Yeah, bachelorhood looked better and better.
Why would any man allow someone to do them that way? After accepting his ring and planning a wedding, going through the motions andpretendingto love him, only to run away at the last second?
Hard pass. He’d stay married to his business ventures and call it a day.
“Everyone knows what I’ve done by now. All those people and cameras outside the building. They know. The entireworldis watching because it’s Rhys Lachlan, billionaire heir,” she muttered in a groaning tone. “Not that he hasn’t done well for himself on his own. He has. He hates that everyone thinks he’s just riding his family’s coattails. But the press and paparazzi are going to go crazy. At least this stupid dress is so tight; I probably didn’t flash anyone if there are any pictures of me climbing over the penthouse balcony.”
Elias jerked the wheel slightly when her words registered. “You climbedover— Are you insane?”
As much as he didn’t like the situation she’d put him in, he definitely didn’t like the fact she’d put herself in danger like that. Apenthousebalcony? What kind of stunt was that?
A desperate one.
A throaty peal of self-deprecating laughter emerged from her chest, drawing his attention yet again before he forced himself to look away and focus on the traffic.
“Obviously,” she said with a twist of her full lips. “But my personal security team was stationed outside the door, and I alreadyknowhow hard they are to ditch because I’ve tried, so…when I saw a maid cleaning the next room, I just… It was the only way out.”
He ran a hand over his mouth to muffle a curse at the thought of her falling,dying, to escape her wedding day. “Don’teverdo something like that again. I don’t care how desperate you were to get out of there, you shouldn’t have risked yourself like that. If you’re not concerned for yourself, think of Ana and Ben.”
She seemed to melt into the seat at his words and nodded, her expression one of regret. “Iknow. I fully admit I wasn’t exactly thinking clearly.”
They made it another block, and when he checked the rearview mirror for the millionth time, he spotted a couple of black SUVs pretty far back, weaving in and out of traffic.
Were those Lachlan’s goons? What would he do if they caught up with them? Maybe he should drive to the police department and let the boys in blue protect her and get her wherever she wanted to go now. He knew a few of them personally. They wouldn’t allow her to be taken if she didn’t want to be.
The radio erupted with the sound of the DJ chuckling obnoxiously into the microphone.
“Oh, this day just got interesting, folks. For all those ladies and gents upset over losing your chance at marrying the World’s Most Eligible Bachelor number three, Rhys Lachlan, you’re gonna get another go at it. Why? The billionaire heir to the Lachlan fortune has apparently beenleft at the altarby his fiancée. The bride is currently MIA and was last seen running from the massive new Lachlan Hotel in Carolina Cove, North Carolina, in herweddingdress and hopping into a limo. No word yet on if she was coerced or just desperate to escape, but that just proves you can be one of the richest guys in the world, and women will still leave you hanging. To celebrate their big day, here’s some Billy Joel, ‘Where Were You.’” The DJ laughed again. “Man, somebody buy that poor sucker a drink. Here’s to you, Rhys! Though I’m pretty sure the billionaire heir will have a long list of ladies waiting to comfort him. Am I right?”
The song started playing, mocking and making fun of the day’s events, before Elias stretched out a hand and punched the button to turn it off. “We’ve got company behind us, I think. They’re still pretty far back, but it’s decision time. What’s the endgame here?”
Quinley sat there in the seat with her lips trembling as she blinked hard. But she didn’t speak. Or even look behind to try to see the SUVs he referenced. His body squeezed a bit at her look of…resignation? “If you’re not wanting to stay in town, I’ve heard some people take honeymoons alone after this sort of thing.”
He’d always thought it would be weird to do that when the point was to take the trip together, but to each their own. He supposed knocking a few back alone on a beach somewhere was better than sitting at home dwelling on the heartbreak. Not that she apparently had any?
He made a few turns, getting off the main road with weekend bumper-to-bumper traffic and taking the side streets, rolling through a few stop signs along the way once he knew they were clear.
“I can’t do that. We were going to take one of the jets to Lachlan hotels and homes in the Caribbean. I’m pretty sure that’s bad taste to go there now.”
Little bit, he mused silently.
“What was I thinking? Why did I wait so long? Why did I leave everything behind? I knew his security team would track my phone, but I didn’t even grab a change of clothes so I can get out of thisstupiddress. I don’t know where to go. What I’m going todo. I don’t have my purse or money or anything.”
The panic was back, and the image of her throwing herself over a penthouse balcony in her too-tight dress came to mind yet again. His hands tightened on the steering wheel.
He had a kid sister. He had female friends, his sisters-in-law, and a gym where the safety ofallhis customers, especially women, were top priority. He couldn’t help but feel protective regardless of what she’d done.
Quinley could’ve fallen so easily, and if she had, she wouldn’t be sitting there beside him right now. If nothing else, that thought and the fact she was Ana’s best friend made him want to help her. “Quinley, are you sure you don’t want me to drop you off at Ana’s? Really sure? I’ll call Cole and tell him what’s going on, make sure he knows to keep your whereabouts quiet. Ana’s your friend, and I think you need her.”
“I can’t. I can’t face Ana right now. Not after this. She’s been after me formonthsto talk to her because she sensed something was wrong, and I kept telling her everything was fine but— She was right. She was totally right. Obviously it wasn’t fine, or else I’d be getting married right now.”
“I’m sure Ana would understand.”
“No, shewon’t. I’ve put her in an impossible situation. Her boutique is located inside the lobby of Rhys’s hotel. I mean, I don’t think Rhys would pull anything unethical, but it’s going to be absurdly uncomfortable for Ana now. No,” she said with another toss of her beautiful head, her features pinched and tight. “I can’t make it worse for her. Ana’s so good with boundaries. She’s had to be. She wouldn’t have let things get this far. Not like I did.”
He glanced at her to find her staring out the dash, looking paler than ever despite her makeup as she shifted side to side in her seat. “I get it. But you need to leave the regrets for later and focus on what’s happening right now. As a guy, I might not like your sense of timing, but I think it’s brave to stand up for yourself, no matter when you do it.”
She made a frustrated sound. “Seriously,whydid I agree to this suffocating dress! I swear it getstighterevery time I move.”
