Fugitive Fiancée Read Free Page A

and family. A reverent candelight service. A handsome, adoring groom.
    She sighed. So far, it hadn’t turned out at all like she’d planned. She’d certainly never imagined being carried over the threshold by a cantankerous cowboy. Although the stranger holding her in his arms had a solidness about him that she’d rarely experienced before. A gentle strength that inexplicably made her want to nestle closer to him.
    At least until he marched through the front door and dumped her on the beige leather sofa in his living room. Then he turned on his heel and left without a word.
    Mimi lay there stunned for a moment, listening to the clomp of his cowboy boots in the next room. Then she struggled to sit up. It was difficult to do anything in her five-thousand-dollar wedding dress. One hundred and ten silk-covered buttons ran down the back of the dress from her neck to her tailbone. Steel ribbing cinched her middle like an old-fashioned corset. It made her waist look impossibly tiny and her breasts impossibly big. It also made it very hard to breathe. Little wonder she’d almost passed out.
    When she finally managed to pull herself upright, she took a long look around the room. A sturdy oak coffee table separated the sofa from two oversize leather armchairs. A handwoven rug with rich hues of blue, green and burgundy stretched across the polished hardwood floor. Another rug lay in front of the stone hearth, where a small fire glowed. A rustic Christmas wreath made of fragrant pine boughs still hung over the mantel.
    She leaned back against the sofa, listening to the crackle and snap of the fire and watching the shadows of the flames dance on the wall.
    Mimi’s instincts told her Garrett was definitely a bachelor. There were no fussy feminine touches in the room, although she found she liked the Spartan simplicity surrounding her. It was an improvement overthe ostentatious Colonial-style mansion she’d grown up in.
    Tears pricked her eyes. She might never see that home again. Never see her father, who was no doubt bullying his way through Austin right now searching for her. Her throat grew so tight it was almost painful. She couldn’t let him find her. Not until she had time to straighten out the mess she’d made of her life.
    The day seemed like a blur. Or rather like a nightmare. One you couldn’t escape by waking up. It was all too real. The betrayal and the lies. The careful scheming and the furtive whispers. All designed to make Mimi believe an illusion. Only now her eyes were wide open.
    She’d never been this alone before. No, that wasn’t true. Once. Just once she’d been even more frightened, more desperate. It was a time she didn’t like to think about. A time that made her heart ache. Ten years ago. She closed her eyes and swallowed her tears. Now wasn’t the time to reminisce about lost hopes and broken dreams. She had to stay strong. Had to figure a way out of this mess.
    After taking several deep breaths, Mimi opened her eyes, more composed. She couldn’t worry about the past or the future. Right now the present demanded all her energy.
    Garrett entered the room carrying a tray with two steaming wooden bowls on it and a crusty loaf of bread. He set it on the coffee table, then handed her one of the bowls. “Eat every drop.”
    Mimi sat up and reached for the spoon, assuming this to be another one of his orders. She was much too hungry to think about disobeying it. The savoryaroma of the stew made her mouth water. She spooned up a hearty bite, blew gently on it, then put it in her mouth, closing her eyes in appreciation as the delicious flavors mingled on her tongue.
    â€œThis is wonderful,” she said, spooning up another bite. It seemed so peaceful somehow, eating stew with a perfect stranger. Away from all the pressures that had built around her for the past few weeks.
    â€œAnything tastes good when you’re half-starved.” He sliced a