At the mention of his future sister-in-law, he nodded. “She will. Analise might be upset for now, but you’ll work it out.”
“I hope so. I wouldn’t hurt her for anything. She’s the sister I never had.”
“More proof that you’ll work it out eventually. Just give it time.” He wasn’t sure where the comforting words were coming from considering he’d be royally angry if he were in Ana’s shoes, but they seemed to do the trick with Quinley.
She switched feet, and once she’d rubbed the delicate arch of that one for long minutes, she helped herself to the hand sanitizer he kept in his truck due to dealing with people and gym equipment on a daily basis.
“What’s your goal for this trip?” she asked. “Is this your normal vacation?”
He supposed road-trip conversation was a good thing when it flowed naturally, but between the two of them, they both had things they’d rather not discuss. “Just getting away for a few days.”
“I’m surprised one of your brothers didn’t come with you. Or…are you meeting someone there?”
The casually posed question held mild curiosity which he supposed was normal, but the reality of his trip and lack of companion—whether brother or…friend—left him shrugging. “Just me. I haven’t taken any time off since I took over the gym.”
“How long have you owned it?”
“About eight years.”
“You haven’t had a vacation in eight years?”
“We live at the beach. It’s not like we’re stuck in some horrible place without fresh air and sunshine.”
“True,” she said. “But it’s still a long time to stay in one area withouteverleaving, don’t you think?”
“I think if people are happy where they live, it’s not a hardship.”
“Ahh,” she drawled softly. “Love where you live does mean something. I just think it’s fun to travel and explore. I love where we live, too, but it’s one teeny-tiny place in a world filled with beautiful places.”
He inwardly shuddered at the thought of traveling, not because of the logistics or crowds but because of maintaining his regimented diet. That alone made travel extremely difficult. No, not difficult, nearly impossible.
They fell into silence after that last bit of conversation, and despite her words to the contrary, Quinley shut her eyes and seemed to doze.
He gently pushed the button to increase the radio’s volume one press at a time to keep it low enough not to wake her but high enough to hear. He channel surfed for a bit, landing on a station where country music played for about twenty minutes straight before the female DJ came back on the air.
“Unless you’re living under a rock, I’m sure you listeners have heard the news about billionaire-heir Rhys Lachlan getting dumped at the altar. A Lachlan family spokesman says the missing bride has yet to make an appearance or a statement, but efforts are being made to find her out of concern that she might have been coerced into leaving. Ms. Anders’s family and friends have gone into isolation and are refusing comment, and the Lachlans are asking for privacy at this time. All I can say is, when you’re the equivalent of American royalty, you can’t expect privacy, dude. So what do you think? Did someone blackmail her into leaving, or is she the runaway bride like the videos show? Call me,” the DJ urged in a throaty voice, giving the number. “I’ve got my own opinions, but from what I’ve seen of the bodyguards and the hassle, maybe marrying a billionaire isn’t a fairy tale after all.”
Elias frowned and changed the channel when the DJ went on to accept a caller.
Regardless of Quinley’s reasons, Elias never wanted to go through something like what Rhys Lachlan had today. Just the thought of it made his entire body tense to the point of pain and his blood to heat with anger and embarrassment on the guy’s behalf. He couldn’t imagine being mocked the world over, and while pride was a sin, no one wanted to be the butt end of that many jokes.
He couldn’t blame Quinley for choosing to end it when the marriage obviously wouldn’t have survived, but the way she’d done it? To wait until the day of? Not cool.
There was a reason he didn’t date for relationships, a reason he kept women at arm’s length. He would never intentionally hurt or abuse a woman, and he made sure they knew the score before he ever touched them, but this—today—was proof why he kept to his rules.
He was content with his life, with work and his routine. His family. He didn’t need someone pretending to care for him only to mess with his head and leave.
If Lachlan loved Quinley, really loved her, she’d destroyed him today. And that wasn’t something Elias ever wanted to risk.
He would get Quinley to where she wanted to go so that he knew she was safe, but once there— He couldn’t wait to leave her behind.
The next several hours went by with Quinley dozing—or pretending to—or else staring out the window while he drove.
Elias went back to channel surfing and turning the radio down whenever the radio hosts would reappear, only listening to the music portions. Conversation between them picked up sporadically, usually centered around favorite bands, favorite beaches or general topics.
As they wound higher into the mountains, she sat up straighter and started pointing out familiar places, listing a few restaurants that were popular and a place she and Ana had gone kayaking once.
“The turnoff is just up ahead at the stop sign, and then it’s the first house on the right,” she said. “It’s down a ways, and the gate will be closed, but if you drive by it just a bit, I know a spot in the side wall just big enough to slip through. I may have made use of it as a teenager when I snuck out to meet friends.”
