Bride on the Run--A Clean Romance

by Anna J. Stewart

  “Do you mind if I ask you a question?”

  Sienna’s fork paused on its way to her mouth. She looked surprised at his inquiry. “Sure.”

  “It’s about your father.”

  Her gaze went from curious to guarded and she suddenly seemed very interested in the pattern on her ceramic plate. “What do you want to know?”

  “From what you said you aren’t close.”

  “Not for lack of trying on my part. No,” she added with a tight smile. “We aren’t. He’s always been very focused on his business, on finding the next big deal, the next moneymaking merger. That doesn’t leave a lot of time for offspring.”

  “You mentioned your grandmother, but not your mom.”

  “She died when I was born. From what my grandmother said, it was very quick.” Sienna had gone from shoveling food into her mouth to moving it almost absently around her plate. She sat back, lifted her bottle and drank. “I had nannies until I was around twelve, then Nana took over. Dad...well, from what I learned growing up, my father was never an affectionate man. She’d hoped losing my mother would make him realize just how fleeting life could be, but he went pretty much the other way. It broke her heart, I think. Knowing he couldn’t be bothered with the only child he had. She’d lost two of her own early on and my Uncle Frank just a few years ago.” Sienna examined how her beer glistened in the sun. “On the bright side, she was amazing with me. A real Auntie Mame, you know? Took me on fabulous adventures. Vacations and excursions every summer. She didn’t want me to miss out on anything. When she got sick, she was so angry. Angry that she was running out of time. One night...” Sienna cough-laughed, but Monty had witnessed enough grief that he recognized a broken heart. “A few months before she died, she woke me up at two in the morning and told me she’d booked two tickets to Paris. Just like that. We left the next afternoon. It was one of the best weeks of my life. Of hers, too, I hope.”

  “I can understand why you miss her so much.” How many times had he done something similar; not that he could afford a trip to Paris, but he often climbed on board one of his boats and set sail for parts unknown. There was something freeing about impulse, something life-affirming.

  “She’d have liked you,” Sienna confirmed. “You’re very roll-with-the punches, much like she was. And your taste in boats?” She gave him a thumbs-up. “Since she’s been gone I’ve become a bigger believer in signs. Seeing Nana’s Dream right where I seemed to need her yesterday couldn’t have been a bigger one.”

  “Glad to have been of assistance.” His own life had certainly shifted off course because of it. “So what was the plan for after the wedding?”

  “To live happily-ever-after.” She toasted him with her bottle, but he didn’t miss the sarcastic smirk. “Move to North Carolina. Take over his late mother’s role on various charity boards. Throw parties for his clients and business associates.”

  “Sounds...fun?”

  “It might have been, although I doubt it. But as my father reminded me, it wasn’t like I had a career or anything to worry about. Richard was a safe bet. Or at least I thought he was.”

  “You definitely had him showing his true colors yesterday.” Not that it was any of his business, but he was grateful for whatever clicked in her head. No one deserved to be tethered to a life that wasn’t of their choosing, and it was clear, especially given where they sat at this moment, that the life her father had planned for her was not her choice.

  “The ironic thing is,” she mused, “Nana would have loathed Richard. It took me until yesterday morning to see that. I guess I saw a lot more in that mirror than just myself. Standing there, laced into a dress that didn’t feel like me at all, I couldn’t see myself. Or maybe I was seeing myself too clearly. But, yeah, she would definitely not have approved of me marrying Richard.”

  Monty chuckled. “There must have been something about him that got you that far.”

  “Daddy’s approval. That’s what Richard got me. For the first time in my life. Of course, Richard’s firm means a whole new influx of cash to my father’s company. I’m betting that deal’s been blown to smithereens.”

  Monty didn’t respond. He didn’t want to be reminded of how different they were; what different life experiences they’d had. What vastly opposite worlds they inhabited. He liked her. More than he should. More than was rational and practical. Like Sienna, he decided to believe, at least for a little while longer, in the fairy-tale aspect of their current circumstance rather than the reality that would come crashing down on them once they reached Butterfly Harbor.

  Sienna Fairchild wasn’t one to have her wings clipped; her father and Richard had tried. Perhaps she still had some work to do on closing doors behind her when it came to life changes. But a woman with every advantage at her fingertips would never be happy or satisfied in the only place he could ever call home. He’d seen what happened when his mother had been forced into a place that couldn’t contain her. He wouldn’t wish that misery on anyone—not himself and certainly not Sienna. It sounded as if she’d had enough of that already. “What do you plan to do once the dust settles and you’re back to your everyday life?”

  “I have absolutely no idea.” She leaned her head against the back of the chair and let out a heavy sigh.

  “What did you want to do? Wait, scratch that.” He pushed away his empty plate and rested his arms on the table. “What did you want to do before you started doing what you had to?”

  Sienna narrowed her gaze. “That’s a rather astute observation from a nonpsychiatrist.”

  “I tend to listen more than most people.” Not just to the words, he thought. But to the thoughts beneath them. One reason Frankie never could lie to him—other than straight up being a terrible liar—was that he could read her far too well. “What was the first thing you wanted to be?”

  “Oh, that’s easy. A waitress.” She laughed at his expression. One of those deep-from-her-belly, joyous laughs that made his own lips tug. “I’m serious. Nana and I used to go to this great little diner every once in a while. Usually on our way back from a weekend road trip. They had the most amazing old-fashioned cash register. The kind with the buttons for each amount. Every time you hit Total, a bell would ding. I loved watching the waitresses ring up the bills, so, of course, I thought that would be the coolest job ever. I was six, by the way.” She held up a finger to clarify. “I bet when you were six you already knew what you wanted to be.”

  “Sure did.” He could get used to this, just sitting in the early spring breeze, talking endlessly with her about...anything. Just being around her made him feel lighter. Happier. “I planned to be a pirate.”

  “Well, you came close, Captain Bettencourt.” She saluted him. “Do you spend your free days searching for lost treasure and wrecked ships?”

  “I do not. What happened after you were six? What else did you want to be?”

  “I went through a lot of phases. For a while my career goals coincided with whatever book I was reading at the time. I even considered being a medical examiner for a while because of a series of crime fiction I was addicted to. Then I realized that would mean medical school, so I gave up that idea.” Her eyes dimmed a bit. “I ended up majoring in business and marketing because I thought maybe I’d make an impression with my father. I was wrong.” She drank the last of her beer. “He canceled coming to my graduation about an hour before the ceremony. And for the record, I have yet to have a job in either business or marketing. For the past few years I helped my grandmother catalog and organize her estate and took over a lot of her responsibilities for the different organizations she helped to run. You know, charity events, fundraisers. I even planned a few weddings for friends of the family. The kind of stuff Richard would have expected me to do.” She took a deep breath and tilted her head to stare up at the cloudless sky. “How much we give up of ourselves trying to impress or please someone whose opinion, it turns
out, doesn’t really matter.”

  Monty didn’t think he’d ever heard a sadder statement in his life.

  “Go back to when you started college. If you’d had a choice, any choice. What would you have done?”

  “I’d probably still do the business angle, but with a side of something more creative like event planning or maybe interior design. Not that high-end, don’t-touch-it-or-even-breathe-on-it decor, but real-life design that works with people’s lives. Our home, mine and Nana’s, was always that. A home. I never worried about spilling something or getting the floors dirty. Sounds pretty silly, huh?”

  “No.” He shook his head, mildly impressed. “It doesn’t sound silly at all.”

  Flora reappeared with their bill and took away their plates. A few minutes later they were off to find Sienna some new clothes at the only discount store in the area. She surprised him again by being selective about what she needed and how much she spent. Into the cart went another couple of pairs of shorts, a good selection of T-shirts in brilliant pinks and yellows, underwear, socks, a serviceable pair of sneakers and, of course, a bathing suit—a rather modest-looking turquoise one-piece that had him breathing in relief. He did not need images of Sienna in a bikini wreaking havoc on his concentration and ability to steer his boat.

  He added a few towels while she visited the toiletries section. Once they reached the boat, the afternoon sun had been overtaken by storm clouds that seemed determined to dump rain all over them.

  “I’m thinking we might be better-off staying here for the night after all.” He climbed on board, then stepped back so she could head into the cabin first. “I’d rather save the engine for a good distance tomorrow rather than get caught in a storm out there tonight.”

  “Sounds like a plan to me. I’m going to go put all this stuff away.”

  After checking the weather report and his own barometer up in the wheelhouse, Monty was satisfied with the decision he’d made. If he’d been on his own it would have been one thing, but until he was more secure in understanding Dream’s idiosyncrasies, he wasn’t about to try to traverse unpredictable weather with Sienna on board.

  He went through the bag of supplies and equipment he’d bought at the hardware store—spark plugs, extra fuses, wire caps and electrical tape. He’d also purchased a basic tool kit he’d simply leave on the boat for emergencies and added a couple of different-sized wrenches for good measure.

  Monty found his attention pulled toward the front of the boat, to the closed door of Sienna’s cabin. With Frankie getting married in a few weeks, he had to admit the idea of settling down and starting a family had been in the back of his mind. So much so that he’d been dating here and there, but so far nothing had sparked. He’d been hopeful about Leah Ellis, a recent Butterfly Harbor transplant who had set up shop as the town’s family lawyer, but it was clear there wasn’t anything beyond friendly affection between them.

  Nothing happening between himself and Leah had probably saved him serious drama given she was challenging Mayor Gil Hamilton in the upcoming special recall election.

  He’d help her out if he was asked to; he’d be thrilled—as would a lot of people in Butterfly Harbor—to have Gil replaced, but getting in the thick of politics really was not his thing.

  Monty climbed up on deck just as the rain began to fall. He took a deep breath, then released it. No, he preferred his life as predictable as possible, moving like these smooth, calm waters. Which meant his mooning over Sienna Fairchild was completely ridiculous. Because he already knew the truth.

  Women like Sienna didn’t settle down.

  They just kept running.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  “YOU GOT AN early start.” Sienna pulled herself up the ladder to the wheelhouse as the sun was peeking over the horizon.

  “Couldn’t sleep.” Monty didn’t even glance over his shoulder, but kept his eyes shifting between his cell and the boats moving in and around the marina. “I’m waiting for a follow-up call from Frankie.” He glanced at his watch. “I’ll give it another few minutes before we head out.”

  “What’s going on with Frankie?” She braced her hip against the console and looked at him. He seemed pale, sitting in the padded chair, one knee bouncing up and down. “Bad news?”

  “That’s what I’m waiting to hear.” He shook his head. “There was an accident at the sanctuary construction site in Butterfly Harbor yesterday.”

  “Was anyone hurt?”

  “Yeah.” The strain in his eyes, that he hadn’t shaved and that his hair was rumpled from nervous, anxious fingers, would have been enough of an answer. “A couple of the crew—the construction foreman and my goddaughter’s boyfriend.”

  “You have a goddaughter old enough to have a boyfriend?” She moved a bit closer, wanting him to know she was here for him, whatever he might need.

  “Mandy, yeah. She’s fifteen going on thirty-five.” His lips curved for a brief moment. “Frankie didn’t have much information last night and Luke and the other deputies have been working nonstop.” He gestured to the radio. “No one’s available for me to call for an update and I don’t want to bother them. Frankie said she’d call back when she could.”

  “Then I’m sure she will.” She hesitated, wondering why he hadn’t mentioned Mandy before. “Are you and your goddaughter close?”

  “Mmm.” He gave an absent nod, his eyes flickering between the phone and the view beyond. “Yeah. Very. Her dad, Sebastian, and I go way back.”

  Recognizing a potential positive distraction, she sat down, tucked in her legs and settled in. “How way back?”

  “Kindergarten, I think. Frankie would know for sure. The three of us made peas in a pod seem like distant cousins.”

  She smiled even as the pang of envy struck stomach-deep. “He’s your family.”

  “Absolutely. He’s also a partner in Wind Walkers. Mandy works for me on school breaks and during the summer. On weekends, too. She’s part fish. Can’t keep her out of the water. She’s planning on becoming a marine biologist. Or something along those lines.” His lips twitched. “She’s still deciding.”

  Monty sounded like a proud father. A familiar longing tugged at her heart. What she wouldn’t have given to hear that kind of affection in her own father’s voice for her. “Mandy wasn’t with her boyfriend when he was hurt, was she?”

  “No.” That seemed to bring him a measure of relief. “No, she wasn’t with Kyle, she was out on one of my boats with a group of snorkelers when it happened. I know how useless I’m feeling about now, so I can imagine how she must be dealing with this.” He picked up his cell. “I should just call Frankie.”

  “No, you shouldn’t.” Sienna reached out and pressed his hand down to the console until he released the cell. “Your sister said she’d call you. She’s working and if she hasn’t contacted you, that probably means she doesn’t have anything to tell you yet. Worrying about you worrying about them isn’t going to do anyone any good.”

  Irritation flashed across his face. “Maybe Kendall can tell me something. Kyle’s worked for her on his days off from the construction site. Maybe she knows—”

  “Monty.” She stood and moved closer to take hold of both hands, shifting in front of him so she was all he could see. “Stop running through the town’s entire population. You’re going to do what Frankie needs you to do right now and focus on getting home. Let’s fix some breakfast and head out. There’s an auxiliary radio down in the cabin, isn’t there?”

  He nodded. “Yeah, I didn’t want to turn it on until you were up.”

  “I’m up.” She smiled. “Sitting here willing the phone to ring won’t help. Come on. I’m in the mood for bacon.”

  “Bacon?” He sounded rather dazed when he said it.

  “Bacon makes everything better. And it’s something I cook very well. I have a secret. The oven works, doesn’t it?”

>   When he wasn’t looking, she pocketed his cell phone and led him downstairs.

  * * *

  IF THERE WAS one thing Sienna did very well, it was distraction. She’d distracted her Nana for months, trying to get her grandmother’s mind off the chemo treatments, off the pain and nausea when she was home. Board games she could play with her eyes shut; she was a master at cards and jigsaw puzzles. Easy peasy. What she’d found helped the most, however, was good conversation.

  “Pop the toast,” she urged and elbowed him gently. He’d been gazing blankly out the window again, which is why she’d taken over the scrambled eggs while the bacon finished cooking in the minuscule oven. “Unless you like it burnt.”

  “Sorry. Yeah.” He clicked the lever and shook his head. “I don’t know why this is hitting me this hard. I mean, I’ve known Kyle his whole life, but only by sight really. Until recently. This feels personal. Mandy’s crazy about him, even if she is a little young to be dating him.”

  “How much older is he?” Sienna moved effortlessly around him, letting him say whatever he needed to.

  “He’s eighteen.”

  “Well.” Sienna’s eyes went wide. “Well. That’s a surprise.”

  “I know. Believe me, we all know. Sebastian and I have gone through a number of long nights in the backyard with six-packs discussing it. Getting that serious that young feels a bit like history repeating itself.”

  “Whose history?” Out came the bacon, which she plopped onto paper towel, then she finished stirring the eggs and removed the pan from the burner.

  “Sebastian and Brooke were nineteen when they had Mandy. They got pregnant when they were still in high school, but Brooke left Sebastian with the baby.”