Running After a Heartbreaker (Brides on the Run #4)

by Jami Albright

  “Thank you.” She brushed a stray curl from her forehead. “Then there’s the nonprofit that benefits breast cancer survivors I’m going to start with some of my inheritance.” The rightness of it all lifted her chin and straightened her spine.

  “Wow.” His brow creased, and he cocked his head to the side. “Did I know about this?”

  She shook her head. “Probably not. I just decided to do it a few weeks ago.”

  He gave her another of those genuine smiles that she felt to her toes. “That’s amazing, Hailey. Good luck with that, and let me know if you need a band to play a benefit concert.” He shrugged. “I know a guy.”

  A snort of laughter shot up her throat. “Oh, I plan to.”

  There was another awkward moment where they just stood and stared at each other. What the hell? Finally, she took a step out of the gravitational pull of his brilliant smile. “Well, I better go find my groom and get this show on the road. If the key sticks in the lock, jiggle it, and it’ll work.”

  “Got it. Thanks.” The guitar case swung in his hand. “There’s Jack and Luanne. I’m going to say hello, then get out of your way. See ya.”

  “See ya.” She didn’t watch him walk away.

  Men like him were her past.

  Roger was her future.

  Beau scrubbed his hand over his face. What the hell had just happened between him and Hailey? The woman was incredible, smart, strong and didn’t take one ounce of his bullshit. He liked her more than he should, considering she was about to get married.

  The seed of jealousy stuck underneath his sternum like a deer tick on a hound dog had to be ignored. A woman like her and that kind of relationship weren’t for him.

  His career was the most important thing right now, and that was all that mattered.

  He made his way to his managers, Jack Avery and his wife Luanne. Together with Gavin Bain, they owned Honey Child Records, the record label he was signed to. “Luanne, darlin’, you do take my breath away.” He bent and kissed her on the cheek.

  “Please, I’m as big as a house.” She rubbed her rounded belly. “I have your cousin to thank for that.” The loving gaze she gave Jack took all the bite out of the statement. “I’m glad we caught you before you left.” Her smile nearly took up her whole face.

  He glanced to Jack then back to Luanne. “What’s up?”

  Jack pulled a printout from his jacket pocket, his smile almost as big as Luanne’s. “This is up.”

  Beau reviewed the page, and with every bit of information that hit his brain, his heart rate jacked higher and higher. “You’re kiddin’ me!”

  Luanne laughed and wrapped him in a hug. “Nope. A Long Time Without You just hit number one!”

  The words rolled around his head, and he grabbed them, held them, until they made sense. His first single was the number one song in the country. He wished his grandfather was here to see this.

  Luanne released him, and Jack took his hand, then wrapped him in a bro hug. “Congratulations, man.”

  Beau slapped him on the back. “Thanks. Thank you so much.” He stepped out of the embrace and reread the paper.

  “This is a good thing, Beau,” Luanne said. “With this momentum, we can make things happen. Co-writing opportunities, opening gigs for some of the big names in country music…”

  Jack slung his arm around her shoulders. “Yeah, I imagine by the time you get back from Houston we’ll already have some offers.”

  “Ya think?” His emotions sizzled like a bullet in a bonfire. This. This was all that he cared about, and all he’d ever wanted.

  “Absolutely,” Luanne said. “You’re the flavor of the hour. We’re going to capitalize on that and strike while the iron’s hot.”

  Jack kissed his wife’s head. “That’s right. We’re going to drop the next single in a couple of weeks.”

  Beau gave a whoop and picked Luanne up and swung her around.

  “Put her down,” Jack reprimanded. “She’s pregnant.”

  Beau smirked. “I know.” She looked more pregnant than she had even this morning. He guessed that was normal for someone carrying twins, especially someone as small as Luanne.

  “I’m fine, Jack,” she said. “I’m pregnant, not sick. Besides, you’re the one who knocked me up with your super sperm.”

  An arrogant grin slipped over his cousin’s face. “I did, didn’t I.” Jack kissed Luanne’s temple. “I’m going to walk The Heartbreaker to the bus. I’ll be right back.”

  “Okay. Break a leg tonight, Beau,” she said.

  He and Jack watched her walk away. “You’re a lucky man, Jack. You know that, right?”

  “Yes, I do.” Jack slapped him on the back. “Let’s get you on the bus.” He slipped on his sunglasses and they headed outside.

  Beau turned his ball cap around to shield his eyes from the glare of the afternoon sun off the sleek Entertainer Coach bus parked in Boon’s parking lot. “Be sure to tell Gavin thanks again for letting us use his tour bus.”

  “I will. Listen, I’m sorry I can’t go with you, but despite what Luanne says, she’s still pretty sick. I feel I should be here. You understand, right?”

  “Yeah, man. We’ve got Al. He’ll make sure everything runs smoothly. Besides, it’s two nights.” Beau leaned his shoulder against the side of the bus. “We’ll be fine.”

  Jack nodded. “Good. Al’s a good road manager, but he doesn’t know everything, so if you run into trouble give me a call.”

  “You got it—”

  “Beau,” Dawn sang from the door of the bus. “You comin’?”

  “Yeah, I’ll be right there.”

  Her bottom lip poked out in a pout. “Well hurry up, slowpoke.”

  He handed her his guitar case. “Can you take this?”

  “Sure. Let me know if you need anything else.” She winked and disappeared into the coach.

  “You need to be careful with that one,” Jack warned. “She could be trouble.”

  Beau shrugged. “I can handle it. She’s mostly harmless, and Rick keeps her on a pretty tight leash.”

  “You can handle it, huh?”

  Beau laughed. “Trust me, man. I got this.”

  “If you say so.”

  “I do.” And he did. This was all too important to let anything screw it up for him.

  Jack stuck out his hand. “Alright. Kill it tonight.”

  “That’s the plan, Jack. That is the plan.”

  Chapter Two

  Where was Lottie? Hailey glanced around and found her sitting in her Uncle Hank’s lap, playing with his and Charlie’s new baby.

  She darted a glance toward her dad and Roger. They were alone and seemed to be in an intense conversation. Interesting. Her fiancé rarely had intense discussions with anyone, unless it was about his favorite video game or some new code he was writing, neither of which interested her father. She should save him.

  Her father’s irritated voice hit her ears before she made it to them. “I don’t know why she insists on hanging onto this place.”

  Oh, good Lord. Couldn’t he give it a rest for one day? She definitely needed to rescue Roger. He didn’t care about the bar. She didn’t get involved in Roger’s business, and he didn’t get into hers.

  “I see what you’re saying,” Roger said. “If she sold, you guys could make a killing. The land alone is worth a fortune.”

  Her father shook his head. “I wish you’d talk to her about it.”

  “I plan to, but not today.”

  What? Roger had never expressed an opinion about the bar. Not once.

  She sidestepped a couple of guests with a head nod and a fake smile, on her way to the two men discussing her business.

  “Hey, what are y’all talkin’ about?” The mannequin-like smile she’d plastered on her face was still in place.

  “Your lack of sense when it comes to this place.” Her father’s bushy brows formed a V above his grey eyes.

  “That’s not exactly what we were saying.” Roger
smoothed his tie down. “We were discussing the fact that you have several options when it comes to the bar.” His casual tone meant he was totally oblivious to the maelstrom into which he’d waded.

  “Several options?” Her lips wouldn’t do what she asked them to and began to turn down at the corners.

  Roger slipped his hand into his front pocket and smiled, still not understanding the fuse he’d lit. “Yes.”

  “Like sell?”

  He gave a little shrug. “That is one option. But we can talk about it another time.”

  “The only option,” her father murmured.

  “Ed, let’s go say hi to Wardell and Honey.” Carol led Hailey’s nemesis away by the arm.

  “Roger, I want to talk—”

  “Hailey, are you ready to start?” Justice of the Peace Norris asked.

  “Um, can you give me a second?” She needed to know what Roger meant. Was he only stating a fact, or was he siding with her father? If the latter, then they had a huge problem.

  “Mooooom!” Lottie called as she ran toward their group. “When are we starting?”

  JP Norris plowed his fingers through his hair. “Actually, I have another wedding to get to, so now would be better.”

  Roger adjusted his tie. “Now’s fine.” He held out his hand. “You ready, Hailey?”

  “I’d really like—”

  “Woohoo!” Lottie skipped around with petals falling out of the basket she held.

  “Um…” They should settle this. Shouldn’t they?

  Roger kissed her cheek and led her to the entrance of the beer garden.

  Everyone took their seats in white chairs that had been set into six rows with an aisle down the middle. The instrumental music playing through the speakers did little to calm the heated annoyance and confusion muddling her thoughts.

  “Now, Mom?” Lottie bounced around like a jumping bean.

  Hailey laughed at her girl’s excitement. It helped to loosen the muscles that had her shoulders jacked up to her ears.

  “Lead the way, Lottie,” Roger said.

  There was no reason for them to walk down the aisle, but Lottie desperately wanted to be a flower girl. So, she and Roger had decided to walk in together. They waited as her kid meticulously dropped petals on her way to the makeshift altar.

  It was the perfect day for an outdoor wedding. A light breeze blew, birds sang, and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. She wished she could say the same for her emotions. They roiled like the waters of a South Texas flash flood.

  She had to know. Bad timing be damned. “Roger.” The word was only a whisper of sound.

  “Yes?”

  With her voice still low, she tilted her head toward his. “I heard you tell my dad that if I sold the bar, I could make a killing. Were you saying you think I should sell?”

  Her groom peeked around at the audience. “Do you really want to talk about this right now?” His smile never dropped, and he spoke out of the corner of his mouth.

  What was she doing? Fiery, stinging heat spread up her neck and over her face. She waved her hand in front of her face. “I’m sorry. You’re right.” She sucked oxygen through her nose and blew it out several times.

  He never glanced at her but nodded.

  But she couldn’t let it go. “It’s just… I need to know what you meant when you were talking to my dad.”

  “Fine.” A muscle at the corner of his jaw that she’d never seen before jerked and spasmed. “What do you want to know?”

  Despite how serious this subject was, a ghost of a smile pulled at her lips when Lottie stopped and twirled halfway down the aisle. “Were you agreeing with my father about me selling the bar?”

  “I suppose I was. I don’t find your dad as unreasonable as you, I guess.” Roger chuckled with the rest of the crowd at Lottie’s moves. “I can’t see the wisdom of trying to revive this place when the land is so valuable.”

  If he’d hit her in the head with a frying pan, she would’ve been less stunned. He’d never said one word to her about the bar. Ever. The flowers in her hand quivered and shook. From nerves or anger, she couldn’t entirely say.

  Her beautiful daughter stopped at the front row of chairs and glanced back at them expectantly. That was their cue. Roger squeezed her hand that was looped through his arm and began to step forward, but her feet stayed planted where they were.

  “Hailey?”

  Lottie cleared her throat and made a come-here motion with her hand. Still, Hailey couldn’t move.

  Her future mother-in-law turned, confusion written all over her features. Someone to her right snickered. Everyone was watching her, judging her. Hailey Odom making another scene.

  That was enough to get her moving.

  She made her way down the aisle on Roger’s arm. Every step was like slogging through wet concrete.

  Lottie moved to sit next to Charlie and Hank in the first row.

  Hailey and the big fat traitor took their places in front of JP Norris and faced each other. Roger, whose biggest crime to date was being a little boring and inattentive, smiled like he hadn’t just shifted the axis of their relationship.

  Hailey glanced over her shoulder. Her father’s emotionless face was in her line of sight. The stab of betrayal cut through her. Her father’s? Roger’s? She wasn’t sure.

  What was she going to do? Stop the proceedings in front of all these people? Her inability to form cohesive thoughts was part of the carnage from the bomb he’d dropped.

  Roger seemed to sense he’d lost her for a moment. He leaned forward and whispered, “Are you alright?”

  She could only nod.

  The JP cleared his throat. “Folks, we’re gathered here today to witness the union of Hailey and Roger. It’s always a pleasure…”

  No matter how hard she tried to concentrate on what Larry Norris was saying, she couldn’t. The tornado of uncertainty twisting inside her made it impossible.

  Her vision went fuzzy.

  Her legs wobbled.

  The air skipping in and out of her lungs was inadequate to feed her brain.

  If things would stop for a second, she could get her bearings.

  Roger’s oblivious smile irritated the shit out of her. He leaned forward and whispered, “You do look pretty.”

  The sentiment that only thirty minutes ago had seemed perfectly adequate now sliced another tether that tied her to him. Why was his lackluster description of her appearance what her mind refused to let go of in this moment? She didn’t want to think about that too hard, afraid she wouldn’t like the answer.

  Whatever the reason, it was the thing that had her raising her hand to the JP. “Excuse me, Larry. I need to…” The words were out before she could call them back.

  The nervous titter from their guests was like fire ants crawling over her heated skin. This would be talked about for months at the Dip-n-Do and the City Cafe

  Screw it. She couldn’t marry someone who knew so little about her that he thought asking her to give up one of the most important things in her life was no big deal. “I can’t do this.”

  “Hailey?” Roger and Larry said together.

  She moved away from them, then inched her foot back toward the entrance of the beer garden.

  Roger threw up his arms in obvious exasperation. “Oh, for the love of God. Is this about the bar?”

  Who was this man? Where was her mild-mannered fiancé? Her feet moved back a few steps of their own volition. “I guess it is.” And so much more.

  Roger’s hands went to his hips, and he dropped his head. A huge inhalation of air was the only sound for several long seconds. Finally, he raised his head, and his brown eyes weren’t unkind, just resolved. “You’re ridiculous.”

  “Do you think I should sell the bar?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then I’m not ridiculous.” She waited for anything resembling regret to hit her. It didn’t.

  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Hank and Charlie quietly get up from their seats
and take Lottie and the baby out of the beer garden. Bless them. She didn’t want Lottie to see this. It was already going to be hard enough to explain all of this to her daughter.

  “If you leave, I won’t come after you.” Roger’s voice was as flat as her feelings for him.

  “I know.”

  The whispers followed her up the aisle. She’d pay for this in the Zachsville court of public opinion, but she didn’t care. Head held high, she made her way out the door and away from her groom.

  A bride walks out of a bar…

  Chapter Three

  Beau pulled to a stop in the driveway of his rental and slammed the palm of his hand into the steering wheel of the leased car he was driving. “Fuuuuuck!”

  In a matter of twelve hours, he’d gone from being on top of the world to having it all blown to hell. Another smack, another curse, and he dropped his forehead to the steering wheel.

  What was he going to do?

  His phone buzzed. Shit. Only one person would be texting him at four thirty in the morning. He swiped the screen and read the text.

  Jack: You home?

  Beau: Yeah.

  Jack: Good. Stay there.

  Beau: I need to pick up Walter.

  Jack: I’ll bring him to you later. Keep your ass at home and off social media.

  He hadn’t missed the fact that Jack didn’t want him at his house.

  Shit. Shit. Shit.

  Fucking Dawn. Motherfucking Rick.

  This was all their fault, and his career was on the line. They’d get another job. Everyone needed a bass player and a backup singer, but he may not be able to pull this situation out of the toilet and salvage his career.

  The stench of the shit show he’d just left filled the car. His gut churned, and bile scorched the back of his throat. He needed to get out of this vehicle and try to sleep this mess off. Moving as slow as his grandfather had when he was sick as a dog, he opened the door and stood. He wasn’t drunk—any celebratory drinks he’d had after the show had long since been burned away by adrenaline.

  The cool night air chilled his overheated skin and the stress sweat had his shirt sticking to his damp back. He opened the trunk and grabbed his overnight bag and guitar. The bag hadn’t quite survived the altercation at the hotel, so he pulled the sides together and stuck it under his arm.