Runaway by Bobbi Smith Read Free Book Online Page B

to give him a cordial smile.
    Bryce wasted no time getting to the point. “Because I think you are a very beautiful young woman, and—I want to ask you to marry me.”
    “Oh—” She knew she shouldn’t have been surprised that he had wasted no time getting to the point, but she was still caught a little off guard.
    “I take it Raymond spoke to you about this?”
    “Yes, he did mention it, but—”
    “But what, my dear?” Bryce didn’t understand why she wasn’t thrilled by his proposal. This was the first time he’d ever proposed to a woman. He’d expected Destiny to be jumping up and down in excitement at the prospect of marrying him. Certainly, every other female in town would have been swooning at the possibility of being his bride and being in his bed. A slight edge of anger grew within him at her seeming lack of interest.
    Destiny felt the aggressiveness in him, and she held herself very properly, her hands folded in her lap, the way her mother had always taught her. Then she looked him in the eye. She was hoping to put him off, to hold him at bay for a time, so she could figure out a way to escape this marriage Raymond had arranged for her. “But we barely know each other—”
    “We can change that very quickly,” he assured her, setting his snifter aside on a nearby table as he gave her a knowing smile.
    “How can you be so sure you want to marry me?”
    “Because I’m a man who always knows what he wants—and I want you,” he answered arrogantly. “If we start planning the wedding now, we can be married in just a few months. We’ll make sure our wedding is the social event of the season. That is, unless you’d like to elope tonight—”
    “Bryce! Please—Stop it!” Destiny begged. “My mother died only recently. I’m still in mourning for her.”
    “I am sorry for your loss,” he said, trying to sound sympathetic, but it was all an act. When he’d heard the news of Annabelle Sterling’s death all those months before, he hadn’t cared that the woman was dead. He’d only cared about Raymond losing access to the Sterling money and not being able to pay him back in full. Of course, in the end, everything had worked out just fine, because he’d figured out something he wanted from Raymond even more than money. “But it’s time for you to think about your future—and together, I promise you, we will have a wonderful future—”
    With nothing more to say, he made his move. He boldly took Destiny in his arms and kissed her, hungrily.
    Lane had returned to his room and had started to get undressed. Even though the night had been peaceful so far, he was still feeling uneasy as he shrugged out of his shirt. Wanting to double-check, he’d taken one last look out the hotel room window, parting the curtains to stare down at the alley below. When he’d seen no sign of anyone moving around in the darkness, he’d let the curtains fall back down. Satisfied that all was quiet, he’d turned down the lamp. After putting his gun within reach on the small nightstand, he’d stretched out on the bed, ready to get some much needed sleep.
    Dolly had been watching and waiting in the darkness, and she’d recognized Ranger Madison right away when he parted the curtains to take a look around—there was no mistaking that good-looking man, even from this distance. Once he’d closed the curtains again, she was ready to make her move. She’d slipped in the back door of the hotel. It was late, and there was no one around, so she’d had no trouble getting upstairs without being seen.
    Lane was lying in bed, trying to relax, when he heard a sound out in the hallway by his door. It wasn’t a loud noise. If it had been a drunk’s raised voice or a door banging, he would have ignored it. What he heard sounded more like someone trying to sneak up on him, and he knew that could mean only trouble. Grabbing his gun, he moved silently to position himself by the door. He wasn’t surprised when he saw the