Fugitive Fiancée Read Free

to do.”
    Her tense shoulders relaxed a fraction. She took a deep breath, then gave him a shaky nod.
    Garrett gently grasped her elbow and led her toward the ladder. She gathered her voluminous skirt in her hands, then carefully climbed down the wooden rungs. Her knees buckled when she reached the barn floor, and Garrett watched her grab on to a wooden support beam to steady herself. He jumped down the last few rungs and hurried to her side.
    â€œI’m all right,” she assured him. “I haven’t eaten anything all day and the…excitement must be catching up with me.”
    Damn. Bad enough he’d found a citified bride stowed away in his barn. Now she was about to pass out from hunger. How could she leave his ranch if she was unconscious? Without bothering to ask her permission, Garrett bent and scooped her into his arms. He ignored her sharp gasp of protest as he gathered her close to his chest. A little closer than necessary. But he couldn’t resist the urge to inhale her unique scent and feel all that softness against his body one last time.
    His horse Brutus emitted a high-pitched whinny asGarrett headed for the barn door, a sputtering bride in his arms. If he didn’t know better, he’d think the big bay gelding was laughing at him.
    Â 
    A S SOON AS Garrett carried Mimi out of the barn, the wild Texas wind snatched at her veil and whipped it across his face. He spit three layers of tulle out of his mouth, then muttered an oath under his breath.
    â€œYou can put me down now,” she said, more than a little unnerved by his brute strength. She weighed one hundred and thirty pounds, and the man wasn’t even breathing hard.
    â€œThis is my ranch,” he bit out, shifting her slightly in his arms as he strode toward the house. “I’m the one who gives the orders.”
    Mimi clenched her jaw and held her tongue. She couldn’t afford to antagonize him. She couldn’t keep staring at him, either. It wasn’t proper for a woman who’d almost married another man less than four hours ago. And Mimi Casville had been raised to be a proper young lady. To behave perfectly in every social situation. She’d always tried to follow the rigid dictates of high-society etiquette.
    Until today.
    Running out of your own wedding was not considered polite behavior in Austin society. Or anywhere else, for that matter. A well-bred, proper young lady did not abandon her groom at the altar. Or leave four hundred guests crowded together in the overly warm sanctuary.
    But Mimi had done exactly that. And now she was in the arms of a cowboy. A very handsome cowboy who was partly to blame for the weakness in her kneesand the erratic beat of her heart. She blinked at him, unable to look away. His face was tanned and rugged, testimony to long days working under the hot Texas sun. The shadow of stubble on his square jaw matched the russet hair almost hidden beneath his black felt cowboy hat.
    Her cheeks blazed when his green-gold eyes caught her staring at him. She blinked and quickly looked away. But not before his gaze touched something in her soul. The way he looked at her… If her fiancé had ever looked at her that way, just once, she might be a married woman right now.
    Mimi closed her eyes, pushing thoughts of her duplicitous fiancé out of her mind. She couldn’t think about him. Not now. Instead, she leaned her head against Garrett’s broad chest and focused her attention on the ranch house.
    It was a rustic, two-story stone-fronted structure, fifty years old or so, but well-maintained. Black shutters accented every window, and small wisps of smoke curled out of the stone chimney. An inviting wraparound porch held a porch swing and a small doghouse. Wood creaked as Garrett climbed the steps that led to his front door.
    Like most girls, Mimi had always dreamed of her wedding day. In her mind’s eye, she’d seen a magnificent cathedral full of friends