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“High?”
“No, of course not!” I giggle. “I’m in looooove!” I sing-song. “And I’m free, Shay. Free from my parents, free from the complications of money and ridiculous expectations, free from everything.”
“That sounds amazing, but I’m going to need some answers from you,” she says matter-of-factly. “First, you didn’t call, text, or FaceTime me for three days. Then, I finally work up the courage to call your mother, and she tells me you’re a runaway bride! What the heck, Ains?”
“Wow, was that really only three days ago?” It’s hard to believe I’ve fallen so deeply and irrevocably in love with Brewer in such a short time. I’m not scared, though. I feel like I’ve always loved him.
“Only?!” Shay exclaims. “Only three days of me going out of my mind! Only three days of me trying to get a hold of you every free moment I have, and getting scolded for having my nose buried in my phone!”
“I’m sorry, Shay,” I tell her truthfully. I never meant to make her worry, and worse, I never want to be a reason her parents yell at her. I know all too well the kind of damage those words have, even though Shay would never admit it. “It all happened so fast. The wedding was sprung on me by my parents. I was standing there, looking down the aisle at the middle-aged man my dad hand-picked for me to marry, and something just… snapped.”
“What do you mean?” Shay whispers. “God, Ains, I’m so sorry.”
“I couldn’t go through with it. Setting me up on disastrous dates is one thing, but an arranged marriage? I can’t explain it, but I felt like… I felt like I crawled out of my skin and hovered over my body, watching the scene play out while not having any control over the outcome. Then, all at once, I took off.”
“Took off?”
“I threw my bouquet on the ground, kicked off my heels, and ran right up the nearest mountain.”
“You ran up a mountain bare-foot?”
“Yup. And I was almost attacked by a mountain lion, but my beastly mountain man came to my rescue.”
“Ainsley! Tell me everything!”
I laugh, then dive into everything I’ve experienced the last few days. Well, almost everything. I keep the steamy details to myself.
There’s shuffling in the background over the phone, then I hear Shay’s mother screech, “Where are you? We need to get you ready for the cocktail party tonight.”
My bestie groans, and my heart goes out to her. I know exactly what she’s going through.
“Duty calls,” she says sarcastically.
“You can run away, too,” I whisper.
“And live with you and your mountain man in freaking Montana?”
“Hey, don’t knock it,” I say teasingly.
“I love you, Ains, but I’m a city girl through and through. Now if only I could convince my parents I can be a city girl all on my own without a man by my side.”
“Maybe they’re worried about you being alone after…?” I don’t want to upset my best friend, so I don’t reference her attack directly. She gets the hint.
“Worried?” Shay scoffs. “They have a hard time believing it even happened most days.”
“I’m sorry, Shay. You need to get out of there. Or at the very least, start going outside of your comfort zone a little bit. You can build up the courage to leave one day at a time.”
“Shay! I know you’re in your room. Come out here this instant!” her mother snaps.
My friend groans, then tells her mom she’s coming. “Gotta go,” she sighs. “Thanks for calling and letting me know you’re okay. We need to talk again ASAP, missy! I want a FaceTime call with you and your new beau.”
I grin and agree to another call soon, though my heart aches for the life my bestie is trapped in.
After hanging up, I stand from the couch and stretch, lifting my arms over my head as I yawn.
“Trying to tempt me, Firefly?” Brewer asks, his voice low and filled with lust.
I turn and look over my shoulder, seeing my man lounging in a kitchen chair as his eyes roam over my body.
