CHAPTER 1
Maddie puffed, out of breath, forcing her legs to slow down to a fast walk. Her ivory silk-and-taffeta gown rustled in the gentle afternoon breeze as she strode down the Wyoming highway. She couldn’t believe it - escaping from her own wedding and her car had a flat tire!
Maddie chided herself on not realizing what was really behind Howard’s proposal. Although they’d been dating for a few months, she’d been totally surprised when he’d asked her to marry him. A curvy twenty-eight year old, she hadn’t exactly been inundated with men wanting to date her. And since her parents had been hinting for some time now that she should find a nice man and get married, she'd thought, why not?
Why not ...
When Howard had shown her the itinerary for their honeymoon, he’d scheduled everything down to the last hour - including sex. Maddie’s lips tightened. A whole five minutes for sex on her honeymoon. That’s how much her bridegroom desired her. Oh, he had penciled in museum visits, expensive restaurants, viewing the botanical gardens and getting up at the crack of dawn so he could watch a rare bird in its natural habitat, but had allowed only a measly five minutes for sex. Just looking at the timetable made her feel tired. Even if Howard assumed they would consummate their marriage in just a few minutes, Maddie didn’t think she would have the energy or even the desire to do so. That had been the first straw.
She could count on one hand the number of times they’d had sex so far. Howard had explained that he respected her too much to take advantage of her before they were married. Since she could count on her other hand the number of boyfriends she’d had (without including her thumb), at first she’d taken his statement at face value. Until she realized sex with Howard wasn’t exactly earth-shattering.
And that made her question her feelings for him. Could she really marry a man who didn’t excite her in the bedroom? Every day, she’d had doubts leading up to the wedding. And this morning, her jitters had intensified.
Grimacing, she looked down at the full-skirted designer creation she wore. It might be a bit of a meringue, especially combined with her generous figure, but did she really look pregnant? Howard’s great-aunt had asked her that question an hour ago. That had been the second straw.
And then came the final straw ...
Maddie stomped along the highway. Why couldn’t she find a man who would fall in love with her? Who desired her, curves and all? Who was incredible in the bedroom and who would totally ruin her for all other men for the rest of her life? Who wanted to marry her for one reason only - because he loved her, and couldn’t live without her?
Stumbling over a rough patch of road in her ivory kitten heels, she told herself to slow down. So far, nobody had come after her. It appeared Howard hadn’t yet noticed that his bride was missing. Maddie paused, taking note of her surroundings for the first time. Wyoming was beautiful. She could see snow-capped mountains in the distance, although it was June, and cows grazed on lush pasture bordering both sides of the highway. The warmth of the sun caressed her face, a gentle breeze trying to ruffle her up-do.
Distracted by her surroundings, it took her a few seconds to realize that a vehicle had pulled up beside her.
“Are you okay?”
Startled, Maddie whipped her head around, fine strands of chestnut hair that defied hairspray falling around her face. A ruggedly handsome man in his mid-thirties gazed at her in concern from the open window of a large, black SUV. His short dark hair emphasized his molten-brown eyes, while his straight nose and firm, sensual lips made Maddie aware of her quickening pulse. It never quickened when she was with Howard.
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“Does it look like I’m okay?” She gestured ruefully to her wedding gown.
“Did you break down further back?”
She nodded. “I got a flat. And there isn’t a spare.” Tightening her fingers on a tiny, ivory purse that looked like it was barely big enough to hold a lipstick, she added, “I forgot my cell phone.”
“You can use mine. Here.” He rummaged for a second and held out his phone. His strong, tanned fingers curled around the sides of the cell. “Call the rental car company and tell them you’re sixty miles from Elk View Corner.”
Maddie bit her lip before taking the phone from him, careful not to touch his fingers. “Thanks.” She stood there, indecisively. The last thing she wanted to do was go back to that fiasco of a wedding. But if she made that phone call, isn’t that what would happen?
“What’s wrong?”
She gnawed her lip. “I don’t want to go back.”