Susan Fox: To Tame a Bride

Those mirrored sunglasses flashed toward her briefly as they walked along. She forced herself to smile a bit wider while he was looking down at her, but the effort felt more like an awkward twitch. The sunglasses flashed again with a dismissive turn of his head.

Nettled, she walked faster to keep up with his long stride. “I’m more than willing to pay,” she added, struggling to keep her voice reasonable and pleasant. She felt the snub when he didn’t respond. Surprise made her slow her steps. When he continued on, she hesitated, then hurried after him, appalled by the indignity of having to pursue him.

“I need to get to Colorado by evening, Mr. Coryell,” she called, her frustration mounting higher as she was forced to practically chase the man. Feeling her cheeks heat with embarrassment, she sent a swift glance toward the office and hangar to see if anyone was watching.

In the next moment, she crashed into Linc’s back. He’d slowed when she wasn’t looking and she’d blundered into him. She gasped and jumped back as if she’d been burned.

And she had been. The heat of his big body and his sun-warmed clothes had scorched her somehow and it was all she could do not to check herself for damage. But he’d turned toward her and his handsome mouth was set in a no-nonsense line that warned her he was irritated.

Knowing she had to be polite if she had any hope of persuading him to fly her to Colorado, she forced another smile that felt as twitchy and unnatural as the other one had. “Pardon me, Mr. Coryell. I didn’t expect you to slow down so... abruptly.”

Her apology automatically implied that he was in the wrong for stopping, which he was. But he didn’t take blame well. She could tell by the hardening of his firm jaw.

Compelled to recover from her faux pas, she was forced to add, “I wasn’t watching where I was going for a moment.” She hesitated, giving herself a moment to conceal her aversion to apologizing twice. “Pardon me.”

She hadn’t realized how tall and broad-shouldered Lincoln Coryell was until she was standing two feet in front of him. The top of her head barely came to his shoulder. The mirrored lenses of his sunglasses were aimed down at her, and seeing twin reflections of herself made her feel even smaller.

That she also felt more fragile and feminine than she’d ever felt in her life was a small shock. But then, she’d just run into his hard body, and the impression of his solid masculinity was still quaking through her.

He didn’t speak, just stared down at her from his superior height as if neither of her apologies had been enough. Frustrated by his taciturn manner and uncertain how to deal effectively with him, she took advantage of his undivided attention.

“I have a very serious reason to get to Colorado—to Aspen—by tonight, Mr. Coryell.” Stung when he still didn’t respond, she gritted her teeth and made herself go on. “It’s not quite life or death, but close. I’m willing to pay you for your time and inconvenience—double the fare the other pilot asked.”

Finally, he reacted. But the cynical slant of his handsome mouth was insultingly superior. No one looked down their nose at Madison St. John, yet the impression she had that Lincoln Coryell was doing just that jolted her.

“I don’t hire out, Miz St. John.” With that, he turned and walked away.

Maddie’s frustration spiked so high that she felt dizzy with it. She had to get to Colorado. Though she could drive to San Antonio and try to catch a flight from there, she had no guarantee of success. Lincoln Coryell was flying to Colorado now. Besides, she’d compromised her dignity too far with him to take no for an answer. His resistance to her—though she was straining to be pleasant to him—was offensive. Demeaning .

The picture that flashed in her mind—of her mother’s reaction when she finally set eyes on the ugly duckling daughter who’d grown into a swan—sharpened her determination.

Perhaps Roz would regret the years of neglect. A secret part of Madison’s heart hoped her mother would be sorry for abandoning her, but without Lincoln Coryell’s help, it might never happen. If she didn’t get to Colorado today or by afternoon tomorrow, God only knew when—or if—her mother would contact her again.

She started after him, forced to set an unladylike pace to catch up.

“Mr. Coryell!” The hint of ire that simmered beneath her soft tone had worked with scores of others. In the end, she knew of only one sure way to assert her will over his and make him take her to Colorado. “As I said, it’s very important that I get to Aspen by tonight,” she insisted as she caught up and fell into step beside him.

Linc’s long strides didn’t alter. “So you said,” he drawled. “Not quite life or death, but close,” he quoted as they reached his small plane. He stopped and tossed his duffel bag out of the way near the tail of the aircraft, then turned toward her. The mirrored sunglasses flashed down at her and again framed her image.

“But not close enough to life or death for you to consider using a word as ordinary and humbling as the word please.”

Linc watched Maddie’s lips part, saw the spasm of shock in her eyes that blanked the arrogance from her stiff expression. Clearly, words like “please” and maybe even “thank you” weren’t a regular part of her vocabulary.

He stared down at her frozen expression, a little surprised at himself for giving her even a small chance to wreck what had started out to be a good day.

On the other hand, there was something challenging about a gorgeous, sharp-tongued shrew who intimidated the hell out of most men. Normally, he wanted no part of a female as self-centered and highmaintenance as Maddie St. John. Her flawless appearance hinted at excessive vanity, and it was an easy bet that she’d never warmed enough to any man to tolerate getting a little disheveled.

What would it take to get a woman like her to mellow? Was her legendary bitchiness born of meanness, or had she spoiled and overindulged herself on her inheritance? Was there any real passion behind her cool, blond beauty, or was she an ice cube through and through?

Her father and mother had abandoned her to a grandmother who’d bullied her mercilessly. Line knew she hadn’t had an easy life. He hadn’t either, but he’d overcome it and made several fortunes by seeing the potential in losing propositions and by taking big risks.

And for all her stunning beauty and wealth, Madison St. John was a losing proposition. Maybe there wasn’t anything about her worth having, but if there was, it might be entertaining to find it. The only thing he’d truly risk was a few hours cooped up with her in a small plane.

Still, he’d leave her right there on the tarmac if she couldn’t lower her haughty attitude far enough to frame a proper request that included the word “please.” She’d had so much trouble with “pardon me” that “please” might be more than she could handle.

He waited as the seconds stretched, watched as the flush in her cheeks darkened and rose higher. Just when he was about to grab his gear and stow it in the plane, her gaze wavered and fell from his.

He saw her chin lift slightly in defiance of the small defeat. She didn’t look him in the eye; probably afraid she’d see a hint of triumph. If the situation were reversed and she’d been the one who’d got the upper hand, it was a sure bet he would have seen triumph in hers.

“It’s very important that I get to Aspen by tonight, Mr. Coryell.” The careful words and her neutral tone were obviously straining her. “Would...would you please consider allowing me to fly to Colorado with you?”

The way she’d looked when she said the words—as if she’d just been forced to consent to the most hideous, immoral act in the history of man—startled a chuckle out of him.