6: Guardian angels

Third-Person POV

It was her day off, and Raina Foster had just rolled out of bed. She was lounging in the living room, munching on junk food and watching a soap opera, when she got a call from her best friend, Fiona.

She was an agent for a soccer team and had just wrapped up the season, so she had some free time. She was glad Fiona was calling, they could plan to go out tonight. But she secretly hoped Fiona’s husband wouldn’t tag along; he always killed the vibe.

“Hey, babes! Thank God you called! I’ve got the day off. What do you say we go shake our booties a little? I’m sure you need it,” she said in her usual bubbly, over-the-top way.

“Hi, babes. I’m sorry, but I’m not in the mood to go out today…” Fiona replied from the other end.

“What’s wrong with you?” Raina’s expression turned serious. She could hear Fiona’s voice was hoarse, like she’d been crying. “Don’t tell me Sebastian Blackwood made you cry!” Raina sat bolt upright on the couch, the bag of Doritos forgotten. She worried a lot about her friend and that contract marriage she never approved of.

She heard Fiona sigh on the line and already guessed the problem. “It’s just… I was kind of an idiot, you know, believing something could work out between him and me.

But as soon as Ross came back to town, he asked for a divorce,” she explained with a little laugh, but Raina knew it was hitting Fiona way harder than she let on. Of course. Raina had been there from the start. “So Sebastian and I are getting divorced,” Fi concluded.

“Divorce?” Raina’s voice shot up without meaning to. This news was shocking; she could barely believe it. And all because of his ex? No way! Raina knew her girl didn’t deserve that.

Elijah Foster, dressed in a suit and carrying a briefcase as he prepared to head to work, froze at the word.

Fiona wanted a divorce?

Elijah was Raina’s brother. He worked at a law firm and was a well-known lawyer in the city. Both Raina and Elijah were Black and stunning, with a commanding presence that turned heads wherever they went. And both adored Fiona.

“What happened to Fiona?” Elijah asked his sister, concerned.

Raina waved her phone, signaling she was getting more details. “DAMN IT! He dumped you because his first love came back? A horrible man like that should go straight to hell!” she was already freaking out.

“I really didn’t expect this from him…” Fiona commented, her voice choked, like she was about to cry again.

“Oh, dear, please calm down. Where are you right now?” she asked, wanting nothing more than to support Fiona in this moment.

“I’m at some random park, thinking about all this, you know,” Fiona laughed at her own situation.

“Wait for me there, girl, okay? Your friend’s coming to take care of you. Just wait! Kisses,” she said and hung up, still pissed off.

“What happened? Fiona’s getting divorced?” Elijah asked, hungry for confirmation.

“Yeah, bro. Looks like Sebastian Blackwood, that asshole, is leaving Fiona to get back with an ex,” she explained angrily.

Elijah frowned. “Is that for real? Like, who in their right mind would do something like that?” He seemed incredulous, especially since he’d always harbored feelings for Fiona, and Raina knew it.

To him, Fiona was perfect, the woman he’d always wanted and loved in secret, even while she insisted on staying married to someone else. So to him, it was absurd for any man to leave her, even if that man was Sebastian Blackwood.

“Well, we’re talking about that arrogant billionaire, so we can expect anything from him, right?” Raina sighed exasperatedly, now standing with her hands on her hips, still in disbelief.

“Man, I’m so pissed. How is this even possible? After all my girl gave him, to end up traded like garbage? I hate that stuck-up piece of shit!”

Raina started pacing the living room. Her body language screamed manic energy. She cursed Sebastian nonstop for three minutes. In her eyes, Fiona was the kindest, most lovable woman in the world.

The man who disappointed Fiona deserved to die.

Her eyes met Elijah’s worried gaze. Though quieter than Raina, he carried the same fury in his eyes. “She needs us now more than ever, right?” He was worried about Fiona.

Of course. She knew.

Maybe, after Fiona’s divorce, Elijah would finally have a shot at winning her over. Raina might even find it cute to see her best friend and brother in a romance, but that depended on Fiona and whether she wanted Elijah too, especially now that her heart was broken.

So Raina wouldn’t meddle.

“I’m heading out to see her now,” Raina said, stopping in front of the mirror on the living room wall to fix her flowing curly hair and apply lipstick before grabbing her purse.

“Can I come with you?” Elijah asked, sounding a bit eager.

Raina gave him a side-eye. “Didn’t you say you had an important meeting today?” He’d been talking about that meeting all week.

“Whoops, look!” Elijah pulled out his phone, typed something quickly, and signaled. “Meeting canceled!”

Raina rolled her eyes. “How inconvenient of you! This was supposed to be a girls’ night at the bar, okay? We’re going to trash-talk men, we don’t want you making it awkward.”

“Raina, Fiona’s my friend too. I need to be there for her,” he insisted.

He didn’t need anything, Raina knew what Elijah really wanted with Fiona. “Promise you won’t start hitting on her.”

He sighed. “I can’t promise that.”

“You can. Fiona’s not in the headspace for it right now.”

“But this could be my chance to turn things in my favor, okay? I want to show her I’m way better than that idiot Blackwood. If she’s with me, she’ll never have to fear going through this, so she can give me her heart without worry,” Elijah said, still dreaming of having Fiona as he always had.

Raina sighed and grabbed her keys. “Okay, fine. But behave, okay? Or I’ll have to kick your ass,” she threatened, stretching out her leg to demonstrate. Raina was an athlete, she knew how to fight.

Elijah bolted out of the apartment laughing, with Raina chasing after him, threatening to kick his butt. And so both went to see Fiona.