by Regina Duke
She showered and dressed quickly, but took her time with her hair. In the hospital, she’d despaired that it might fall out. It just seemed limp and lifeless no matter what she did. But now, it fluffed beneath the blow dryer and looked thicker with every stroke of the brush. If this kept up, she would once again cherish it as her best feature.
She double-checked her baggage, made sure her phone and charging cord were safely tucked away in her purse, and took a moment to apply her lip gloss. Then she gave herself a once-over in the mirror. Shoulders back, nose elevated an inch or so, just enough to allow her to look down on the world. She laughed out loud. Yes, she was ready to play the part of a rich man’s wife.
She picked up her purse, and the packet of medical bills crackled inside it. Her smile faded. Somehow, she would find a way to get Kevin to make good on this marriage business right away. A lot could happen in a week. What if he changed his mind? What if he dropped dead from a heart attack or had a freak accident? The knot of worry was back, banging its ugly head against her insides.
Or perhaps she was hungry. She could swear she smelled coffee. She decided to take her things to the great room. There must be a coffee pot behind that bar.
She piled her suitcases one atop the other and clutched her overnight bag and her purse in the other hand. The carpet made her progress down the hall completely soundless. When she reached the entryway, she left her bags and moved into the great room.
Kevin was sitting at the table, staring at the screen of his laptop. She wasn’t sure, but he looked upset.
“Good morning,” she said.
Kevin slapped the laptop shut and lifted his head. “Oh. Hi.”
“Mind if I share that coffee? It smells great.”
“Sure. Help yourself.”
Megan’s brow furrowed. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, fine.”
Megan poured herself a cup of coffee and examined the pastries on the tray. Maple bars, apple fritters, and croissants. At least a dozen. Maybe her concern about a sudden heart attack wasn’t far off the mark. She chose an apple fritter and settled on a chair opposite Kevin.
His thick dark hair was wavy in front. She hadn’t noticed that before. His hazel eyes looked green in this light. His square jaw was firmly set, as if he were sinking his teeth into a problem.
Megan let the silence of the room do her work. Before long, Kevin sighed and offered, “There’s something you should know before we get to the ranch.”
“Go on.”
Kevin’s gaze shifted right, left, up and down, searching for the words he needed. Whatever she needed to know was not easy for him to say.
Megan asked, “Something about your family?”
Kevin nodded.
Okay, thought Megan. Twenty questions it is. “About your father?”
“No, not him.” Kevin made a disgusted noise. “He’s a lost cause.”
“Your mother, then.”
He shook his head. “No, she’s okay. It’s my sister Karla.”
“What about her?”
“She’s—not well.”
“Oh?”
“She’s been having a lot of problems. Teen stuff mostly, but during the last year or so, she’s teetered on the edge of—” He dropped his chin and studied his lap. Then he shifted his gaze to the wall of drapes. “My mother thinks she’s mentally ill.”
Megan replied as neutrally as she could. “Okay. Every family has problems.”
“Just promise me, when you meet her, you won’t run the other way.”
Megan pulled a bite of apple fritter free and held it at the ready. “I promise.” She popped the bite in her mouth.
“No, really. I’m serious.”
Megan chewed and swallowed. “And I promised. I will not run the other way. What time are we leaving?”
Kevin didn’t look very reassured, but he checked his watch. “I want to miss the morning rush hour. How about 8:30?”
“Excellent.” Megan picked up her coffee and balanced what was left of her fritter on the saucer. “I’ll go enjoy my room as long as possible.” She retreated to her room, snagging her purse on the way.
Once inside, she settled her coffee and fritter on the table and pulled her phone out of her purse. She wanted to check routes from Seattle to—
“Darn it! I don’t even know where we’re going in Colorado.”
She frowned at the tiny screen. It occurred to her that they were going to be on the road a very long time. Way too long. She would need to take breaks. Her leg was already aching from two days of unaccustomed activity. She dreaded the thought of sitting for long days, then trying to walk afterward. She typed in a question. “How many hours to drive from Seattle to Denver?” She picked Denver because she didn’t know exactly where they were going.
The answer was 1,333 miles, and a time of 20 hours and 30 minutes if they drove non-stop and encountered no rush hours and no road construction!
Megan slumped in her chair. She could not spend 20 hours in a car. She was a girl! Girls had to pee! Two ten hour days would still be torture. For Megan to be comfortable, it would have to be a three day trip. And that was a long time to be in a car with a man she hardly knew. What was Kevin thinking? Twenty hours, and probably more, was way too long a trip. This was why airplanes were invented, for Pete’s sake. She would have to think of something.
Meanwhile, she had to call her mother.
She retrieved the Guatemalan phone number and dialed. She frowned when the only response was a strange bee-bop, bee-bop, bee-bop sound at the other end. Maybe that was their busy signal? She couldn’t remember. Had she ever gotten a busy signal before?
She dialed again. Same response.
She made a face at the phone. “I know, I know, it’s not your fault. But what the heck is going on?”
It was eight-twenty. She needed to leave. She tried one more time.
Boop, boop. Boop, boop.
That was better. That’s what the tone was the last time she called.
A male voice answered. “Aló?”
“Hello,” said Megan. Then slowly, “Señora Mully, por favor?”
“Ahhh,” said the man. Then he let loose a string of Spanish that was unintelligible to Megan.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I’m calling from the United States for Mrs. Mully. Glenda Mully.”
“Ahhh.” There was a long pause. Then in very stilted English, “Galinda no live here.” He hung up.
“What!?” Megan stared at her phone. “That’s impossible!” She dialed the number again.
“Aló?” Same voice.
“Hello,” she said slowly. “Glenda Mully?”
Now the man’s voice became irritated. “No, no Galinda here. They change house! Adiós pues.”
“Goodbye,” said Megan softly. She ended the call and sat glumly, staring into space. For the first time since her mother left her bedside at the hospital, she felt completely empty.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
KEVIN KNOCKED ON MEGAN’S DOOR.
“Are you ready to go?”
After a few moments, Megan opened the door. She did not look happy.
Kevin frowned. “Something wrong?”
Megan moved efficiently toward the entry way. “Now that you ask, yes, there is something wrong.”
Kevin followed her. “What now? Another change to the prenup?”
Megan toss her hair back. “Do you know how long it takes to drive to Colorado?”
Kevin shrugged. “A couple of days.”
“Two ten-hour days if we don’t stop at any restrooms or stop to eat along the way. Two long, miserable days of staring at the passing countryside, and since restrooms and food are a necessity, it’s more like two thirteen hour days in the car. That is crazy!”
“How come you’re suddenly a road map expert?”
Megan held up her smart phone. “I looked it up. You want this relationship to look real, correct? Well, no bride-to-be would spend the days before her wedding dri
ving cross country so she could arrive to meet her in-laws looking like something the cat dragged in.”
Kevin was taken aback. “I bought a brand new SUV to travel in. It’s got that new car smell and it’s very roomy.”
Megan rolled her eyes. “New car smell? Trust me, after three days of driving, you will never want to smell that aroma again. And three days would be the shortest estimate, because I cannot sit in one position for hours at a time.” She looked around for her luggage. “Where are my things?”
Kevin resisted the urge to snap, You mean, the things I bought you? Instead he said calmly, “Jeffrey took them downstairs and put them in the car. Look, Megan, I thought a road trip would give us an opportunity to get to know each other.”
She glared at him. “Let me give you the crash course. I’m a girl. Girls need restrooms on a regular basis. I also need to exercise my legs every couple of hours because of my injury. Otherwise, I get sore and achy. And that makes me cranky.”
Kevin decided to play the sympathy card. “Okay, I’ll level with you. I’m terrified of flying, all right? I just can’t get on a plane. I know it’s crazy, but I’ve tried, and it’s real embarrassing when they have to take the plane back to the gate because I’m freaking out. Get the picture?”
Megan appeared to soften a bit. Kevin thought she would relent.
Instead, Megan said, “I’m sorry you have such a terrible fear. Fine. Here’s what we’ll do. You take me to the airport and I will fly to Reno and wait for you there. It’s only twelve hours. I checked on-line. If you can drive to Denver in two days, you can do twelve hours in your sleep. You drive down, we’ll get married, and then we’ll discuss the rest of the trip to Colorado.”
“But I have this beautiful new car!”
“Yes, and you’re dying to play with it. I get that. But I have to look after my health. When you first mentioned that we would be driving, it didn’t click for me exactly how far we have to go. With me along, we won’t get to your ranch until late Wednesday night at best. I will be exhausted all day Thursday, and your mother has scheduled the wedding for Friday. Not good. And trust me, if we spend three days in a car together, neither of us will feel like walking down the aisle when we get to Colorado.”
Kevin worked his jaw. “All right. Fine. But if I take you to the airport, it will add two hours to my driving time.”
“You have a chauffeur. Jeffrey can take me in the limo.”
Kevin cursed silently. He thought fast. “The limo is being serviced. I didn’t expect to need it to day. It’s up on a rack right about now. And it’s Jeffrey’s day off.”
“You just said he was loading the bags in the car.”
Kevin backtracked. “He’s supposed to have the day off once we leave.”
“Fine. I’ll take a cab. And I still have the thousand you gave me. That should get me to Reno. I will meet you there.” She powered past him and slammed her hand against the elevator call button.
Kevin spread his hands. “Hey, hey, hey. If you want to fly, you can fly. If you want to get married in Reno, we can do that, too. I don’t have time to find someone else to fill your shoes.”
Megan tilted her head and said sarcastically, “That’s so romantic.” The doors opened and she stepped inside.
Kevin put out an arm and kept the doors from closing. “Megan!”
Megan straightened her back and stared straight ahead. “What?”
Kevin stepped inside the elevator to ride down with her. “I’ll take you to the airport if you’ll tell me what’s really wrong?”
Megan glanced sideways at him. “What do you mean?”
“You know, me behind the wheel, you in the passenger seat, driving to the place where the planes take off?”
Megan bit back a smile. “Not that part, silly.”
“Well, something must have happened between your morning coffee and your desire to fly to Reno. What’s going on?”
Megan chewed her bottom lip, then brushed her hair behind one ear. She pulled her phone out of her purse and activated the contacts list. “I tried to call my mother in Guatemala,” she said. She handed the phone to Kevin, as if he could make the call work. “But a stranger answered the phone and said my mother didn’t live there anymore.” Her voice broke.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
“I knew it had to be something.” Kevin placed a comforting arm around her shoulders and dropped her phone in his pocket. “And it was stupid of me not to realize that a major road trip might not appeal to someone who is still recovering from injuries sustained in a car crash. I’ll make sure you get a first class seat to Reno.”
Without thinking, Megan leaned into him. “Thank you. Are you sure you can’t fly as well? Don’t the drugs help?”
“Drugs? I don’t take drugs.”
“Really? Mother’s doctor told her that all those calm people in the airport are on drugs! He said she should use Xanax whenever she flies.”
Kevin looked uneasy. “I don’t like the idea of losing control of myself.”
“But that’s not what it does,” said Megan. “Mom told me. She said it just turns off the fear. She feels like a normal person who isn’t afraid.”
“Well . . .”
“Can you call your doctor? Get a prescription?”
Kevin made a face.
Megan pinned him with a teasing look. “You still want to drive your new car, don’t you?”
Kevin’s chin dropped to his chest. Busted.
“That’s okay. Let’s meet in Reno and get married there. We’ll figure the rest out after that.”
“You seem eager to make it legal.”
“Aren’t you? You’re the one who stands to lose a fortune. What if something happens on the way to Colorado? What if, God forbid, you run your new SUV off the road? What if you’re in a coma and can’t get married in Colorado? What if…?” She stopped when the elevator doors opened on the garage level. Jeffrey was waiting for them.
“You’ve made your point,” said Kevin. “You’re right. The sooner we’re married, the better. Reno sounds great.”
Jeffrey looked confused. “Change of plans?”
Megan said, “Kevin and I are getting married in Reno. I’m going to fly there and wait for him to join me.”
“Mr. Wake, may I have a word with you, please?” Jeffrey pulled Kevin aside.
Megan strolled toward the new Ford Expedition where Jeffrey had been arranging luggage. One of the back doors was still open. She could hear Jeffrey whispering furiously at Kevin. Odd. Maybe it was some urgent chauffeur matter. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. By this time tomorrow, she could be married and no longer alone with her debts. She hoped the Courthouse in Reno opened for business at eight a.m.
She was relieved that Kevin hadn’t fought her on the idea of getting married in Reno. And her logic wasn’t totally self-serving. After all, as he said, she’d made good points. She herself was living proof that an instant on the highway could turn ugly. No one was guaranteed a smooth ride through life. If he wanted to protect his inheritance, then he should take every precaution, and getting married as soon as possible was a big one.
She folded her arms against the cool breeze that came down the ramp. Why was it that garages were always chilly? Maybe something in the concrete attracted cold breezes.
Now she could hear Kevin whispering back at Jeffrey, just as fervently. What on earth? Were they negotiating the chauffeur’s contract?
“Kevin? Is everything okay?”
A bellboy emerged from an elevator, pushing a luggage-laden cart. Behind him came a family with two chatty children. They barely spared her a glance as they followed the bellboy to their car.
Kevin lifted a hand. “Megan? I need to go back upstairs for a few minutes. Did you want to wait here?”
Megan made a face. “I’ll wait in the lobby,” she said. She moved to join them in the elevator.
As soon as Megan was inside, Kevin pressed the button for the Lobby and then the express button
for his suite. Neither Kevin nor Jeffrey said a word as the elevator rose to the Lobby. Megan stepped out, her purse securely over her shoulder.
“I’ll be down in just a minute,” said Kevin.
Megan nodded. “I’ll be over there by the gift shop.”
The doors closed. Before they shut all the way, she heard Jeffrey say, “Don’t be an idiot.” Then they clicked shut.
Megan frowned. That was a very strange thing for an employee to say to his employer.
CHAPTER TWENTY
“I THINK SHE HEARD YOU.”
“So? Make something up,” said Jeffrey. “You’re the one who said she’s a blackmailer who can’t be trusted. You’re crazy if you let her get on a plane with a thousand dollars of your money! She’ll be in Reno by one o’clock and you’ll be on the road until nine p.m. All she has to do is turn around in the Reno airport and buy another ticket for somewhere else, or even worse, a bus ticket, and she’s gone, and you’re screwed! You’ll never see her again.”
“Well, I can’t force her to drive with me all the way to Colorado,” said Kevin as the elevator rose. “She just got out of the hospital after a major car wreck. No wonder she wants to fly.”
“Then go with her.”
“You know I can’t do that.” Kevin paled. “I’m not proud of being a coward, but you remember what happened last time.”
“Yeah. It was humiliating. But I’ve got the answer.”
“If I fly, what about the car? I’m not saying I’m going to, but it’s brand new! I’m not leaving it in the hotel parking lot.”
“Look, you take this.” Jeffrey pulled his airline ticket out of his pocket and handed it to Kevin. “Cash it in when you get to the airport.”
“They’ll need your I.D. for that.”
“I’ll be there. I’m driving you.”
The elevator doors opened. Jeffrey got out and headed toward the back of the suite. Kevin stepped into the great room and looked around again, trying to soak in every penny’s worth of atmosphere.
Jeffrey reappeared and handed Kevin a prescription bottle. “Take one of these now. Just do it. When you get to the loading gate, take a second one. Then get on that plane and don’t let Megan out of your sight! I will drive your new car to Colorado.”
