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Way to go, Pepper.
What was I thinking coming back here?
Of course Hideaway Springs gets the news. And if a nobody like Chase Reeves knows of my expected nuptials to Troy Mayfield, everyone does.
What if they tell him where to find me?
With Mr. and Mrs. Rosenberg gone, I have no one to turn to. They were the sweet couple who took me in after my parents died until I was old enough to be on my own. They owned Hideaway Springs Inn and gave me a free room for the few weeks I stayed with them before I left town.
What did I even expect coming back here? A welcome home party?
This guy is likely going to drop me at the nearest airport, which would really screw me because I’ve used up most of the cash I had just getting here.
Strands of my hair blow rebelliously in the wind. The air is cooler now that the sun is setting and I wish I’d at least grabbed a jacket before I ran out of the hotel this morning.
I scoff to myself.
This wasn’t exactly my idea of riding off into the sunset on my wedding day.
I was supposed to be on a private plane for my honeymoon. My veil wasn’t supposed to be tucked into my old leather backpack because I forgot it was still on my head when I ran.
As Chase makes his way farther away from town and onto a local highway, I glance back.
“Um…where are we going?”
“What?” he shouts back, his voice muffled through the shield.
“Where are we going?” I shout slower.
He stops at a red light, the engine still vibrating in my ears. He lifts his shield. “Some of us actually work for a living, Pep,” he calls back.
“Work? You’re taking me to work with you?” I shriek.
The engine roars louder. “Doesn’t look like you have much of a choice so sit tight and be quiet.”
“And if I don’t?”
A vibration comes from beneath followed by a deafening roar as the bike lurches forward, bursting into speed. I grip him tighter, screaming.
I gasp, collecting air in my lungs as I do, then quickly drop my shield.
I can feel the rumble in his rock-hard abdomen as he laughs at me. And it angers me.
Okay…it should anger me. But it only makes my skin sizzle. And my stomach bubble. Because goddamn he feels good.
I’m quiet the rest of the way.
I’m also surprisingly calm. As calm as I can be given that just this morning, there were thirty-five people in my bridal room, working on my hair, makeup, dress, and run down of who to talk to, who not to talk to, and who to simply wave and nod to.
And now…I’m on a motorcycle going God knows where with Chase Reeves. The kid I crushed on in the ninth grade but didn’t have the courage to talk to until tenth. And by then it was too late. The cute, goofy athletic boy became almost unapproachable, distant. The loss of his mother took a toll on a lot of people at Hideaway Springs, but it changed him the most.
He's got a few brothers, but I don’t remember them well. Chase, I remember. Same permanent scowl. Same killer blue eyes.
And I mean killer.
One glance and I felt like I was being sliced open. I think I finally get why romance novels always say piercing. His eyes pierced deep into the core of my being.
Not in a romantic way. But rather, in that “what the hell was that” kind of way that made me turn away.
