Runaway (11 page)

He gazed down at her there in the shadows of the night and couldn’t help himself. Ever so gently, he drew her to him and answered her question with their first kiss.

The kiss was a soft, tender exchange, a far cry from the brutality she’d suffered at Bryce’s hands. To her surprise, Destiny found she was disappointed when he ended it and stepped back away, distancing himself from her.

“Go on inside,” Lane directed. “I’ll see you first thing in the morning.”

She nodded and stepped back into the house.

Once she was inside, Lane made his way out to the bunkhouse.

Gertrude had already gone to bed in the extra bedroom, leaving Seth’s room for Destiny to sleep in.

Destiny thought about taking a bath that night, but she was so tired, she decided to get up early and bathe in the morning. She wasted no time changing into her nightgown and getting ready for bed. She felt a little out of place as she climbed into Seth’s bed, but once she realized how comfortable the bed was compared to what she had been sleeping on these past weeks, she relaxed.

Destiny’s thoughts were still racing as she curled on her side and stared out the window at the stars twinkling in the night sky. She could smell Seth’s faint scent in the blanket she had wrapped herself in, and she smiled, realizing for the first time in a long time, she felt safe and protected. Seth had been open and honest with her from the moment she’d arrived, and even tonight, he had given her the chance to call off the wedding if she’d wanted to. Though it pained her to admit she was lying to him about her name and her past, Destiny found she wanted to be there with Seth, and even more so after his kiss.

She closed her eyes and courted sleep, trying not to think about tomorrow night when Seth would be there in the bed beside her.

Lane awoke just before dawn and lay in the top bunk, staring up at the ceiling, thinking about the day to come.

In just a few short hours, he was going to be married to Rebecca…

“You awake yet, Boss?” one of the hands called up to him.

“Yeah, Jake, I’m up.”

“I figured you might be,” Jake replied, chuckling from where he lay in the bunk below. “Hey, boys, don’t you think the boss better get up and get moving?”

“That’s right. He’s got to go see the preacher man this morning. You even going to take a bath?” another added.

“I’m thinking about it,” Lane remarked in good humor.

The men in the bunkhouse were laughing as they, too, began to stir.

Lane knew the hands were right. He was the bridegroom, and he’d better look and act the part. He got down from the top bunk and pulled on his clothes and boots and started back up to the house. As early as it was, he believed the women wouldn’t be stirring yet, so he could take his bath and get ready in the washroom off the kitchen. Lane quietly let himself into the house and set about preparing for the day to come.

Destiny awoke just as the eastern sky was beginning to brighten. She was nervous and, she had to admit, excited. This was her wedding day. It wasn’t what she’d always dreamed of, but it was her wedding day nonetheless, and she wanted to look her very best.

She wasted no time getting out of bed and gathering up what she needed to bathe and wash her hair. Since it was still very early, she didn’t want to awaken Gertrude yet, so she moved about quietly as she went downstairs to take her bath. She would wake Gertrude when she finished.

All was silent as she made her way to the kitchen. She was a bit surprised to find a low-burning lighted lamp on the kitchen table, but she thought that Caroline must have come up to the house for something a little earlier. Without thought, Destiny went to the washroom door and opened it.

Lane hadn’t worried about heating up any water for his bath. He’d taken the time to shave and then had filled the tub with cold water and made short order of scrubbing himself clean. He had just stood up and grabbed his towel to start drying off when the door opened unexpectedly.

“What the—” he began as he looked up to find himself face-to-face with his intended.

“Oh, my—!” Destiny froze in the doorway, shocked by her first-ever glimpse of a naked man. She remained unmoving, staring at the magnificent specimen of manhood standing there before her. She took it all in—his broad-shouldered physique, his hard-muscled, tanned chest and powerful arms still shimmering with the glaze of water he had yet to dry off, his lean waist and…Heat burned her cheeks.

Lane was as shocked to see Rebecca as she was to see him. He actually found himself embarrassed to be standing before her so unclad, and he reacted quickly, strategically wrapping the towel around his waist to cover his more intimate body parts.

Lane had been cautioning himself ever since he’d come to the ranch that he had to be on guard every minute. He had warned himself that he had to constantly be on the lookout for trouble, but he’d never thought trouble would come in the form of this beautiful, innocent blonde walking in on him just as he finished his bath.

Seeing her distress, he said wryly, “Good morning.”

“I—um—I didn’t know you were in here…” Destiny began. Then, realizing how ridiculous she must look just standing there blushing, she forced her gaze to the floor.

“It’s all right. I’ll be done here in a minute.”

“I’ll just wait out here…”

She backed out of the doorway and made short order of closing the door behind her as she left. Once she’d closed it, she stood there in the kitchen, feeling quite mortified. She looked around in confusion. True, she had seen the lamp on the table, but she’d had no idea Lane had returned to the house, let alone that he was there in the washroom bathing. If she had known, she never would have walked in on him that way.

Destiny glanced back at the closed door and then had to smile slightly to herself as a vision of him standing there naked played in her mind. He was a handsome man, there was no denying that.

A part of her wanted to open the door again and get another look at the man who within hours would be her husband; she immediately scolded herself for her bold thoughts. She gathered her wits about her, remembering her mother’s teachings on being a lady, and sat down primly at the kitchen table to await her turn to make use of the bathtub.

When Rebecca had backed out of the room and closed the door behind her, Lane had smiled and given a slow shake of his head. From the moment she’d showed up the previous day, she’d been taking him by surprise, and he had a feeling their time together as husband and wife was going to be just as unpredictable. The way he was feeling at that moment, he was beginning to wonder if he was up to it.

Lane quickly finished drying off and shrugged into his clothes. He didn’t bother to button the shirt as he left the washroom to speak with her.

“Rebecca—”

Destiny had heard him open the door and thought she had enough control over herself to be able to speak with him. She turned to face him and was once again rewarded with the sight of his chest bared to her view.

“I’m sorry I walked in on you that way,” she began.

“There’s no need for you to apologize. You had no way of knowing I was going to come back up to the house this early. It was so quiet when I came in, I thought you were still in bed asleep.” As he was speaking to her, Lane realized she was wearing only her gown and robe. Though she was completely covered from her neck to her ankles, he still found her enticing.

“I should have been, but I woke up early, and I couldn’t get back to sleep—I guess I’m a little excited about today,” she admitted. She felt his gaze upon her and became self-conscious over her own state of undress. She had never before had a conversation like this in her night clothes.

Lane gave her an easy smile, hoping to put her fears and unease to rest. “I’m glad.” “So am I.”

“Let me get my things out of the washroom, and I’ll heat up some water for your bath,” he offered.

“Thank you.”

As he set about helping her, Lane found himself wondering if the day was ever going to come when he would walk in on her while she was bathing. The image he conjured up of her was alluring, and he grew a bit irritated with himself. He knew he had to keep himself focused on his real reason for being on the Circle D, pretending to be Seth Rawlins, and the real reason he had to go through with this marriage—

Capturing Dan Cooper and his band of killers.

Bringing them to justice was the most important thing.

Lane brought in some fresh water to heat up on the stove, and then he emptied the bathtub to get it ready for her. After carrying the warm water into the washroom, he left Rebecca to her bath.

It was almost nine o’clock and time to leave for town as Destiny put the finishing touches on her hair. She had pinned it up in a fashionable, sophisticated style. She studied her reflection in the small mirror, and, even though her hair looked suitable, she had to admit this wasn’t the way she’d always dreamed she’d look on her wedding day.

She had no white gown to wear.

She had no veil.

Even more upsetting was the knowledge that she wasn’t surrounded by loved ones who were helping her prepare for the ceremony. There would be no wedding reception for friends and family afterward.

Destiny glanced down at the pale green, ordinary day gown she was wearing. It hardly qualified as the dress to be worn on the most important day of her life…But then she realized she was lucky to have even the few dresses she did own.

Destiny wished Sylvia could have been with her today to serve as her witness, but there was no way they could have traveled west together. It would have made it too easy for Raymond to track her down. Destiny had needed to get as far away from her past as she could and as quickly as she could. She had convinced herself that the past didn’t exist anymore, and she hoped to make a new start away from the problems she’s left behind. She never wanted to see Raymond again. He was an evil, cruel man.

As thoughts of her stepfather threatened, she could no longer deny the memory of that fateful night with Bryce. A shudder wracked her as she remembered his harsh treatment of her, the way he’d hurt her and tried to force himself upon her. She thought of Seth then and knew her future had to be brighter with him than it ever could have been with Bryce. Even though they had only known each other for a short period of time, she believed Seth was an honest man, and a gentle man. She hoped her first impressions of him were true.

Just then she heard a call from downstairs and knew it was time to leave for town. Destiny drew a deep breath and turned away from the mirror, ready to begin her new life.

Soon, very soon, she would be Mrs. Seth Rawlins.

Gracefully, Destiny left the bedroom to go downstairs. When she reached the top of the steps, she looked down to see Gertrude waiting for her with Seth in the front hall. They evidently heard her coming and looked up.

In that moment, Seth’s gaze met hers, and she felt mesmerized by the sight of him. She still couldn’t get the vision of him standing in the tub out of her head, but seeing him dressed as a gentleman for the first time set her heart racing. She managed a tentative smile as she started down to join them.

“You look lovely,” Gertrude declared, coming forward to meet her at the bottom of the steps.

“Do you really think so?” she asked, still feeling a little unsure of herself.

“Yes,” Lane declared, enchanted by the sight of her. True, she wasn’t wearing a bridal gown, but with her hair done up in such a sophisticated style, she looked beautiful.

“Thank you.”

Lane went forward to take her arm so he could escort her out to the carriage. “We’ve already loaded up Gertrude’s bags, so if you’re ready, we can leave for town now.”

Destiny looked up at him. “I’m ready.”

They went outside to find Steve, Caroline and some of the ranch hands waiting for them.

“Oh, Rebecca, you look so pretty,” Caroline complimented her.

“Thank you.”

“We’d better get going,” Steve said as he stepped forward to help Gertrude into the carriage. “We don’t want to keep the preacher waiting.”

“I’m so glad you’re coming with us,” Destiny told Caroline.

“We were honored when Seth asked us to be your witnesses,” she said as Steve gave her a hand up to sit beside Gertrude.

Lane made sure Rebecca was seated comfortably with the other two ladies before climbing up to sit on the driver’s bench with Steve. He took up the reins, ready to make the trip into town.

“You know, Rebecca, you can still get out of this marriage. It’s not too late!” Jake called out to her.

His remark drew good-natured laughs from the other men who were gathered around.

Destiny was laughing as she said, “But I don’t want out of this wedding. I’m marrying the right man.”

“You are one lucky fella, Seth,” another of the hands put in.

“I know,” Lane replied, casting a quick look over his shoulder at Rebecca where she was seated behind him. “We’ll see you boys later.”

“We’ll be watching for you! You know, you’re going to be an old married couple just like Steve and Caroline when you get back here.”

“I’m looking forward to it,” Lane assured them.

The ranch hands were all chuckling as the boss started to drive away.

The trip into town went smoothly.

Destiny was still feeling a little nervous about what was to come, but as they neared Bluff Springs, she caught sight of the church steeple silhouetted against the sky, and she felt a sense of peace come over her. In that moment, somehow, she knew her prayers had been answered. Everything was going to be all right.

Reverend Moore had been watching for the wedding party, and he was ready and waiting to welcome them when the carriage pulled to a stop in front of the church.

“Good morning,” the reverend said as they got down out of the carriage and came up the steps to meet him.

“Good morning, Reverend Moore,” Steve returned, and he made short work of introducing the preacher to Seth and Rebecca.

“So you’re the new owner of the Circle D,” Reverend Moore said as he shook hands with the rancher. “It’s nice to finally get to meet you. Welcome.”

They exchanged pleasantries for a few minutes.

Then the reverend looked at Seth and Rebecca. “I take it you two are ready to be married this morning?”

“Yes, we are, Reverend,” Lane answered.

“Let’s go inside,” the preacher said, leading the way into the church.

They followed him in respectful silence.

Destiny looked around the small church, admiring the rainbow of colors pouring in through the sunlit stained glass windows. She found there was a deep, abiding sense of peace and grace there, and it soothed her even more.

With the preacher leading the way, they made their way in silence up the main aisle. Steve, Caroline and Gertrude took seats in the front pew as Reverend Moore drew the couple forward to stand before the altar. When he was certain they were ready, he began the ceremony.

“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to join this man and this woman in the holy state of matrimony…”