by SJ McCoy
Chapter Three
When she came out of the bathroom, Sierra startled at the sight of Wade standing right there. He was looking in the linen closet in the hallway.
He looked stressed but gave her a half smile. “I thought I had extra bedding in here, but don’t worry. I’ll run back up to the lodge and get fresh sheets for you.”
She looked at the door across the hallway. “What’s in there?”
“It’s a second bedroom, but it isn’t finished yet. You can’t stay in there. You can have the master, but I’ve been sleeping in there, so I need to change the sheets.”
She was starting to wonder if the universe had put Wade on that road this evening – brought him into her life however briefly – just to show her how a good man was supposed to behave. To prove to her beyond a shadow of a doubt that the way Jared treated her was so much less than she deserved – even before what he had planned for her and what he had going on with Lori. She shuddered at the memory of what she’d seen.
“Hey. Are you okay?”
She looked up into Wade’s kind eyes. “Strange as it may sound, I think I’m better than I’ve been in a long time. Or I will be once I have the chance to process it all.”
He nodded; the poor man obviously didn’t know what to say. How could he?
“Thank you so much. For everything. You’ve done so much – gone way above and beyond. You really don’t need to change the bedding.”
“It won’t take me long to run up to the lodge. If you’re okay here?” He smiled, and the warmth of it washed over her again. How could he have that effect on her? How could the smile of a man she’d known for a couple of hours make her feel better – make her feel that perhaps he was right and that everything was going to be okay?
She realized he was watching her face, waiting for an answer.
When she didn’t speak, he asked again, “Are you okay? What else do you need? Are you hungry, thirsty?” He ran his hand through his hair, making her notice that he’d taken off his hat. His hair was a sandy blond, and watching him run his fingers through it made her want to do the same – what the heck was wrong with her?
“Oh, and I put some clothes out on the bed for you. I’m guessing you might want to get out of that dress.”
She rolled her eyes and leaned her head back against the wall. “You’re an angel, aren’t you? Sent to me in my hour of need.”
He laughed, and the sound of it reverberated in her chest. It was the best sound she’d heard all day, probably all week, maybe ever. “I’m no angel, believe me.”
Tension coiled in her stomach at those words, but he didn’t mean them the way she wanted to interpret them. She had to get a grip, otherwise she’d be throwing herself at him and dragging him into the bedroom with her – and asking for his help to get out of the dress.
That thought sobered her and brought her back to her senses. She was indeed going to have to ask him to help her out of the dress, though not in the way that her frazzled brain wanted to imagine.
He took a step back. She was probably freaking him out. “Do you want to change while I pour you a drink? There’s frozen pizza if you’re hungry. I can heat the oven.”
“Thanks. That all sounds wonderful, but first, could you …” Her cheeks heated, but she had to ask; there was no way she’d be able to get out of the dress if he didn’t undo all those fiddly little pearl fasteners for her.
His smile was back. “Whatever you want. Name it, and I’ll do it.”
If only! She turned around and held her hand as far up her back as she could get it. “See all these pesky little things, could you undo them for me? I’ll never escape this darned dress otherwise.” She was glad she wasn’t facing him when she heard his sharp intake of breath. “I’m sorry. I …”
“No. Don’t apologize. It’d be my honor to help liberate you from the demon dress.”
She couldn’t see his smile, but she could hear it in his voice. His words made her smile, too. “Thank you.” She liked the idea of him being the one to free her from the dress and all that it represented. She could hardly tell him that, though.
“Do you want to come back into the living room? The light’s better in there.”
She followed him back and stood in front of the sofa, underneath the main light fixture, which was a chandelier made of some kind of antlers.
She sucked in her breath when his warm fingers brushed over the bare skin on her back.
“Sorry. Cold hands?”
“No! I …” She couldn’t exactly tell him that far from feeling cold, his fingers sent a rush of heat through her. “It’s fine.”
She’d swear his fingers trembled as they worked their way down her back. She’d thought the two dozen tiny pearls and the loops that held them were overkill when she’d chosen the dress. She knew Jared wouldn’t have had the patience for them; she’d planned to have Amelia help with them when she changed into her evening dress. What did it say about her that she was grateful for every one of those little pearls as Wade’s hands slowly worked their way down her back?
“There you go. That’s the last one.”
“Thank you.” She held the bodice tightly to her front. The dress didn’t need a bra and there was no way she was going to flash him by letting it fall. She scurried back to the bedroom before she made a fool of herself.
~ ~ ~
Wade turned on the oven to preheat and then grabbed himself a beer. He didn’t know if she’d drink one but he sure as hell needed one – some of Ford’s bourbon sounded even better right now. He needed a stiff one. He stifled a laugh at the thought that he’d had to hide the fact that unfastening her dress like that had given him a stiff one.
He took a long slug of his beer and tried to recall baseball stats, hoping that would settle him before she came back out. He had no right to be thinking about her that way, but whoever she was supposed to marry today must be the biggest fool on Earth. How he could have let her get away was beyond Wade. Her skin was so pale and delicate. She smelled so damned good, and she was so responsive. If she quivered and trembled the way she had while he was unfastening all those little pearls, he could only imagine what she’d be like in bed.
He shook his head. He shouldn’t be imagining anything of the sort. Back to baseball stats – and beer. His phone rang, and he pulled it out of his back pocket, grateful for the distraction until he saw Ford’s name on the display. His brother was about to give him some shit, no doubt about it.
“What’s up?”
“I was calling to ask you the same thing. Where are you? Did you get your jilted bride settled at the lodge?”
“She wasn’t jilted. She’s a runaway bride.”
Ford laughed. “Uh-oh. You’re jumping to her defense already?”
“No, I …” He ran his hand through his hair. “I just feel bad for her.”
“Why, what’s the story?
“I don’t even know yet.”
“Yet? Does that mean you still plan to find out? Haven’t you dropped her off yet?”
“No. I … err … the lodge was full so …”
“So? Where are you? Where are you taking her?”
Wade glanced at the hallway, but Sierra hadn’t emerged from the bedroom. “We’re fully booked, so I offered her the cabin.”
“Your cabin?”
“It’s not mine. You know that. And it’s almost ready for guests anyway. And …”
Ford’s laugh cut him off. “Whatever you say, bro. I take it I shouldn’t expect you to come over for that drink?”
“I’ll be there, but later. I’m going to make sure she gets something to eat, and …” He totally forgot what he was saying when Sierra came padding down the hallway barefoot, wearing just his T-shirt. She gave him an apologetic look when she saw that he was on the phone. He put his hand over the speaker. “What do you need?”
She cringed as if she was about to ask for something outrageous. “Would it be okay if I took a shower?”
Wade swallow
ed, hard. Neither baseball stats, nor his brother on the phone could stop his mind from conjuring up images of droplets of water running down over her naked body. He swallowed again and nodded. “Of course. There are clean towels in the linen cupboard.”
“Thanks.” She smiled and turned to go back the way she’d come. He watched her ass and her long, shapely, bare legs every step of the way.
“Bro!” Ford’s voice coming out of his phone brought him back to his senses.
“Yeah?” His voice sounded hoarse even to his own ears.
Ford laughed. “I’ll leave you to it. But I’m going to want a full report when you get back here – or tomorrow after she leaves.”
Wade’s heart thudded to a stop.
“You still there?”
“Yeah.”
Ford laughed again. “You need to get your shit together.”
“I’m not denying that. But she can’t leave tomorrow – where would she go? Cassidy said she’ll be home on Monday. We have to keep her till then.”
“Jesus, Wade. She’s not a stray puppy you brought home from the shelter. You don’t get to keep her or not keep her. It’ll be up to her what she wants to do. And I think you need to remember that whatever’s going on with her, she was supposed to get married today. Don’t let your inner romantic get carried away. She’s got to be a mess. If she’s going to stick around, all she needs is a friend. Nothing more.”
“I know.” He couldn’t even make himself sound angry. Ford was only looking out for him, and he could use all the help he could get. It’d be all too easy to get carried away around the beautiful but fragile woman who was currently in his shower, and Ford was right – if it weren’t for whatever had sent her fleeing from her wedding, she’d be with Jared tonight and … no. He stopped his mind before it got to thinking about what newlyweds would be doing on their wedding night.
“You’re not planning on spending the night there, are you?”
“No! I’m just going to make sure she’s settled, then I’ll be up to the house.”
“Okay.”
“Okay.” Wade glanced at the bathroom door. If he had any sense he’d leave now before she came out. But he couldn’t do that to her. He’d wait and make sure she was settled, just like he’d said.
Ford blew out a sigh. “We should probably call Jane tomorrow.”
“Why?”
“Because she’s a girl, dipshit. And I may not know much about them, but I do know that when they’re upset, they like to talk – to other girls.”
“Yeah. You’re right. That’s a good idea.”
“Ugh. But you think it’d be a better idea for her to talk to you, don’t you? I’m going to hang up. Don’t do anything stupid.”
Wade chuckled. “I won’t. See you later.” He ended the call and went to put the pizza in the oven.
~ ~ ~
Sierra checked herself over in the mirror before she opened the bathroom door. Her damp hair hung around her shoulders, her cheeks were pink, and her eyes were rimmed with red from all the crying, but she looked better than she did before.
She felt like a little lost orphan dressed in Wade’s clothes. She’d had to turn up the bottoms of the sweatpants three times over, the same with the sleeves of his Henley. But the way they looked mattered less to her than the way they felt. They were soft, and warm, and clean, and they smelled like Wade. She smelled like him too, which was both comforting and disconcerting at the same time.
Since she’d fled from her wedding without even going up to her room to collect her bags, she had nothing with her. Her purse had only contained her wallet, her phone, lipstick, and eyeliner. The ridiculously expensive perfumed toiletries that had been part of Amelia’s wedding gift to her still sat in the bathroom of the hotel room where she’d gotten ready this morning. Wow. That was this morning? It seemed like another lifetime already.
She hadn’t thought about it until she’d stepped into the shower, but once she was there, she’d had no choice but to use Wade’s toiletries. His shower gel smelled like sandalwood with a hint of citrus. It didn’t look particularly expensive, but it smelled divine. Perhaps it was simply because it smelled like him. She pushed away from the counter. Obviously, her brain was addled after a long and stressful day. She’d had no food, not even anything to drink since the water she’d sipped while she and Amelia got ready.
Shoot! She needed to call Amelia. It was time to face reality. Even though being here with a cowboy, in a cabin, in Montana felt nothing like any reality she’d ever known.
Wade was in the kitchen, drinking beer from a bottle. The bottle stopped halfway to his lips when he saw her coming.
All of a sudden, she felt stupidly shy, though why she had no idea. “Hi,” was all she could manage to squeak out.
“Hey.” His voice was low and gravelly, and he cleared his throat before he spoke again. “What can I get you to drink? I put a pizza in. I figured you must be hungry.”
“I am. I’m starved. And I’d love a beer, please.”
He cocked an eyebrow. “I wouldn’t have had you down as a beer drinker, but it’s all I have here. You should probably have water, too.” He handed her a bottle of water and popped the top off a beer before handing her that. “When was the last time you had anything to eat?”
“This morning. Before … before everything happened. I didn’t feel much like stopping anywhere on the road – I didn’t want to endure the odd looks people would give me in the dress – or heaven forbid, have to answer any questions.”
He nodded. “I figured as much.” He gestured toward the sofa. “Want to sit? The pizza still has ten minutes.”
“Thanks.” She sat at one end of the sofa and curled her legs underneath her. Wade took the armchair opposite her. She felt her skin heat as he let his gaze travel over her. Was it possible that he felt the same kind of attraction she did?
He let out a short laugh, and that combined with his words convinced her that she was being ridiculous. “Sorry about the clothes.”
“Oh.” Shoot. She really shouldn’t sound disappointed – shouldn’t feel disappointed. She could hardly expect him to find anything attractive about a makeup-free woman, with damp hair who was dressed in his sweatpants. “They’re very comfortable,” she offered. As if that might help somehow.
He chuckled. “Good. That was my intention. I figured you’d need something comfortable after your dress.” His smile faded. “After the day you’ve had.”
She nodded. It was a good thing he’d brought that up. She’d been more concerned about what he might think of her in his clothes than anything else. His mention of the day she’d had reminded her that she needed to call Amelia. Her best friend had covered for her while she made her exit. She’d blindly accepted that Sierra knew what she was doing and that she had to do it, but she had to be going out of her mind with worry by now.
She reached for her purse, which she’d left on the coffee table. “I don’t mean to be rude. But I need to call my friend.”
“Of course.” He jumped to his feet. “I can go. You’re all set now. The pizza just – ”
“No!” She said it so forcefully she surprised them both. “Sorry. But please don’t go. I was hoping that you’d stay and help with the pizza and …” She didn’t know what else she wanted him to stay for, but she knew that she didn’t want him to leave. Not yet. She smiled, hoping that would be enough. “I wasn’t trying to get rid of you. I could use the company if you wouldn’t mind, but I really need to call my best friend, let her know that I’m still alive.”
“Of course. I can wait outside if you like. Give you some privacy.”
He was something else. She lived amongst and rubbed shoulders with the so-called elite of society every day of her life, yet she’d never met a man as considerate as the cowboy standing before her. “It’s okay. Please don’t go outside. I’m only going to let her know that I’m okay, that I’m safe.”
He nodded, but still looked uncomfortable. He jerked his head tow
ard the kitchen. “I’ll set us up for the pizza.”
She took a big breath to steady herself and then dialed Amelia’s number. Her best friend picked up on the second ring.
“Sierra! Where are you? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. Honestly. I’m okay.”
“Thank God for that! Where are you? Please tell me that you’re still here? Did you go over to the Waldorf Astoria?”
Sierra couldn’t help but laugh. Of course, Amelia would expect her to have gone all of five miles across the resort town to the next best hotel. “No, actually I went a little farther.”
“Oh, Sierra! Did you go all the way down into Salt Lake? Where are you staying? I’ll come to you.”
She laughed again. “That’d take you a while. I’m in Montana.” She had to hold the phone away from her ear when Amelia squealed.
“Oh, my gosh, Sierra! Did you get on a plane? Did you stop and buy clothes? What did you do?”
Sierra sneaked a glance at Wade. He had his back to her, but she’d bet he was listening. It’d be hard for him not to. For some reason, she wanted him to hear about the way her day had gone. But she doubted that he’d ask, so this worked out well.
“Remember the old guy on the concierge desk? The one who was so nice to us yesterday when we asked about the spa.”
“Yes.”
“Well, after I left you, I went straight to him and told him that I had an emergency and needed to rent a vehicle.”
“Oh, my gosh, Sierra. Don’t tell me that you drove all the way to Montana? And don’t tell me that you paid for the rental with your credit card? Jared will for sure track you down.”
Sierra glanced at Wade again. “I didn’t use my credit card. I was worried about Jared tracking me, too. I told Francis, the concierge, that I didn’t want anyone to know that I’d rented a vehicle.” She was fairly certain Wade’s shoulders tensed at that. “He was so sweet. He told me I could pay with cash and then he’d bill it through the hotel.”
