip was firm as he caught her elbow, pulling her back against him. Her pulse pounded against his fingers, her breath coming fast. She smelled of vanilla and something darker—fear, adrenaline, the sharp scent of nerves.

"Talk to me," he ordered.

She shook her head, her eyes darting toward the crowd, toward the VIP section upstairs. The main staircase leading upwas at the far end of the ballroom, roped off and hidden behind heavy velvet curtains.

That was all it took. His entire body went stiff.

Archer bent his head, his mouth brushing her ear. "Is he here?"

Lanie flinched.

A low growl built in his chest. "Don’t lie to me again, little one."

She swallowed hard, still trying to force composure. "I don’t know," she whispered. "I...”

"Lanie." His grip moved from her elbow to her chin—gentle but firm—forcing her to look at him. Her pupils were too wide, her lips parted as she fought for air. "You saw him."

A flicker of fear flashed across her face before she forced it down, her fingers curling into her palm. She nodded, finally admitting, "Yes."

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