In the Line of Fire (4 page)

No, he couldn't imagine it of the girl and young woman he'd known. He distinctly remembered when she was nine and he and Rion were fifteen, Andi had been sent home from school for fighting. She'd taken on a kid twice her size who made it a habit to bully kids half her size. All she'd needed to do was apologize to the bully. Even at nine, she'd stood firm on her principle and taken a three-day suspension instead. So, no, the Andi of old would've never tolerated infidelity or abuse, but people changed.

Quite frankly, he would've never imagined her leaving a groom, several hundred guests and, most importantly, her mother. “Let me remind you, you did just climb out of a bathroom window to get out of marrying him.”

“Hel-lo. That's because he's boring and I don't love
him. Everyone kept telling me what a great couple we made and what a great catch he was and I bought into it.”

He wasn't buying into it. Blanton probably was boring and maybe she didn't love the guy, but there was more to it than she was telling. Nonetheless, he simply said, “Okay.” He wasn't going to push her. She'd tell him the rest if and when she wanted him to know.

She leaned her head back against the headrest, as if she was suddenly exhausted. “You know, Colton, I've always tried to be a dutiful daughter but I realized today I had to draw the line at marrying someone I didn't love, even if that's what my mother wants.”

“Do you really think your mother would want you to marry someone you didn't love?”

“I tried to talk to her about it.” Andi wrapped her arms around her middle. “I told her I didn't know if I really loved him and she assured me it was okay, that even if I didn't, I'd grow to love him. But I'm just not seeing that happen.”

“That answered that question.”

“She's never going to forgive me for this.”

Ms. Daisy was a different animal altogether. “It'll take some time, but she will.”

Andi raised a skeptical eyebrow in his direction.

“Okay, well, maybe a lot of time. She still hasn't forgiven me for Rion joining the military.” He finally voiced what he'd thought for a long time. “Even
though I didn't have anything to do with it. I just knew it was what I wanted to do.”

“No, she hasn't,” Andi said, confirming his suspicion. Colton had mentioned it to Rion once and in typical Rion fashion he'd just blown it off. “This isn't going to exactly redeem you.”

Colton shrugged. He was aware of both. “Might as well be hung for a lamb as a sheep.”

“What?” Andi adopted a teasing tone. “This from the guy who never got into trouble? Who always does the right thing, even when the right thing isn't the easy thing to do? Mr. Dependable?”

Is that how she saw him? Well, obviously it was. Damnation but he sounded boring as hell, too; however, he was what he was. “That's Major Dependable, if you would. And maybe I think helping you now is the right thing to do.” He would go to the ends of the earth if it was what she needed. Hell, he'd gone to the ends of the earth to stay away from her because he'd thought that was exactly what she needed.

Her smile turned him inside out. Andi had always had a way of smiling… It was sort of impish, as if she was including you in something very special, something a little forbidden, or perhaps it was simply because she had always been forbidden. “Well, we both know there's going to be some differing opinions on whether helping me run out on my wedding was the right thing to do.”

“I'm a big boy, I think I can handle it.”

“I'm sure glad you feel that way. I tell you what you could do to help right now.”

“And this would be in addition to driving your getaway car?”

“Yep.” Her grin was unrepentant for dragging him into her shenanigans. “I'm starving. I was too nervous to eat this morning. Actually, I was downright nauseous. I didn't have breakfast or lunch but now that I've flown the coop, I'm ravenous.”

So was he, but his hunger was a different one altogether. What she was talking about was far easier and far safer to accommodate. There was no end to fast-food restaurants along interstate stretches. “What do you want?”

For a second he had the insane idea her eyes had flashed
you
at him. Being with Andi had him totally off his usual well-reasoned track.

“Breakfast,” she said.

Okay, that wasn't easy enough. “Can we aim for a burger or something considering it's midafternoon?”

She was already shaking her head no. “Waffle House. I want eggs, smothered, covered, chunked, peppered hash browns and a pecan waffle.” She pointed to the roadside sign. “See, next exit. One and a half miles.”

“That's great, but you're going to go into the Waffle House wearing a wedding dress?”

“Absolutely. I'm so hungry I'm ready to gnaw my own hand off.”

This was about to be weird and awkward, but what the hell, the whole day had been weird and awkward already. He put on his blinker and slowed for the exit. “Then let's save your hand and feed you now.”

A
NDI COULDN'T SEE PAST
all of her wedding-dress material to locate the door handle in Colton's car. The layers of tulle underskirt poofed out the dress so it looked as if she actually had a waistline. But it definitely lent itself more to standing than sitting. She pushed aside a mass.

“Just hang tight and I'll come around and get you out,” he said, shaking his head and laughing.

“Okay.” She settled back against the seat and waited as he rounded the car to open the door. It was true Rion would've helped her get away from the wedding but she was glad it had been Colton for a number of reasons—primarily because she wanted to be with him, but the other bottom line was Rion wasn't nearly as thoughtful and accommodating as Colton. If Rion hadn't wanted Waffle House, he'd have told her to get over herself and pulled into whatever fast-food drive-through
he
wanted. And he darn sure wouldn't be
coming around opening her door for her. She laughed at the thought.

Colton opened the door and cool March air flooded the car. “What's so funny?”

“I was just thinking how glad I am it's you instead of Rion here. He wouldn't open the door for me and if he hadn't wanted to go to Waffle House, we wouldn't be here, we'd be eating where he wanted to eat.”

Colton smiled. “That's Rion, for sure.” He held out his hand. “Here, I'll help you out.”

Placing her palm in his, he wrapped his fingers around her hand and tugged her upward. A tingle shot through her and Andi felt dizzy. Her entire balance was thrown off as she levered too fast and too hard to her feet. She landed against the broad wall of his chest with a
thunk
. Immediately his other arm shot around her, wrapping around her waist to steady her.

She braced her other hand against his chest and a sudden breathlessness washed over her. She wasn't sure if she'd ever been this close to Colton as an adult. Andi looked up and everything else around them seemed to vanish. She lost herself in his green eyes for what could have been seconds or a lifetime. On one hand she knew an abiding contentedness, a desire to stay there forever, but on the other hand she wanted much, much more. She wanted to link her arms about his neck and press herself more firmly, more intimately against his lean strength. Instinctively, she did press closer to him.

“You okay?” he asked. His breath, warm and fragrant, stirred against the curling tendril the hair-dresser had draped over Andi's left temple when she'd given Andi her updo.

“I'm fine.” Other than her nearly debilitating desire for him. “I'm just a little light-headed from not eating and I lost my balance.” That much was true. She left off the part about wanting him desperately.

“Then we'll definitely get you inside and fed.” He released her hand but kept his arm firmly around her waist.

“I'm fine now,” she said but made absolutely no attempt to move away from him. She liked his nearness, the feel of his solid warmth next to her and his clean scent.

“I'm not taking any chances with you face-planting on the sidewalk,” he said as they stepped onto the sidewalk from the parking lot.

She elbowed him in the side. “That makes me feel elegant.”

He grinned down at her and something warm and wonderful shot through her. “I can't help that but I can keep you from falling while you're on my watch.”

“Ah, the sacrifices of a man with honor.”

“You have no idea,” he murmured somewhat cryptically as he pushed open the restaurant door and then the one beyond that.

The moment they crossed the threshold, clapping and whooping erupted. Andi was startled. She'd been
so wrapped up in Colton she hadn't even thought about the people inside the restaurant.

“Welcome to Waffle House,” said one of the waitresses behind the counter in standard Waffle House greeting. She was an older woman with short dark hair. Everyone else beamed at Colton and Andi, including the guy manning the grill.

The greeter continued, “When you helped her out of that car and swept her up close to you and then y'all stood there gazing into one another's eyes—that was the most romantic thing I've ever seen. Wait.” She threw up her hand. “We've never had newlyweds come in still all dressed up.” She dabbed at her eyes with a paper napkin. “I'm sorry…I always cry at weddings. And seeing the two of you gazing into one another's eyes in the parking lot just did my heart a world of good. I've got one request, though.”

“Actually—” Colton said.

Andi dug her elbow into his side, cutting him off. He was about to spill the beans but she was all for having them mistaken as a couple. Perhaps it would plant a seed in his practical brain. “Honey, she has a request.”

The woman clasped her hands together. “Would you just back up and carry her across our threshold?”

“But…” Colton began.

“Sure he can,” Andi cut him off again. “Can't you, darling?”

His hand tightened where it still rested on her waist. “No problem, honey bunny.”

They backed out of the door. The moment it closed behind them, he looked down at her. “Andi, I'm just curious. Is there some particular reason we're pretending to be happy newlyweds?”

She thought it best not to tell him she wanted him to embrace the notion of the two of them as an item through the power of suggestion. She rolled with the other reason. It was called saving face. “It just seems easier. First off, she was so happy for us, they all were.”

“But there is no
us.
”

“I know that and you know that.” And she was going to do her damnedest to change that starting right now. “But if they know that they'll be disappointed. Plus, if we tell them I buggered out on the wedding—well, I already look like a flake in front of half of Savannah.” That was certainly no lie. “I just don't want to look like a flake again.”

For a second she thought he might balk but he simply sighed. “Then let's do this thing.”

Wrapping one arm behind her back, he swept the other arm beneath her knees and scooped her up. Instinctively, she linked her hands behind his neck, her fingers grazing against the short hair on the back of his head. He grinned down at her. “Hope I don't get some kind of back strain.”

“You'll pay for that crack, Major,” she managed
to quip, but her heart was thumping in her chest like nobody's business at being held so close.

He pushed through the door and once again, the smattering of customers and the staff all broke into applause. Colton set her back on her feet and she reluctantly unlinked her hands from around his neck.

The waitress who'd orchestrated the threshold deal, Rochelle according to her name tag, swiped at her eyes again. “I just can't help the waterworks. Y'all sit anywhere you want to but if you choose one of those booths,” she said, waving her hand to the right, “that's my section.”

“How about that one?” Andi said, nodding toward one in Rochelle's area because she obviously wanted to serve them.

“Works for me,” Colton said, ushering her that way with a light hand to the small of her back. She had to wonder if he didn't want to touch her just as much as she wanted to touch him. She was thinking that might be the case.

Andi had so much dress going on they had to settle into a booth for four and it was still something of a squeeze getting in there.

Rochelle came over as soon as Colton settled opposite her. Mercifully, everyone else went back to doing what they'd been doing before. It was a little disconcerting being the center of that kind of attention.

“Do y'all know what you want or do you need a few minutes?”

Colton grinned. “Oh, she knows exactly what she wants.”

Her newly claimed heart recognized she could happily look at that grin every day for the rest of her life. But back to the matter at hand, namely food… Andi repeated the same rundown she'd given Colton in the car. “Oh, yeah, and a side of sliced tomatoes. And sweet tea.” She'd been hungry before but she was suddenly so ravenous she couldn't think straight.

“Honey, are you already eating for two?” Rochelle said. She turned to Colton and winked. “You rascal, you.”

Andi laughed aloud at the look on his face but she couldn't deny the feeling inside her at the thought of having been his lover and actually being pregnant.

“She's just hungry,” Colton said, giving her a quelling look. She watched him consideringly across the table as he placed his order.

Colton was far, far too responsible to get a girl knocked up prewedding. Not that she didn't think he had sex, but he'd just make darn sure everyone was protected because that's the kind of guy he was and a woman had to admire that in a man. However, she didn't want to think of him with another woman. The very idea made her queasy.

How had he managed to dodge the marriage bullet for so long? Well, her brother had as well but Rion wasn't the prize Colton was, even if he was her brother.

“Behave,” Colton said across the table with a quirky smile as Rochelle sang out their order.

“I'll try to behave but as Rion would say, I'm up to my ass in alligators with a whole bunch of people,” Andi said. “So I might as well have fun while I still can.” And especially while she was with him. “It sure isn't going to be anything but miserable when you take me back.” She pushed aside the thought. “And I'm not even going to think about it and ruin my meal.”

Rochelle returned with their drinks, placing them on the table. She peered at Andi's left hand. “Honey, that's some ring, there.” Andi had gotten so used to wearing it she'd forgotten all about having it on. Rochelle nodded approvingly at Colton. “You did good.”

“Thanks,” he murmured.

Andi liked watching him squirm. It was good to have Rochelle forcing Colton to see Andi in a different light. If that look in his eyes was anything to go by earlier, he was seeing her in a different light than simply Rion's pain-in-the-butt younger sister.

“Where y'all heading on your honeymoon?” Rochelle asked, obviously in no hurry to leave their table.

“Jekyll Island,” Andi said off the top of her head.

“Orlando,” Colton said at the same time.

“Surprise, honey,” Andi said. “Change of plans.”

Rochelle cocked her head to one side and eyed them for what felt like forever. “My husband's always
telling me I mind business that isn't mine to mind, so feel free to do the same, but are y'all really married or are you a bride on the lam?”

Well, so much for going with the newlywed cover. But Andi was curious as to what gave them away unless it was just the honeymoon mix-up. “What makes you say that?”

“Well, I love all those detective shows. Now when y'all first drove up, I just took everything at face value, your dress, his uniform, the way y'all were looking at one another in the parking lot. But then I got to noticing things. You didn't go to see a justice of the peace wearing that dress. That's a dress you wear for a big fancy wedding. And folks always decorate the car at a big fancy wedding, but your car isn't decorated. And you might leave your reception in your wedding dress but it's usually not to go to a Waffle House to eat. He's not wearing a ring and lots of men don't wear rings but if you just tied the knot, he'd still have his on. And last but not least is the way the two of you look at one another. When one of you thinks the other one's not looking, you look at the other one the way someone just married would, but not when the other one is looking. And if I'm way off base, I apologize.”

Across the booth, Colton looked at Andi and shrugged. “I guess we weren't meant to be married, even pretend.” Andi pasted on a smile but his words made her want to grind her teeth. There was the power
of suggestion and then, better yet, there was definitive action.

If there was one thing she'd learned today it was she had to make something happen with Colton Sawyer. They were going to either have something together or she'd get him out of her system and then she could move on. But one way or the other, she was going to have him. The time for denial was done. Denial had led her to climbing out a bathroom window at her own wedding.

Time to formulate a Plan B.

 

T
HERE WAS A PART OF
him that simply had to put an end to the newlywed fantasy in words—mainly because it was all too tempting to get caught up in the pretense she was his. Even though he'd long known how he felt about her, he'd never allowed himself to think in terms of her being his.

Andi looked away from him and squarely faced Rochelle. “Yes, I am a runaway bride. I let you think we were newlyweds because it's embarrassing to admit I didn't figure something out until the last, and I mean
last,
minute.”

Rochelle patted Andi on the shoulder and clucked sympathetically. “Honey, I don't know what you walked out on, but this here is one fine man.” She jerked her head in Colton's direction. “And a soldier to boot. Ain't nobody gonna blame you for picking him.” Andi opened her mouth but Rochelle just kept
talking, turning her attention to Colton. “You home on leave or you stationed at Ft. Hunter or Ft. Stewart?”

“I'm home on leave from Afghanistan but my home base is in Massachusetts.” Damn, he had to set this straight all over again. “I didn't sweep anyone anywhere. All I did was show up for the wedding. I was supposed to give her away.”

Rochelle smiled brighter than before. “What was it, hon?” she said to Andi. “One look at him and you knew you were making a mistake?”

Colton had always prided himself on being a man of logic. However, now he found himself holding an illogical breath that she might say yes, even though she hadn't technically seen him until she'd climbed out the window and even though she hadn't given him a remote inkling he had a thing to do with her decision to run—and it wouldn't matter if he had. They would always be at the impasse of his career and her family.