The Rancher and the Runaway Bride

by Susan Mallery

  “Good morning,” he said, holding out a hand.

  She crossed to him and sank next to him on the bed, then squeezed his fingers. “You’re smiling,” she said. “Good. I was terrified you would have second thoughts.”

  “About being with you?”

  She nodded.

  “Never.” He touched her face, then her shoulder. “Never,” he repeated. “And you?”

  She closed her eyes. “Last night was the most perfect experience of my life.” She looked at him and blushed. “I hope you don’t think I usually behave like that.”

  He leaned forward and kissed the tip of her nose. “Only with me, lover. Only with me.”

  She pulled the towel from her hair and began to finger-comb the wet, tangled strands. “The shower isn’t very modern, but it works and there seems to be plenty of hot water.”

  He waited, knowing she didn’t really want to talk about the shower.

  She sucked in a breath. “Okay, the thing is, I’ve been thinking. It’s time for me to go back to Grand Springs.”

  As the knife that was her words sliced through him, he hung on to the fact she’d said Grand Springs instead of “home.”

  “Today?” he asked, hoping she couldn’t see how she’d hurt him. He knew what would happen when she returned to that place. She had a life waiting there, a family. It might not be home right now, but it had been and it soon would be again. He would lose her forever. But hadn’t he always known that was a possibility?

  She nodded. “The sooner I go back, the better. I want to talk to the police and tell them what happened. They might not believe me, but I have to try. Plus, I’ve got a bunch of family stuff to deal with. My brother, my mom.” She wrinkled her nose. “Hal.”

  He dropped his hands to the bed and curled his fingers toward his palms. By squeezing his fists very tight, he forced himself to ignore the sensation of his life’s blood seeping away. How was he supposed to survive without her? Why hadn’t he known losing her would hurt this much?

  She gave him a faint smile. “You’ll probably be glad to get rid of me.”

  “I wouldn’t say that.”

  “Really?” She bit her lower lip. “I’m glad, because I was wondering…” Her voice trailed off.

  He watched her, memorizing the features of her face, wondering when she’d become so important to him. Being with her was all he wanted. He didn’t care about who she was or what she’d done in the past. Yet he couldn’t tell her that. Not now. Not when she was ready to return to the place she belonged.

  “Would you come with me?” she asked in a rush. “I know it’s tacky to ask you, and I wouldn’t except I’m a complete wimp and I don’t want to be alone. It would just be for a couple of days. You know, getting to Grand Springs, then seeing me through everything. It would be boring and awful and I have no right to expect—”

  “Yes,” he said, cutting her off. “I’ll come with you and stay as long as you want.”

  Her bright smile eased a little of his pain. “Are you sure?”

  “I’m happy to do it, Randi.” He would do anything to stay with her a few more days. Anything to put off the inevitable.

  She flung herself at him and he hauled her close. As his mouth descended to hers and she parted her lips to accept him, he wondered how many more times they would be together. In the silence of the morning he heard a faint ticking sound, as if the best part of his life was slowly slipping away.

  * * *

  “You’ve caused more than a little trouble, young lady.”

  Randi squirmed on her seat and resisted the urge to duck her head. She felt as if she’d been brought before the principal for speaking out of turn in class. But the middle-aged man in front of her wasn’t the principal. Frank Sanderson was Grand Springs’ chief of police. He stared at her with piercing brown eyes.

  Brady dropped his arm around her shoulders and gave her a reassuring squeeze. “Randi had no way of knowing about the mayor’s murder when she left town three-and-a-half months ago.”

  The chief of police’s expression didn’t soften. “You could have called.”

  He sounded like a scorned suitor. If she hadn’t been so nervous, she would have laughed. “I didn’t think anyone would listen.”

  “I’m listening now.” Sanderson leaned forward in his chair. “Start at the beginning. Don’t leave anything out. It’s important.”

  Randi sucked in a deep breath and recounted the events of her almost-wedding day. When she mentioned the two men talking, Sanderson started taking notes.

  “What did they say? Be as exact as you can.”

  She closed her eyes and tried to put herself back in the meeting room. She’d been anxious to get away before anyone realized she was missing. She inhaled, trying to recall the smell of coffee.

  There was the clink of the carafe against a mug, muffled voices, then, “Jo will take care of the old broad. That’s her specialty.”

  “Dammit!”

  Randi jumped and opened her eyes. Sanderson grimaced. “Jo’s a woman. So that confirms it. Olivia Stuart’s killer was a woman.”

  Randi glanced at Brady. He shrugged, obviously as confused as she was. Sanderson caught the look. “It’s a long story. All we know for certain was that someone gave Olivia a shot of a drug whose effects simulated a heart attack. We had suspected that the killer might be a woman. Son of a bitch.” He picked up the phone and punched in a few numbers, then quickly recounted what he’d just been told. When he hung up, he took Randi through the rest of the events of that day.

  A half hour later Sanderson was satisfied that he’d gotten everything he needed. “You’re free to go,” he said.

  Randi stared at him. “What about the men after me?”

  “I’ll arrange to leak this information to the media. Once word is out that you’ve told us everything you know, you should be safe. But you might want to stay out of sight for a couple of days. Your family will take you in?”

  She nodded, a little stunned by the course of events. “My mother and my brother.”

  “Either would be fine. I wouldn’t worry, Ms. Howell.”

  They said their goodbyes and were shown out of his office.

  Once in the hallway, Randi stared at Brady. “I’m in shock.”

  “Me, too. I figured what you’d heard had to be important, but I never thought it was part of a murder investigation.”

  “Do you think he’s right? About the men not having a reason to kill me now?”

  Brady took her hand in his. “Yeah, I do. You’ll need to be careful for a few days, but I think the danger is past. You’ve told the police what you know. You’re of no use to them now.”

  She shook her head, trying to shake off the surreal feeling. “I could have solved all my problems by talking to them that first day,” she murmured. Then she realized that wasn’t completely true. She wouldn’t have learned all she did on the road. She wouldn’t have met Brady. She wouldn’t have fallen in love. Even knowing about the terror she would have to live through, she wouldn’t go back and change anything.

  “Now what?” Brady asked.

  “I have to figure out what’s next.” Several uniformed officers walked past them and entered the chief’s office.

  “Let’s get out of here,” Brady said. “We can talk in the truck.”

  He kept her hand in his as he led the way through the maze of desks and cubicles. Before they reached the door, someone called her name.

  “Miss Howell?”

  She turned and saw a tall, lean blond man staring at her. His intense gaze was unnerving. She instinctively inched closer to Brady. “Yes?”

  “I’m sorry to bother you, but one of the officers mentioned you’d shown up at last.” The man gave her a wry smile. “I was hoping you’d recognize me.”

  She frowned. “I’m sorry, I don’t know you.”

  “I wasn’t invited to your wedding?”

  Randi blushed. She had a bad feeling she was going to be talking about the weddin
g for the next several weeks. Despite the passage of time, it seemed still to be fresh in everyone’s mind.

  “I’m not sure, Mr…?”

  “Smith,” he said. “Martin Smith. I lost my memory the night of the massive storm. A few people suggested I might have been a wedding guest. Hal doesn’t know me and I was hoping you would.”

  Randi shook her head. “Sorry, no.”

  “Thanks.” He turned away. “Oh, welcome home.”

  Home. This wasn’t home anymore, she thought as she and Brady stepped out of the police station and onto the street. She glanced around at buildings she’d seen countless times, and not one of them made her feel welcome.

  She could picture individual streets in her mind, she knew the exact locations of stores and restaurants. Grand Springs was familiar to her. And completely foreign. There was nothing for her here. Not anymore. The town hadn’t changed—she had.

  “How are you holding up?” Brady asked.

  “I’ve been better.” When he stepped close, she allowed herself to lean on him. “My head is spinning. The mayor was murdered, and I had one of the puzzle pieces in my memory. That poor guy—Martin Smith. I was shot at, but until he can remember his past, he’s lost his whole life. I can’t believe everything that’s happened while I’ve been gone.”

  “Sort of like missing a month of your favorite soap opera.”

  She laughed. “Exactly.”

  “What now?” he asked.

  She wanted to find somewhere private and make love with him. She wanted to be in his arms, joining with him the way they had so many times last night. She wanted to tell him again that she loved him and hear him say the words back. She wanted to know that she always had a place at his side.

  But he hadn’t responded to her heartfelt confession, nor had he talked about the future. She had a feeling that if she hadn’t asked him to spend some time with her, he would have dropped her off and returned to the ranch without once looking back.

  She’d worried that he would despise her once he knew the truth. Well, he knew it now and he didn’t despise her. Unfortunately, he didn’t seem to love her, either.

  She squared her shoulders. Before she worried about her future—or lack of future—with Brady, she had a few pieces of her past to deal with.

  “You’re going to hate this,” she said. “But I have to talk to Hal.”

  His dark eyes never wavered from her face. “No problem. If I don’t like the look of him, am I allowed to beat him up?”

  She laughed. “Yes. Please.”

  * * *

  Both men stared at the phone. On the fourth ring, the bald man picked it up. “Yes?”

  “Randi Howell spoke to the police today. She told them everything. Perhaps you and your associate didn’t understand that this was important?”

  The bald man swallowed as his back began to prickle. The cold sweat crept down his neck and around to his chest. “We nearly had her.”

  “Nearly isn’t good enough. We’re very disappointed.”

  Panic flared low in his belly. Dear God, they were going to die.

  “Please take the next flight back,” the voice continued. “We’ll be waiting.” The line went dead.

  He slowly replaced the receiver.

  “What?” the other man asked.

  “As you’d expect. They want us to take the next flight back.”

  “Forget that. I’m not going to let them put a bullet in my head just because the girl got away. A friend of mine has an import company in Singapore. He wants me to come work for him. Same sort of job, less trouble if you screw up. Interested?”

  The bald man thought about the alternative. There was no way to fix this problem. If the woman had spoken to the police, killing her now would accomplish nothing. He could return as he’d been ordered, or he could make a run for it.

  “I’m interested,” he said, picking up his small overnight case and wondering how many movies they showed on a plane trip to the Far East.

  * * *

  Brady stirred his black coffee, then put the spoon down when he realized the action betrayed his nervousness. He told himself to relax, that the outcome of Randi’s meeting wasn’t his business. Yet he couldn’t convince himself of the lie. Of course it was his business. Randi was meeting with Hal Stuart, her former fiancé.

  He leaned back in his seat. There was no point in straining to hear the conversation. While he’d settled in at the back of the diner so he could watch what was going on, Randi and Hal had a booth up toward the front. Even if they spoke loudly, the conversation from other patrons and the clink of dishes muffled their words. He was at right angles to them. All the better to torture himself with, he thought grimly. He could see them looking at each other, catch every nuance of body language, and watch them either reconcile or break up.

  Maybe he should have waited in the car. It would have been easier not to watch. Yet it was like staring at the scene of an accident. Even though he didn’t want to look, he didn’t have the strength to turn away.

  At least Hal Stuart wasn’t the paragon he’d feared. While the man was fairly tall and in some circles might be considered handsome, Brady found his perfect blond hair, tanned skin and practiced smile too polished for his taste. Hal reminded him of an old-fashioned snake oil salesman. What had Randi ever seen in him?

  Watching her now, it was obvious she was battling with the same questions. When they’d first met, Hal had been cautiously friendly. He’d held out his arms for a hug. Randi had offered a tight smile instead. Brady had breathed a sigh of relief. The last thing he wanted was to watch the woman he loved give herself to another man.

  Hal leaned forward in the booth and spoke earnestly. His manicured hands cut through the air, emphasizing what he said. Randi nodded a couple of times, then shrugged. She still wore the same clothes she’d had on yesterday. Worn jeans and a faded T-shirt. He’d offered to take her by her mother’s house so she could collect some clothes, but she’d refused. Her long hair hung loose around her shoulders. She looked like a pagan goddess.

  Suddenly Randi and Hal stood up. They shook hands across the table. Hal left without giving Brady a single glance while Randi headed toward the rear booth.

  “Hey, good-looking,” she said, sliding in across from him. “What’d you think about Hal? I noticed you didn’t beat him up.”

  “If he’d tried anything, I would have. So, what happened?”

  She smiled. “We talked about the wedding. I told him my concerns. He agreed that under the circumstances it would be best not to resume the relationship. End of story.” She wrinkled her nose. “I can’t believe everything is turning out so well. Why on earth did I resist coming home? The police believed me, Hal accepted the broken engagement without a whimper. All that’s left is talking to my brother.”

  “And your mother.”

  “Oh, Brady, why’d you have to go and spoil my mood? I was doing fine until you mentioned her.”

  “You know you have to talk to her.”

  “Yeah, but she’s going to get on my case about Hal, and she’s going to want me to move back with her.”

  Thoughts of either made his blood run cold. In his head he knew Randi wasn’t coming back to the ranch with him, but in his heart, that was all he wanted. Nothing was easy.

  Randi took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I guess it’s time for me to finish growing up. If you can handle a little more trauma, I’d like you to come meet my brother, Noah. He got married to Amanda, his old girlfriend, while I was gone. One Howell runs out on her wedding, another gets married with almost no warning at all. What a family. You gotta love us, right?”

  He smiled. “Absolutely.”

  * * *

  “I see you finally decided to use some of the money they pay you,” Randi said, linking arms with her brother and glancing around at his beautifully furnished living room. “I thought you were going to be trapped in that bachelor apartment forever.”

  Amanda, an ER doctor at the same
hospital as Noah, laughed. “I think we would have been perfectly happy there, since we’re both constantly at the hospital, but Noah insisted. As soon as we were married.” She met her husband’s gaze and they shared a moment of silent communication.

  “I’m glad Noah and Amanda have this house,” Melissa Howell said from her seat by the fireplace. “It’s important for someone in Noah’s position to have the right kind of residence.”

  Brady leaned against the window frame and watched Randi roll her eyes at her mother’s comment. They’d finished dinner a few minutes before and had moved into the living room for more conversation.

  He’d caught Randi’s worried gaze a few times during the meal. She was obviously concerned because he was so quiet. When they were alone, he would reassure her that he was fine. This was her family, and she needed time to catch up with them. While he appreciated her bringing him along, he couldn’t help feeling like the odd man out.

  Melissa Howell smoothed her silk skirt and turned toward him. “Mr. Jones, you own a ranch? Is that what my daughter told me?”

  “No, you don’t, Mother,” Randi said, leaving her brother’s side and approaching Brady. “You’re not going to grill him. Brady Jones hired me when I had no references and no way to prove myself. He’s been a terrific friend to me, and I refuse to let you ask about his family name and net worth.”

  Melissa, all sleek hair, perfect makeup and expensive jewelry, made a slight expression of distaste. “Randi, I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “I’m sure I do.”

  “Brady doesn’t look like he needs defending,” Noah said.

  “Your brother’s right,” Brady told her as she reached him and took his hand. “I can take care of myself.”

  Randi’s blue eyes crinkled at the corners as she smiled. “Maybe, but you’ve been taking care of me for the past couple of months, so it’s only fair that I return the favor.” She leaned forward and whispered, “Besides, my mother can be very determined. After all, she talked me into marrying Hal.”