by Lori Wilde
Loneliness pushed at her. “I can retrieve coffee from the Java Hut for you, if it is near enough to walk,” Annie offered. Not only would it give her time to clear her head, but going for coffee would allow her the opportunity to use the pay phone across the street and call Rosalind.
“That would be great.” Mariah pulled a ten-dollar bill from her purse. “I’d like a small soy latte. Lissette?”
“Straight up large black coffee,” Lissette said. “House blend is fine.”
“Prissy,” Mariah called out. “Annie’s making a coffee run. Do you want something?”
“Blended iced mocha,” Prissy called back.
“Where is the Java Hut located?” Annie asked.
“The block behind this one.” Mariah pointed. “Get yourself something as well.”
Annie did not drink coffee, but perhaps they would have hot tea. “I will return shortly.”
“You’re a life saver,” Lissette said, and went back to searching for a replacement cake topper.
Feeling like a furtive sneak thief, even though she had no reason to feel that way, Annie left the shop and went straight to the pay phone. She dug the coins from her satchel, deposited them into the pay phone, and punched in Rosalind’s phone number. The connection was spotty. The phone line crackled and hissed.
“Annabella, it is so good to hear from you,” Rosalind said. “How is the bride-to-be? Is she nervous? What time is it there? How long before the ceremony?”
So much had happened since she’d run away from the presidential compound yesterday evening during the wedding rehearsal dinner that she’d forgotten Echo’s wedding was still several hours away.
Apparently, Chandler and Strawn had not yet told her father the mononucleosis story, so Annie didn’t say anything about it either. “Echo looks beautiful,” she said. That was true. Then she went into details about the former president’s ranch and the elaborate wedding preparations.
“I wish I could be there with you. You know how much I love cowboys.”
“You would love it here,” Annie said, looking around at the myriad of men in cowboy hats strolling the street. “You must come to Texas one day.”
“Why would I ever leave Monesta?”
“There is a whole big world out here to explore,” Annie said. “You’re still young enough. Just barely past forty.”
“When would I have a chance?” Rosalind paused. “Unless you have decided not to take me with you to Dubinstein to care for the children you will have with Prince Theodore.”
“Of course I am taking you with me.” That is if Teddy still wanted her when she came back home. The thought that he might reject her because of her adventuresome exploration made her smile.
For the first time, Annie considered that maybe she had an ulterior motive by embarking on this adventure, a motive hidden even to herself. She had convinced herself she wanted nothing more than to live life like a normal person. Have a real job. Earn her own money. Make her own friends. Take care of herself. This was about independence and self-esteem.
But what if it was more than that? What if, because of her striking out on her own, Teddy deemed her unworthy of being his wife? They’d never spoken of her virginity. It had been a given. The royal physician had confirmed it.
Was this what she had secretly been shooting for all along? Was that why she really wanted to go off on her own? As a way to get out of the arranged marriage?
That is quite passive/aggressive, Annabella.
She recalled the previous night. Thought of what passed between her and Brady. If Teddy knew about that, he would be appalled. It was a deal breaker. Grounds to call off the wedding. Would he?
Annie smiled and her heart lifted. Yes. That was what she wanted. Only she hadn’t been able to tell her father this to his face. He was a strong, domineering man, and in all honesty, she was a little afraid of him. He’d never hit her or spoken cruelly to her, but neither had he shown her a great deal of affection, and when Henry had arrived, it was as if she was nothing more than a means to unite Monesta with Dubinstein. She had spent her life under her father’s thumb, in his shadow, and she could not deny him anything. But if she were to “ruin” herself and Teddy broke things off, then it was out of her hands.
No, this had not been a calculated plan, but if the outcome got her out of her impending marriage, it would make her a very happy woman.
“Annabella?”
“I am still here. Just know . . . just know . . .”
“Yes?”
“I love you,” she said breathlessly. “I love you more than . . .” How could she say she loved Rosalind more than she had ever loved her own parents? It was a betrayal. It was disloyal. And it was the truth.
“Please deposit two more dollars,” came an automated voice over the pay phone.
Annie dug into her satchel. She did not have two more dollars in change. “I have to go, Rosalind. Just know that I am safe. Nothing untoward has happened to me.”
“Something is wrong. You sound odd. What is it, child?”
But she never got to answer. The connection snapped off and she was left holding the receiver and feeling like something monumental had changed inside her. Like a ship breaking from its mooring and set adrift on the sea. No structure, no guide, just wide-open space around her. She could go anywhere. Be anyone. Do anything.
Starting over fresh with a clean slate was enormously appealing. The idea tempted. What if she could stay Annie Coste forever? It was a silly fantasy, but she did not want to let go of it.
She thought of Princess Ann’s reasons for her hiatus in Roman Holiday. The screenwriters had glossed over her deeper motivations. And she’d run away for only a day. A twenty-four-hour fling had sated Annie’s role model. But one day was not nearly enough for Annie. In fact, she hadn’t been gone for even a full twenty-four hours and her eyes had already been opened to so many new things. How wretched to have her eyes opened, and then never to be able to hold on to the wonders that she saw.
Misery slumped her shoulders. Would her departure from the straight and narrow path make going back to her old life that much more difficult?
And Brady? Where and how did he figure into all this?
Not knowing what was going to happen, but realizing she had already put something in motion that could not be undone, Annie hung up the receiver. Her heart was alternately both heavy and light as she meandered down the street in search of the Java Hut.
She found the coffee shop a few minutes later, stood in line for her order. Look at me. Here I am, queuing up for coffee like a regular person. A small thrill ran through her. She ducked her head and grinned.
Feeling very proud of herself, she carried the drinks in a cardboard container toward the exit. A cowboy held the door open for her, tipped his hat, smiled. “Howdy.”
“Thank you.” She smiled. A giddy sense of adventure boosted her sagging spirits. She had to live in the moment. It was the only way she could truly enjoy her time in Jubilee.
Back out on the street, she headed for the corner, the morning sun warm on her face. The air smelled of yeast bread from the bakery at the end of the block. Snatches of conversation from passersby filled her ears. Talk of horses mostly. Happiness tasted like honey on the tip of her tongue.
That is, until she rounded the corner.
There, at the intersection between John Wayne Boulevard and Bridle Lane, a long black limo sat at the traffic light.
Her heart catapulted into her throat. She stopped in her tracks. Somehow, Chandler and Strawn had tracked her to Jubilee. All they had to do was turn their heads and see her. Panic slipped hot through her veins. She glanced right, and then left. Spied a hiding place in a thin alley running behind a Western furniture store.
The rational part of her brain said: You don’t look like yourself. Short, black hair. Cowgirl clothes. Fetching coffee. They probably wouldn’t recognize you. Not at this distance.
But she didn’t want to take that chance. Not when she’d jus
t begun to unfurl her wings.
She dived for the safety of the alley.
Great, run. Call attention to yourself.
The tip of her cowboy boot hung on an irregular edge of a paver stone sticking up from the edge of the sidewalk. The cardboard carton of coffee and tea flew from her arms. She stuck out her hands to brace herself as hot liquid splashed her. Her knees hit the paver stones. Thank heavens for the thick denim of her jeans.
She lay on the ground, palms stinging and feeling like a fool. Mariah had given her a simple assignment and she had made a big mistake.
“Miss? Are you all right?” It was Chandler’s voice. “We saw you take a tumble.”
She didn’t dare look back, but she heard the limo engine purring at the curb directly behind her, felt the heat of her bodyguard’s gaze on her spine. Without answering, she leaped to her feet and raced down the alley as fast as her legs would carry her. Thrilled to escape, but terrified that it was only a short-lived reprieve.
Her handlers had already tracked her to Jubilee. It was only a matter of time before they figured out what she was pretending to be.
Chapter Eight
You might be a princess if . . . you’re embarrassed by public displays of affection.
While Annie spent Saturday observing the staff of The Bride Wore Cowboy Boots put on a stylish Western wedding, Brady helped Joe out around the ranch. To his relief, Joe did not bring up Annie’s name again. Unfortunately, Brady’s brain refused him the same courtesy.
When he was exercising the horses, instead of thinking of ways to rehabilitate Miracle, as he should have been, Brady’s mind conjured pictures of Annie. How she’d looked last night in his bed. How soft her skin felt beneath his skin. How sweet her lips had tasted. The image of her supple, naked body had been branded on the backs of his eyelids. All he had to do was close his eyes and poof, there she was.
When the work was done, Brady and Joe sat on the front porch sharing a beer and watching the cars go by on the road to the wedding chapel. Ruby had gone home for the evening and Jonah was curled up in his father’s lap, sleepy-eyed and sucking on his thumb. Trampas was lying on the floor between their rocking chairs. Lady Astor rooted around in Mariah’s flowerbed, looking muddy and happy.
“What happened to your face?” Joe asked, motioning to Brady’s cut.
Brady told him about the fight in the truck stop parking lot.
“Ever the white knight, huh?”
“As if you have any room to talk.” Brady snorted. He nodded in the direction of Mariah’s wedding chapel.
“Point taken,” Joe conceded, tipping his porch chair back on two legs and resting his booted feet on the porch railing.
“I guess protecting women is just the cowboy way.”
The cottonwood trees rustled their leaves overhead and sunlight trickled through a dappled pattern over the flagstone walkway. A long, companionable moment passed.
“Ever thought about staying a little longer?” Joe asked.
“And do what?”
“Work for me. I need someone to run the equine center we built in Dutch’s honor for disadvantaged youths. You’re as good with kids as you are with horses.”
“Me?” Brady hooted. “Good with kids? Where did you get that idea?”
Joe pointed at Jonah, who was staring at Brady as if hypnotized. “You’ve got that low, deep, soothing voice.”
“I don’t know a damn thing about kids.”
“But you know about horses. Give it some thought.”
Yeah, work for Joe while Annie was working for Mariah? Right. That was too close for comfort. “You couldn’t begin to pay me what I’m worth,” Brady quipped.
“That’s true, but there’s nothing that says you can’t have people bring their injured horses to you. No reason you always have to go to them.”
“You know it’s easier on the horses for me to go to them than for them to come to me.”
Joe shrugged. “It was just a thought. I’d like to see more of you. I miss you.”
“Aw, now, don’t go getting all girly touchy-feely on me. Next thing you know you’ll be asking if I got a spare tampon you can borrow.”
Joe reached over and punched him on the arm.
Brady grinned, took another sip of beer, noticed the parade of vehicles that kept motoring past the house. “Mariah sure has made a go of her wedding planning business.”
“I’m damn proud of her.”
“I’m happy you and Mariah found each other. After you lost Becca, you were a train wreck. You worried the hell out of me.”
“Now who needs a tampon?”
“To good women.” Brady held out his beer and they toasted, clinking the necks of their bottles together.
“A bunch of us are going to the rodeo tomorrow. It’s the last day. Why don’t you come along?” Joe asked. “Mariah’s inviting Annie.”
Annie. “Look, there’s nothing going on between us? I just gave her a ride and place to sleep last night. That’s it.”
“So you won’t mind then if she comes along? She’s new in town and Mariah doesn’t want to leave her on her own.”
“When did you and Mariah have an in-depth conversation about Annie’s well-being?”
“It’s called a cell phone, buddy. Text messaging.”
“You guys aren’t trying to play matchmaker, are you? Because you know how I feel about settling down.”
Joe shifted Jonah in his lap. The baby had fallen asleep. “You say that now, but things can change in a blink of an eye.”
“Yeah, well, not everyone is cut out for marriage and fatherhood. Some of us had pretty bad examples.”
“So, the rodeo. Last performance is tomorrow afternoon at five. You and Annie can ride with Mariah and me.”
Annie and those honeysuckle lips. Annie, the vulnerable virgin with secrets.
For some unfathomable reason, Brady shrugged and said, “Okay.”
By the following afternoon Annie had started to relax a bit after almost being caught by her bodyguards for the second time since she ran away, even though she tensed every time she heard an unexpected noise. Mariah had given Annie an odd look when she’d returned to the office, splashed head to toe in coffee.
She had apologized profusely for dropping their order, but Mariah had waved away her protests with a smile and took her over to Western Wear Palooza for a new outfit. Annie bought a pair of black jeans and a blue poplin blouse with a fitted waist.
Now, here they were at Will Rogers Coliseum, Annie wearing her new outfit, getting her first taste of a rodeo. For years, she dreamed of seeing a rodeo in person. Everywhere she looked she saw cowboy hats and cowboy boots and big shiny belt buckles and Wrangler blue jeans.
Annie shivered happily, feeling completely at home. How was it she felt more at home in Jubilee, Texas, than she did at Farrington Palace? She vowed to savor every second because she knew at any moment Chandler and Strawn could appear again, and this time, she might not be so lucky in evading them.
Because Joe was a former bull riding rodeo champion, he had scored a VIP box for the rodeo. Annie, of course, was accustomed to grand treatment, and in all honesty, she would have preferred to sit with the hoi polloi. She already knew what the view looked like from the top and she took advantageous event seating for granted, but Prissy and her husband, Paul, could talk of nothing but the front row seating as they walked into Will Rogers Coliseum.
Prissy was dressed just as eclectically today as she’d been dressed the day before, and she chattered nonstop. Paul was as quiet as his colorful wife was exuberant. Annie learned that he had recently returned from a second tour in Afghanistan and was on medical leave, having lost the hearing in one ear from being too near a bomb blast.
Once they were inside, Prissy was immediately drawn to a kiosk selling souvenirs, and Paul trailed after her.
“I’m just going to pop into the ladies’ room,” Mariah told Joe. “Annie, you want to come?”
Annie nodded, followed Mari
ah into the ladies’ room.
“Paul’s the sweetest guy you’ll ever meet,” Mariah filled her in. “Loyal as a border collie but with the energy level of a basset hound.”
“Good combination.” Annie chuckled.
“I’m happy Paul’s stateside again. He’s hoping to get stationed at Fort Hood. Of course, that would mean I’d lose Prissy if they moved to Killeen, but who I’m really worried about is Lissette.”
“What is bothering Lissette?” Annie asked, washing her hands at the sink while Mariah ran a brush through her hair at the mirror. Lissette and her husband, Jake, were meeting up with them a little later.
“Jake keeps signing up to go back to the Middle East. His time was up. He’d served his country, done his due. Lissette thought he was going to get out of the army and then he reupped without telling her.”
“Why?”
“Jake lost his best friend in the Towers on 9/11. He can’t seem to let it go. He ships out again next week.”
“How is it that they don’t live near an army base?”
“Killeen is only a couple of hours away and Lissette preferred to live in Jake’s hometown while he’s gone. Jubilee is halfway between her folks’ place in Dallas and the army base, and Jake’s mom lives here too. But I worry about Lissette’s son, Kyle.”
“What is the matter with Kyle?”
Mariah lowered her voice, glanced over her shoulder to see who might be in the ladies’ room with them, but they were alone. “I think the child might be autistic, but Lissette is having trouble facing that possibility. My heart just aches for her. She’s such a talented baker. She used to be a pastry chef before she married Jake. She’s changed so much over the last few months and not in a good way.”
“I am sorry to hear of this.” Annie could not think of anything else to say, she did not really know any of these people, but she understood that it was often easier to talk to a stranger about personal concerns. Even though she felt odd hearing about Lissette’s difficulties, it made her feel good that Mariah trusted her enough to share this information.
