Anna’s shoulders seemed to tighten as he spoke. I knew she was unhappy about losing her anonymity, but there wasn’t much we could do about that now, apart from roll with it and hope that it all worked out.
I placed a hand on the small of her back, forcing a smile when she looked up at me. “It’ll be fine. You knew this might happen. I’ll be right there, just smile for the camera, that’s all.”
She took a deep breath and nodded, stepping closer to my side as she fiddled with the little gemstone necklace I’d bought her that I’d never once seen her take off. “Hold my hand though, okay?”
“Definitely,” I nodded in agreement. That wasn’t a chore on my behalf.
“Right then, let’s go,” Senator Spencer suggested, nodding at the crowd of staff and secret service that were waiting by the front door for us. We weren’t coming back to the Lake House tonight; for ease, we were staying at the hotel where the party was being held. Our overnight bags were already there. As we walked towards the door, Anna slipped her arm through mine. A black limousine was waiting out front for us. I watched as her parents climbed into the car first and then Anna and I followed suit.
The car journey was only about ten minutes, but Anna didn’t let go of my hand the whole time. She didn’t even seem to notice or care that her parents were watching us. Since we’d come back from Los Angeles, she’d been unconsciously seeking out contact with me all the time. She hugged me a lot, wrapped her arm around my waist, held my hand or just plain old pressed herself to my side. I loved it and didn’t even think she knew she was doing it half of the time.
When we pulled up outside the hotel, the crowd of reporters were easy to see. The staff had cordoned off an area and they were all lined up ready with their cameras and microphones. Luckily, due to the tinted windows, they couldn’t see us yet. On the opposite side to the reporters, a gathering of onlookers waited excitedly too. Obviously word was spreading beyond just the press that this event was happening.
Anna winced and leant forward in her seat. “Are you sure that Ashton and I can’t sneak in through the back?” she asked her dad hopefully.
He sighed and shook his head apologetically. “I’m sorry, Annabelle, I need you to come in the front. We need to show a united front. I know it’s going to make things more difficult for you.”
I knew she didn’t want to do this at all; everything was going to change for her now. Once it was common knowledge who she was, her normal life that we had tried to build would change completely. Until now, her father had people managing the press so that it made it possible for her to remain in the shadows. Now that she was about to step out of this car with him, there would be no more paying off photographers to keep her name out of the tabloids and magazines. I squeezed her hand gently, trying to reassure her that everything would be fine. We’d spoken about it a lot recently, so I knew exactly how she felt about it; she was putting on a convincing show for her parents though.
“It’s fine, don’t worry,” she smiled, waving her hand dismissively. She squeezed my hand tighter, so I knew she was lying through her teeth. Her parents looked like they bought it.
As soon as the car rolled to a stop, someone opened the door and waved her parents out but then held up a hand to tell us to wait in the car. People cheered, shouting their names excitedly as the cameras flashed in a nonstop stream. I took a deep breath and snapped my business head back on. I turned in my seat.
“You don’t leave my side, and you stay within my reach at all times,” I ordered, trying to sound stern with her. I hated telling her what to do but I needed to keep her safe, she was the most important thing in the world.
She grinned. “Yes, Mr Sexy SWAT Agent,” she flirted, raising one eyebrow at me. I couldn’t help but smile. Before I could answer, the same guy stuck his head in the door and waved us out of the car too. I climbed out first, doing a quick survey of the area. Dean was already out of the car that had travelled in front of us; I could see he was scanning the crowd for trouble too. He nodded discreetly, so I turned and held out a hand to Anna.
Her hand closed over mine, gripping so tightly that my fingers mashed together. She stepped out; biting on her bottom lip so hard that I was afraid she’d bite it in two.
“Miss Spencer, Mr Taylor, if you would just follow me, and pose for a couple of photos?” the flustered organiser guy requested, ushering us forward. This was probably Reginald, the publicist.
We both followed behind him, stopping where he pointed before he announced our names and that Anna was Senator Spencer’s daughter. As soon as he said who she was, the cameras started flashing in our direction, so many flashes that I could barely even tell where they were coming from. I pulled Anna closer to me.
She turned to look at me, smiling her beautiful smile. “Oh my God, this is crazy,” she whispered, laughing. I grinned and nodded. Crazy wasn’t exactly the word I would have used. A piece of her hair blew across her face, so I brushed it back into place, smiling down at her.
“Totally freaking crazy,” I confirmed.
Reginald stepped in front of us, holding up a clipboard, trying to shield us from the continuing flash of the paparazzi. “Okay, that’s great. The reporters are going to want to ask you a few questions,” he said, as he pointed to a huge line of people with microphones and video cameras. Anna tensed next to me as we followed him over to the right place. Nerves settled in the pit of my stomach. “Just a couple of questions, guys. One at a time, alright?” he instructed, pointing to the first person standing there.