Page 13 of Beautifully Reckless

It’s an oasis. A place to escape.

A place to breathe.

Soft voices drift to me as I trail behind my friends, weaving through the maze of greenery, and unease prickles at the back of my neck as I still don’t know what I’m about to walk into.

Jared rounds the corner of the last partition with Dee on his heels, and suddenly, the voices cut off.

Silence.

Then I hear a voice. Urgent and desperate.

“Where is she?”

A sob catches in my throat, my feet moving before I can think as I rush forward, rounding the corner before I freeze.

They’re here.

All of them.

My friends from back home.

“Abs!”

Lexi’s scream shatters the moment, my eyes instantly finding her as she leaps over a low table, arms outstretched, blue eyes glossy with unshed tears.

But then… she skids to a stop, her gaze dropping down my body.

My noticeably pregnant body.

“I didn’t know how to tell you,” I whisper, but she’s close enough to hear, and her tears finally spill over as her lips part to speak.

“Oh, Abs,” she cries, closing the distance and wrapping her arms around my neck, pulling me into a hug I’ve been longing for, for months.

Burying my face in her neck, I inhale the familiar scent of my best friend, and fall apart.

My knees buckle and Lexi follows me to the ground, not letting go for a second as she holds me tight, letting me break in her arms.

She shouldn’t love me after everything I did.

She shouldn’t even like me.

She shouldn’t be here.

But she is.

She’s the one who sent Ringo to take me.

She’s the one who sent Jared and Dee to find me.

She’s still fighting for me.

Unconditional.

That’s the way Lexi West loves me despite everything.

That’s the type of love Lexi West has to offer those she cares about, and apparently, I’m still on her list.

“I’m so glad you’re safe,” she sobs into my ear, her body trembling with emotion.

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