Page 69 of Breaking Matt

They had gotten close in the short time I had been with him.

"He's fine. He's recovering."

"Which hospital is he in?" she asked.

I hesitated. If she spoke to him directly, it might get out that he was my bodyguard.

"I think he is out of the hospital."

There was a pause.

"What's going on with you two, Sarah?" she asked. I shook my head. My friend was a lot more perceptive than I had given her credit for.

Chapter Twenty-One

Iwas caughtbetween a rock and a hard place. I wanted to tell her the truth but I wanted to protect her as well, and neither option allowed me to do both. There was a choice to make.

"Sarah?" she prompted.

It was time. The nervous knot in my stomach tightened. For a moment I wondered if I was doing the right thing.

"Matthew is...was...my bodyguard," I revealed with a heavy voice, hoping I wasn't making a big mistake by revealing the truth to her.

I wanted to protect her, but I didn't want to lie to her either, and I had a feeling it would just cause more problems if she discovered the truth from someone else.

"What? I don't understand."

"I was getting threats, so my father employed Matthew to protect me," I let out with a sigh.

"Wow," was all I heard her mumble as she took in what I said. "Did you know?" she asked.

"Not at first."

"He dated you without telling you he was employed to watch you?" she asked, sounding angry.

I didn't like how that made Matthew sound.

"My parents should have told me what was going on but they didn't want to worry me. Initially he was only supposed to watch me from a distance, but then Ryan became a nuisance."

"I get it. Ryan was definitely on the verge of stalking you but I don't know how I feel about him getting involved with you without telling you truth."

I bit my nail. "I was angry when I first found out, but we worked things out."

"So you guys are a real couple?"

We had been.

"Not anymore." Somewhere there was a dull ache in my chest reminding me of the pain of what I'd lost.

"I don't understand." There was a moment of silence.

"I broke it off with him to keep him safe." I ran a hand through my hair.

"Aww, Sarah. I'm sorry," she said, sounding concerned.

"It is what it is." There was no use feeling sorry for myself. It didn't change anything.

"Is Mark a bodyguard as well?" I sighed again. There was no point in being half honest.