She blinked at him, and he watched as the panic grew.
“I don’thavea home. I gave up my apartment a month or so ago to move in with Rhys because my lease— No, no, no. What did Ido? Why did I do that? But he wasneverhome, and I thought it wasn’t a big deal since we were getting married anyway, but now I’m… I’mhomeless.”
She chugged air in and out of her lungs. He tensed, waiting for her to pass out. “It’s easy enough to find a new apartment. Not a big deal,” he said before she could take a deeper dive down that panic-ridden yellow-brick road. “I’ll take you to Ana’s house. Problem solved.”
“No, nonotsolved. I can’t go to Ana’s,” she cried with a firm shake of her head. “The note I left wasforAna, asking her to return the ring to Rhys for me.”
That was demanding a lot of a friend, he mused silently. Even a best friend. “Okay then, how about your parents? Where do they live? I’ll take you there.”
“I can’t go there, either! Right now, my dad is probably shouting the roof off the hotel, and my mom— My mom is somewhere crying with a chardonnay in her hand, searching for her Xanax to deal with him.”
“I have to take you somewhere,” he said, careful to keep his impatience under control. Obviously there was some family dysfunction there, but that wasn’t his problem.
“Where— Where wereyougoing? Before I jumped in?”
“I was heading back to the rental building to drop off the limo and pick up my truck. Gage is scheduled to drive the VIPs home after your reception.”
“Why couldn’t you drive them home?”
He ran his fist over his mouth and chin, hearing his doctor’s voice in his head about his stress levels. Apparently he’d never make a good getaway car driver. “Because I’m going out of town for some R and R. I just pitched in today so Cole could be at the wedding with Ana, and Gage wouldn’t have to shut down the rental building on a weekend during peak hours.”
“That was nice of you to help out. Ana loves Cole so much. I’m sure it meant a lot that they could go together. Even though it’s kind of their fault I’m…here right now.”
“Their fault?” He watched as she grimaced.
“I was fine. Perfectlyfineuntil they got together, and then… Then Ireallysaw all the things wrong with us. Me and Rhys.”
“And you couldn’t just tell the guy you wanted out? Before today?” He took another glance at her and saw her expression tighten.
“It’s complicated. I didn’t plan this, okay? I wasfine,” she said again, as though repeating the words somehow made her jilting the groom at the altar better than it was. “I’d accepted the fact that no relationship has everything. I thought I could do it, go through with it.”
“Yeah, got it,” he muttered, shooting her another admittedly judgmental stare across the expanse of the interior. He couldn’t help it. He was a guy, so he put himself in her fiancé’s shoes and right now? He was team dumped male.
Elias couldn’t imagine the upset and chaos her intended groom experienced at the moment. Assuming the guy had proposed because he loved her, because let’s face it, billionaire heirs didn’thaveto do anything.
And those variables? They were yet more examples of why he had no intentions ofevergetting married. Not when there were too many uncontrollable factors to take into consideration, like being left at the altar and made to look the fool. “Tell me where to drop you. I’d like to get on the road and away from…this.”
Silence followed his words, and he glanced over at her to find her staring dazedly into space.
He frowned. For someone who hadn’t stayed still since she’d jumped inside the vehicle, Quinley suddenly looked like a statue, frozen in time.
Was she breathing? Maybe she’d gone into shock? He supposed it was possible. “Quinley,” he said sharply. “Come on, surely there’s somewhere for you to go where you’ll feel comfortable. Don’t you have other friends who’ll take you in?”
“Everyone’s at the wedding. And I don’t want to put any of them in the middle of the drama. I wouldn’t have jumped into this limo with you had I known you were…you. I need air. I feel sick.”
“Head out the window.”
“I’m not a dog.”
No, because dogs are loyal, he mused, very aware of the fact he couldn’t saythatout loud. He cranked the AC instead and pointed the vents toward her.
“I ran away from my wedding,” she breathed softly, as though sounding it out for the first time. “I…I actually did it. Do you think Rhys was already at the altar when he…found out?”
“I don’t know, but I can take you back so you can talk to him. It’s not a big deal.”
“No, I can’t go back,” she said with a firm shake of her head elegant head. “I just don’t know what to do. He’s a good guy, you know? A great guy.”
“If he’s so great, I’m sure he’d understand you need more time,” he said, even though he didn’t think it was possible given how long she’d waited to show the dude how she really felt. The expense probably wasn’t an issue for a guy like him, but the fact she’d ran? Getting left at the altar would be a hard pill for any guy to swallow, much less one so in the public eye that half the world watched because the family name was basically American royalty.
