The Cowboy’s Runaway Bride (BBW Romance - Billionaire Brothers 1) (2 page)

“We’re here.” He gently placed his hand on her shoulder.

Maddie blinked. They were parked outside her favorite chain coffee shop. A sign nearby stated Elk View Corner had a population of 4,163.

“Let’s get some coffee.” Garrett exited the SUV and opened her door before she barely had time to unfasten her seatbelt. He held out his large, tanned hand and she clasped it, a warm tingle racing up her arm.

The familiar mahogany and cream décor soothed her jangled nerves as they stepped inside. Garrett snagged a table before she was fully conscious of the curious glances her outfit received.

“What would you like?”

“Hot chocolate with marshmallows.” She didn’t have to think about it. Even though it was summer, right now she needed to be comforted by the taste and aroma of chocolate.

“Be right back.”

She watched Garrett stride to the counter and order their drinks. Tall and muscular, his broad shoulders filled out the pale blue shirt, while his black denim jeans hugged his lean thighs and trim, sexy butt.

Maddie opened her tiny purse. “I can pay for mine.” She pulled out a twenty-dollar bill and handed it to him when he came back to the table.

He waved her money away. “I’ve got this.” He looked at the miniscule purse for a second. “What else have you got in there?”

“The key to the rental car." She traced her finger over a shiny metallic key. "I guess I'll have to post that back. And a lip balm and my twenty dollars emergency money.”

“You carry emergency money on your wedding day?” He quirked an eyebrow.

“Well, in this case it seems to have come in handy.” She folded the twenty dollars into a neat square. “I’ve always carried emergency money with me since college. A few of us had a night out and didn’t realize we had no money left over for cab fare. If it wasn’t for Lyndsey and her emergency twenty dollars, we wouldn’t have gotten home.”

“Good idea.” His eyes flickered with curiosity. “Anything else?”

“No.” She shook her head.

“No I.D?”

Maddie grimaced. “My handbag has my wallet with all my cards and I.D. All I wanted to do was get out of there
,
so I just grabbed the car key and ran.”

The girl at the counter called Garrett’s name. In less than a minute, he was back with their drinks and placed the mug of hot chocolate in front of her.

“Thanks.” She smiled at him, wrapping her hands around the warm cup. Her gaze fell on her hands. “Oh!” She hastily pulled off the pretty but modest diamond ring and stuffed it into her purse. In her race to get away from the resort, she’d forgotten she still wore her engagement ring. Right now, she didn’t want to look at it ever again.

Garrett watched her movements, but was silent for a moment. “So where are you from, Maddie ...?”

“Stanton.” Inhaling the heavenly aroma of chocolate and marshmallows, she busied herself with thoroughly stirring the white marshmallows into the hot chocolate, glad he hadn’t commented on her ring. Conscious of his eyes on her, she replied, “Portland, Oregon.”

“What made you decide to get married in Wyoming?”

“My father has an old friend who owns Meadow Flower Resort and owed him a favor. Dad thought it would be a good idea to hold the wedding here and have a mini-vacation as well.” She didn’t even want to think about her father's reaction to the canceled wedding.

Although her dad was a successful attorney with his own firm, he loved saving money when he could. With having the wedding at the resort, he’d saved on the cost of hotel rooms for immediate family, and all of the reception costs. And Howard had enthusiastically embraced the idea. Only now did she know why. It seemed her ex-fiancée would agree with just about anything her father suggested if it meant he was assured a partnership.

Garrett sipped his coffee. “What are you going to do now?”

Maddie shrugged before taking a welcome sip of her own drink. She hadn’t thought of anything except getting away from Howard, her parents and her mockery of a wedding.

“I’m definitely not going on my honeymoon alone. Since my parents hand-picked Howard, he can take them on the honeymoon.”

He scrutinized her face. “Where were you planning on going?”

Maddie spooned up a marshmallow, letting the soft, fluffy, vanilla goodness melt on her tongue before answering. “Greenland. Howard wanted to see the Barnacle Goose in its natural habitat.”

“Greenland?” He frowned.

“Two weeks.” She took a hasty sip of her drink. Why had she agreed to go to Greenland on her honeymoon? Because somehow she’d known that what she felt for Howard wasn’t the deep, true love she'd always thought she’d experience when she married. Agreeing to go to Greenland for their honeymoon had seemed to make Howard happy. But then she saw the honeymoon itinerary. And her doubts had intensified.

“I can’t go back,” she added, wrapping her hands around the warm mug. “Not yet, anyway. I’ve taken three weeks off from the library. Two for...” she spooned up another marshmallow, “...Greenland, and another week for unpacking.” At his inquiring gaze she elaborated, “All my stuff is in boxes at Howard’s.”

“I need some temporary help on the ranch." He watched her in a deceptively casual manner. "I was going to put an ad in the paper next week, but maybe you’d be interested.”

Surprised flickered across her face. “What kind of help?” she asked cautiously.

“I’m thinking of renting out a couple of cabins to tourists. They need to be cleaned from top to bottom before I can charge anyone to stay there. I’ll pay you the going rate, and you’ll have a place to stay.”

“For how long?”

He smiled. “Three weeks.”

Maddie stared at Garrett. He was offering her a way out of her current predicament. If she took him up on his job offer, she’d have somewhere to live for the next few weeks, as well as earning some much needed money. She’d be able to return to Portland afterwards with her head held high. One day, she might even look back at this episode in her life as a crazy adventure.

Except...

She looked down ruefully at her wedding gown. “I don’t have any other clothes.”

He smiled reassuringly. “That’s easily fixed. I can lend you some of my clothes tonight, and tomorrow my housekeeper can buy you some on her way to the ranch.”

“I wouldn’t be able to pay her back until I’ve completed the job.” Maddie bit her lip.

“I’ve got an account there. You can pay me back at the end of the month when the bill comes in.” He shook his head when she opened her mouth, about to speak. “Don’t argue. We could go to the store now, but it’s closed on Sundays.” At her bemused look he added, “One of the quirks of a small town.”

“Thank you,” she murmured, warmth rippling through her. Instinctively she knew she would be safe with Garrett. Although cleaning cabins was a little different from working in a library, she was no stranger to housework - unfortunately. Still, it could be fun and she would prefer spring-cleaning dusty old cabins to going back to Portland and having to explain to everyone that she jilted her bridegroom at the altar. There would be plenty of time for all that in three weeks.

Garrett looked at his watch. “It's four o'clock. The ranch is thirty minutes drive from here. When we get home, you can call your friend and arrange for her to send your wallet and I.D.”

Maddie finished the rest of her hot chocolate. Garrett held open the door to the coffee shop for her, and helped her up to the passenger seat of the SUV. Climbing into the vehicle wearing a full-skirted wedding dress and kitten heels wasn’t easy, but she managed. Especially when accepting Garrett’s help meant she clasped his hand as she scrambled inside.

The miles sped by quickly. Maddie looked out of the window, admiring the abundant green pasture and herds of cows. She stole glances at Garrett, appreciating his strong, tanned profile and confident driving. Howard had been a fussy driver, insisting on having the radio tuned to a particular classical station and preferring not to talk while he drove - sometimes jerkily. She suddenly realized that she had tried to avoid being in the car with her ex-fiancée at all times, preferring to drive herself wherever she needed to go.

As they neared his ranch, Garrett pointed out his closest neighbor. “This is my brother Alex’s ranch. He’s got two hundred acres. I keep an eye on it for him when he’s away.”

“How many brothers do you have?” she asked curiously.

“Four.” He flashed a smile. “You?”

She shook her head. “I’m an only child.” She’d often wished for a sister to play with growing up, but it wasn’t meant to be.

“And this is the start of my ranch.” His voice held a note of pride.

Maddie gazed at the dense pasture and mountains towering in the background. Cows munched the grass as they drove past, and she was sure she could see horses in the distance.

“All this is yours?” The land stretched out in front of her. Although she was a city girl, it looked like a vast expanse.

“All seven hundred acres.” He grinned briefly at her before returning his attention to the road.

Seven hundred... Maddie couldn’t even begin to think how much land that could possibly be. Except a lot. They turned into a well kept dirt road, coming out into a graveled courtyard after a couple of minutes.

“This is it.” Garrett pulled up to the house.

A large, one-story brick house shaped like a T stood before her. Somehow, it looked modern yet homey at the same time. The whole property seemed impressive.

The front garden sported a few flowerbeds with straggly pink roses in bloom. Garrett followed her gaze. “I keep meaning to do something about those roses.” His lips quirked in a wry smile. “Carol is always reminding me.”

“Carol?” Maddie crinkled her brow.

“My housekeeper.”

Unexpected relief rippled through her, and she told herself not to be ridiculous. She’d just jilted Howard at the altar. She shouldn’t care who Carol was. But she couldn’t explain why she was pleased that Carol was the housekeeper. Unless she was gorgeous - and skinny - and single. Her mouth drooped.

“Something wrong?” Garrett studied her face.

“No, nothing,” she replied quickly, pushing all thoughts of Carol to the back of her mind.

“Let me show you the house.” Garrett ushered her inside. Light and airy, the impressive house had a welcoming air. The large, eat-in kitchen seemed to have all mod cons, including lots of counter space and appliances. By the time he’d shown her the comfortable-looking living room furnished with a leather lounge-suite and big-screen TV, the four bedrooms, three bathrooms and his study, she was dying to take off her kitten heels and sink her feet into the plush beige carpet.

“Coffee?” They’d returned to the kitchen and Garrett turned on the machine.

“Please.” Maddie sat down at the table in a rustle of silk and toed off her shoes. Kitten heels were not meant to be worn all day. Not by her, anyway.

“How do you like it?” He leaned against the counter.

“Cream, no—” She started to reply automatically. Trying to watch her weight in the lead up to the wedding meant forsaking the teaspoonful of sugar she used to have in her coffee, but how she missed that touch of sweetness. Now she was a free woman, she realized she could enjoy sugar in her coffee once more.

“And one sugar.” Maddie smiled.

Garrett placed a steaming mug of coffee in front of her. “Thanks.” She took a sip, the aromatic brew teasing her senses. And that teaspoonful of sugar? Wonderful.

As they drank their coffee, Garrett told her about the ranch. She still found it hard to believe that the property covered seven hundred acres.

“I’ll show you around tomorrow,” he promised. “I’ve just bought a bull that’s arriving in a few days. In fact, I was on my way home from viewing him when I saw you on the highway.”

Maddie thought she could listen to the rich timbre of his voice forever. It was such a change from Howard’s occasionally nasal whine. She suddenly realized Garrett was looking at her as if waiting for an answer.

“Sorry,” she apologized, “my attention wandered for a second.”

His dark brown eyes snared hers for an instant, and her pulse fluttered.

“I’ll call Carol and ask her to stop by at the store tomorrow to buy you some clothes.” He pulled out his cell phone and made the call.

Halfway through the conversation, he covered the phone and said to Maddie, “You better talk to Carol. I don’t have a clue about sizes.”

She took the phone from his outstretched hand. Her fingers brushed against his, butterflies dancing in her stomach. “Thanks,” she murmured, hoping he wouldn’t hear her tell Carol her size. Although Garrett claimed to know nothing about women’s sizes, what would he think if she told Carol her true size, and not the size she wished she could be?

The housekeeper’s warm tone echoed through the phone, suggesting she pick up a couple of pairs of jeans and T-shirts since Maddie was staying at the ranch. When Maddie told Carol her size in a murmur, the housekeeper didn’t miss a beat.  “I’ll see you tomorrow, hon,” the housekeeper finished the call.

Maddie handed the phone back to Garrett.  “She’s going to bring the clothes with her tomorrow morning.”

“Great. I can lend you something to wear until then.” He gave the phone back to her. “Do you want to call your friend and arrange for her to send your purse?”

How could she have forgotten? But she had, momentarily.
It’s perfectly natural
, she tried to tell herself.
It’s not every day you escape from your own wedding, get stranded on the highway, and rescued by a sexy stranger. And then end up working for him when you were supposed to be on your honeymoon.

Maddie dialed Lyndsey’s number. After reassuring her friend that she was fine and in no immediate danger, she asked her to send her handbag and phone to Garrett’s ranch.

“But Maddie,” Lyndsey protested, “do you know what you’re doing?”

Did she? But deep down, Maddie knew that working for Garrett and living on the ranch for the next three weeks was far preferable to marrying Howard - and honeymooning in Greenland. Even if she hadn’t discovered that her ex-fiancée was only marrying her for his career, she couldn’t deny that she’d always had niggling doubts about her impending marriage.