After that reminder, he relaxed in his seat. He felt in his pocket for the ring then
let his hand fall when he reassured himself that it was there.
Traffic moved quickly, and a half hour later, they arrived at the hotel. Alannis
yawned as Theron helped her out of the car.
He smiled and took her hand. “I hope you aren’t too tired for the party.”
“What party?” she asked in surprise.
Sophia smiled and tucked her arm in Alannis’s. “He’s planned a party in your
honor, dear. It’s a very special night.” She winked at Theron behind Alannis’s back, and
Theron felt his unease increase.
“A party for me? It sounds so exciting,” Alannis said, her eyes sparkling in
delight.
She really was quite lovely, in a quiet, understated way. For some reason,
however, he couldn’t chase the image of another woman from his mind when he looked
at her.
He glanced away, his jaw tight as they walked through the lobby toward the
ballroom. When they entered, the band struck up and confetti fell from the ceiling.
Alannis looked up, her eyes rapt. She held her fingers up to catch the flurries as
they spiraled down like crazy, neon snow.
“Oh, it’s wonderful, Theron,” she breathed.
He nudged her forward again, his heart pounding with each step they took. His
hand drifted into his pocket as they neared the center of the room. The edges of the box
scraped against his fingers, and he fumbled with it, coaxing the velvet box inside free.
Would she be as excited when he asked her to be his wife? Would he? Or was he
about to make the biggest mistake of his life?
“Alannis…” he began, cursing the fact that his voice was so shaky.
She turned and looked up at him, eyes shining and a smile curving her lips. Lips
that he had no desire to kiss. “Yes, Theron?”
Isabella sat forward in her seat, straining to see out the front window. “What’s the
hold up?” she asked desperately. “Why aren’t we moving?”
Marcus took hold of her shoulder. “It’s a wreck, Bella. Calm down, sit back.
We’ll get there. He won’t propose as soon as the party starts.”
She stared out the window at the sea of cars all at a dead stop. They’d never get
out of this in time.
In a burst of frustration, she reached for the door handle and yanked the door
open.
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THE TYCOON’S REBEL BRIDE
55
MAYA BANKS
SILHOUETTE DESIRE 1944
THE ANETAKIS TYCOONS
“Bella, what are you doing? Get back in the car. You can’t go running through the
streets of New York City,” Marcus exclaimed as she clambered out.
She turned and bent to stare back into the car where he sat. “I have to go, Marcus.
We’ll never make it in time and you know it. I have to get there before he proposes. I
can’t…” She swallowed and looked away for a moment. When she looked back, tears
clouded her vision. “I have to go. Thank you for everything.”
She closed the door, picked up the long skirt of her dress in her hands and ran
through the traffic, ignoring the honks as she cut in front of cars trying to inch forward.
She heard the shouts of Reynolds and glanced back to see that he was hotfooting it down
the street after her. Turning, she kept on running. She didn’t have time to stop and
explain.
Unsure of where she was going, she kept to the sidewalk, paralleling the traffic.
When she saw an unoccupied taxi, she ran to the window and tapped.
The cabbie gave her a disgruntled look and rolled down his window. “Look lady,
no one’s going anywhere in this mess.”
She held up a hand. “Please, can you tell me how to get to Imperial Park Hotel?
How far am I?”
His eyes narrowed as he stared back at her. “As the crow flies, not far. If you cut
over from this street a block then up two, you’ll be six or so blocks from the hotel. Just
head straight for five blocks, turn left and you’ll see it as soon as you round the corner.”
With a murmured thanks, she gathered her dress, shed her shoes and took off
running as fast as she could go.
“Hey, lady, you left your shoes!” the man shouted from behind her.
By the time she’d gone three blocks, it had started to rain lightly. Not that it
mattered. She already looked a fright, and her hopes of looking like a million dollars
when she burst into Theron’s engagement party were doomed.
When she rounded the corner of the last block, the heavens opened and it began to
pour. Blinking the water from her eyes, she dashed toward the hotel, avoiding the puddles
that were already forming beneath her feet.