Though whatworselooked like, she couldn’t imagine.
Rune almost heard Gideon’s growled thoughts as he scanned the room they’d be confined to for the next two nights.
Resigning himself, he peeled off his jacket—she’d immediately recognized the Sharpe Duet style when he showed up in her fitting room—and tossed it onto the bed. As he unbuttoned the cuffs of his shirt, Rune noticed how smart he looked in his father’s suit. He’d tailored it to fit himself, and its classic look unexpectedly complemented her vintage-inspired dress.
We do pass as newlyweds.
Her stomach dipped. But before she could banish the oddfeeling, a knocking came from down the hall. Gideon glanced toward the door, rolling up his second sleeve. At the urgent voices, Rune opened it and peeked out.
Uniformed officers walked the corridor, knocking on cabin doors and questioning the inhabitants.
Her pulse kicked.
“The police are here.”
There was only one way out of this corridor—the stairwell—and it was on the other side of the officers.
We’re cornered.
Before they spotted her, Rune shut the door and turned to Gideon. “Take off your clothes.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“A vintage suit would be easy for the shop matron to describe to the police,” she explained.
Seeming to agree, Gideon unbuttoned his shirt and nodded to her dress. “Won’t they also be looking for a girl in a stolen wedding gown?”
Rune glanced down at the dress she wore. It would give her away in an instant.
As Gideon shucked off his shirt, Rune reached for the laces at the back of the dress. The shop matron had helped her into it and tied the laces tight. Now, the harder she tugged on them, the tighter they knotted.
The knocking got louder.
Closer.
Rune glanced at Gideon, who was shirtless and working at the buttons of his pants. “Um… Gideon?”
He turned to face her, giving her a view of his very defined abdomen.
Rune spun, pointing to the laces at the back of her dress.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” he said.
Gideon stalked toward her. Which, with three feet of space to move in, only required half a step.
“Trust me,” she said through gritted teeth. “I’d rather not have to ask you for help.”
“Trust me,” he growled back, “I’d rather not have to give it.”
Gideon picked at the knots until one came loose. Then heyanked, jerking Rune with him. She had to press her hands flat against the clapboard wall and lean into them to stop herself from flopping around like a rag doll as he tugged and pulled.
“Next time,” he said, hauling at the laces, “you’re going to tell me the entire planup front.”
Rune scowled at the wall. “If I’d told you the entire plan up front, you wouldn’t have agreed to it.”
“Exactly,” he said, his growing irritation evident in his roughness.
“That’s why I didn’t tell you.”
