Page 65 of Guarded Hearts
I dialed Alyssa’s number in the car before reversing out of the driveway. Again, the call went straight to voicemail. This time, I left a message letting her know I needed to speak to her. Then, I searched my map for the closest hotels and began to contact each one. I’d find her, no matter how long it took.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Alyssa
In the elevator on the way to my room, I set up my accounts in my new phone. Between visits to the lawyer and police station and dropping my phone in the toilet, I’d had a hell of a few days.
Ricky’s interview earlier today was part of the news cycle in the entertainment world. At some point, I’d have to consider hiring a PR person if my life kept spiraling out of control. My finger hovered over my favorite social media app. With Ricky’s lies out in the world, my mentions would be out of control. Maybe I’d need to abandon these accounts.
As soon as I opened the app, my feed was flooded. Out of curiosity, I clicked on the first mention, and my stomach dropped at the headline.
Mia Malone fires longtime bodyguard.
She fired him? I crouched before my leg gave out. Mia had fired Pasha?
He’d have to go back to Russia. His visa was tied to his job. My stomach rolled, and I clutched my middle as the elevator jolted to a stop at my floor.
As I braced a hand against the wall, bile rose in my throat. I was going to be sick all over the floor if I didn’t get to my room in a hurry. If he was sent back to Russia, I’d never see him again. I swallowed the panic threatening to grip me and dug into my purse for my room key. God, this was a disaster. What had we done?
“Alyssa?”
I snapped to attention at the sound of his voice. Pinpricks darted across my skin.
Pasha. He was here.
Tears flooded my eyes, blurring his tall, athletic figure. Oh, God, he’d come to say goodbye. Was the government kicking him out already?
“Pasha.” His name was more of a wail than a word. “She fired you?” My words were a garbled mess, and his confused expression meant he probably hadn’t understood what I’d said.
“Are you okay?” He scanned me, and when I got close enough, his hands traveled my body as though looking for injuries.
“No, I’m not. You’re getting deported?” My heart clenched when our gazes connected. How would I cope if I never got to see him again? Maybe I’d have to move to Russia or visit, at least.
“Did he kick you out of your own house?” He smoothed my hair, and his blue eyes were filled with tenderness and concern.
“Changed the locks with my sister’s help.” He was going to be removed from the country, and he was worried about me. “But I don’t care about that if you’re going back to Russia.”
“I’m not going back to Russia.” His lips grazed the side of my mouth, and my purse dropped to the floor. I wrapped my arms around his neck and sought his lips, pressing my body against his.
“Your letter,” he said between kisses.
“You found it?” My teeth grazed his bottom lip.
“Yes. You meant it?” His voice was gruff.
“Every word.” Our gazes connected.
He stepped back and framed my face with his hands. “I mean this—every word. I love you.”
My stomach flopped, and I searched his blue eyes, their sincerity stopping my heart. Tears pooled, blurring my vision. “You love me?”
“Yes.” His eyes softened. “Most people get one great love if they’re lucky. These last few months with you, I have realized that sometimes someone gets lucky twice in a lifetime. Turns out my heart is big enough, strong enough to hold another great love—you.”
“Holy shit,” I whispered, my heart pounding in my ears. “You love me that much?”
“I do. I’m sorry I didn’t say it before. I should have. It’s just—I wasn’t sure I could risk my heart again. Once you were gone, I realized, for me, love isn’t a choice. I want to be with you. I’ll do anything to make that happen.”
“Oh, Pasha.” I threw my arms around his neck and tugged him tight. My fingers threaded through his hair, and I breathed him in. He wanted to be with me, just me. Then the reality of that claim slammed into me, and I drew back. “But Mia fired you?”
