When Romance Prevails (The Dark Horse Trilogy Book 3) by Cynthia Dane Read Free Book Online

of the boutique, facing the window with her head pointed down. None of the employees seemed to be around. Kerri opened the door wider and didn’t see a single soul. Now was her chance.
    Footsteps as quiet as a mouse’s crept across the store, careful to hide behind a rack here and a display there. I’m so close to the door. A few more feet and she would be out in the sunshine. Kerri pulled a hat over her face – because that worked so well before – and stepped out the door, her eyes constantly on her mother who continued to be dead to the world.
    I probably hurt her feelings. That was the last thing Kerri thought before letting the sunshine hit her skin.
    The alley wasn’t too far away, but she had to keep her nose pointed down and her steps quick if she wanted to avoid detection. This late in the campaign season, there could be reporters anywhere. Kerri wasn’t taking her chances now. She definitely wasn’t going to give her mother any time to realize she was missing.
    However, Kerri had the scare of her life when she turned into the western alley and did not see a single soul there. Nor Hunter’s car.
    Her heart racing and her adrenaline pumping like she was on drugs, Kerri pulled out her boyfriend’s cell phone and smashed her fingers against a few buttons. “Where are you???” she sent more than once.
    The city pressed in on her. There wasn’t a safe place she could go, nor was there anyone she trusted enough to go to for help. I’m alone. Kerri held herself against the alley wall, her bags weighing down her shoulders as she looked around in helpless despair. Perhaps there was no other choice than to go back in the boutique and hope no one had noticed she was missing yet.
    A car honked. Kerri glanced up and saw Hunter’s car squeezing down the alley, his hand waving at her from behind the windshield. Kerri picked herself up and sprinted toward him, her heels slapping against the asphalt while her tote bag bruised her side. The lock on the passenger side door popped open the moment she reached it.
    “Hurry,” Hunter said, his foot ready to slam on the gas. “I had to ditch because I think someone saw me. Can’t be too sure. You okay?”
    Kerri flung her bags in the backseat and climbed in so quickly that her leg banged against door and made her cry out in pain. “Been better than at this moment,” she mumbled as soon as the door shut. “We better go. They’re gonna notice I’m gone soon.”
    Hunter hit the gas and wheeled out of the alley. They hit the first line of traffic they could find heading north, and once they were clear of the downtown intersections, Kerri relaxed into her seat and realized what she had just done. Thinking about it was already giving her a headache.
    “You okay?” Hunter asked again. They caught up to some traffic as they headed out of town. “I…” He closed his lips again.
    “I’m fine. Where are we going?”
    “Somewhere safe and secluded. Think of it as a romantic getaway.” Hunter put his hand on hers in between the seats. His eyes as they gazed at her were almost reassuring. “Nobody will bother us. I’ll see to that.”
    Kerri held back what she initially wanted to say. A romantic getaway? Was he kidding? Kerri had just run away from her parents like a disgruntled teenager hell bent on teaching them a lesson. No, I just want to be with him. Still, the last thing she had said to her mother… had Brenda been crying as she stared at the floor? And now her daughter has disappeared. Runaway? Or kidnapping? Doubtless, a missing person’s report would be filed as soon as possible. Since she was the governor’s daughter, many resources would be spent at least on Raymond’s end to make sure she was found. Who was Hunter kidding? He couldn’t see to anything with the force of the state government backing up her father.
    But she wanted to try. This was her first step in declaring her independence – as frightening as it was. Hunter took his hand out of hers as