Page 8 of Harrison Hyde and the Runaway Bride

“Fine.” The answer was automatic, but the question made him wonder, and he looked that way, too. “Then again, I’ve only known her for an hour or so. You know her better. Doyouthink she’s okay?”

Manny shrugged. “She locked the door. There are four stalls. I’m thinkin’ she might not be okay.”

Hell. The concerned proprietor walked away. Harrison glanced toward the couple at the corner table, and the woman was looking his way. By the bend of her brows, he thought she was also concerned about the beautiful redhead in the restroom.

Okay, okay. He got up and went to the door, tapped gently. “Maria? Are you all right in there?”

“Why the heck wouldn’t I be?” The response came immediately, and he thought her voice was about an octave lower than the last time she’d spoken to him. He heard water running, and then she unlocked and opened the door. “Impatient much?” She didn’t meet his eyes. That didn’t stop him from noticing that they were red, puffy, and makeup-free.

Hell, she’d been in there crying, hadn’t she? She wasn’t fine at all.

Of course she’s not. This was supposed to be her wedding day.

His stomach growled. Maria sent him an amused look, and he wondered how she could be amused after probably sobbing her heart out alone for the last twenty minutes.

“Well, that explains why you’re so impatient,” she said. “You’re as hungry as I am. You get us a table?”

“Food’s already on it.” He led her to the table where the food waited, pulled her chair out for her, and wondered why he’d done that. He didn’t make a habit of pulling out chairs for women. It wasn’t common practice anymore.

Maria bent her eyebrows a little bit, but she sat down, and then he did. And then they started loading tacos onto their individual wooden plates. Some of her filling dropped into her lap. His gaze followed naturally, but he shifted it to her face again. Her eyes were red.

He couldn’t stand to see a woman cry.

Now he noticed that her hair was tamed down and braided all around on one side. It hung down across her shoulder, and copper curls were already springing free here and there. He reached for the yellow salsa bowl. She reached for the red one. “Red’s hotter than yella,” she said. “Yella’s hotter than green.”

Her accent made him smile. He liked listening to her talk. It was musical, the rhythm of her voice, the softening of tone that came with her subtle twang.

“You never told me why you’re running away. Seems like a big, supportive family back there, no? Or are they pressuring you to marry that guy?”

“Oh, heck no. None of ’em wanted me to marry that guy,” she said. “But I feel awful. They spent a buttload of money and time helpin’ me plan a weddin’, even though they all thought it was a mistake. They let me decide. And I just…” She shook her head slow. “I’m embarrassed, I guess. Ashamed.”

“I think you should be proud. It took a lot of courage to walk away like that.”

“That’s kind of you to say.”

“Why do you think…” He wanted to flat out ask her if she’d been in love with the jerk, but didn’t know how to ask without making it sound like he was interested for personal reasons— which he was not.

“Why was I so determined to marry Billy Bob?” She finished his question for him. “I been askin’ myself the same thing. I just… I had a plan. I had a plan, and nothing was gon’ stop me once I got it underway. I was fixin’ to become a vet, work in my mom’s clinic, gradually take it over, buy that cute little house on Bluebonnet Lane, get married, have a couple of kids, and step into my place in the Brand family dynasty, fully integrated into the community of Quinn as the town veterinarian.”

“It’s a perfectly valid plan,” he said when she paused as if awaiting a reaction.

She shrugged. “I was so focused on the first part, getting my degree, I didn’t think much about the second. I didn’t date, like other gals. I worked my tail off to get through school, and all of a sudden, I was at the end, and I realized I hadn’t finished the plan. And time was short. The house I wanted came onto the market. But the husband part didn’t come so easily.”

“They don’t just appear out of nowhere, do they?” he asked.

“Not generally, no. But I was home from school, and Billy Bob was here to sell off his parents’ place when they passed. We’d gone to high school together, so I knew him. He was easy, interested, and comfortable. He seemed like the most efficient way to move ahead with the plan.”

“Not exactly a sweeping love story.”

She shrugged. “My family is full of sweepin’ love stories. But I don’t think they happen for everybody. I’m not sure I’m evencapable of feelin’ that way for someone, and if I were, I’m not sure I’d want to.”

“I’ve thought that before, too. My parents had that great big kind of love. And then my mom died and left Dad just… bereft.”

She nodded. “I noticed her photo in the car. She looks like an angel.”

“Thank you.”

She slathered salsa onto her taco, topped it with a liberal squirt of hot sauce, picked it up, and took a huge bite, her eyes widening in direct proportion to her mouth. He’d taken a bite, too, tried not to laugh, and choked.

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