Metsy Hingle - The Kidnapped Bride

“Isabel, this is Lorelei. Lorelei, Isabel.”

“She’s as beautiful as you said she was. Welcome to Tortilla Flats, Lorelei.” She gave Lorelei a welcoming hug and nearly squeezed the stuffing out of her before she released her. “You’ve landed yourself quite an hombre here. But I suspect you know that already.”

“I—”

“Order’s ready,” someone called out from the kitchen. “Jack, mi amigo.” A dark-eyed man with graying hair waved in greeting. “So you convinced her to come with you to our mountains after all.”

“Bueno, Alberto. Yes, I convinced her to come,” Jack returned.

“I will fix something special for you and your bride, then. Isabel, show Jack and his lady to a table and then come help Maria.”

Isabel muttered something in Spanish and rolled her eyes heavenward. “Jack, you and your Lorelei sit over there away from that racket. I will come back in a minute to take your orders. Right now I’d better help Maria before those little devils tear the place apart.”

Lorelei looked across the room to where a couple with five youngsters had their hands full trying to keep their troops seated. Her gaze shifted to the trays Isabel and another woman were carrying to the table. Lorelei’s mouth watered at the smell of burgers and bowls of steaming chili.

“The ladies’ room is down the hall, first door on your left,” Jack informed her. He held out the suitcase with her clothes. When Lorelei reached for it, he held on to it a moment longer. “Just in case you’re thinking of trying to find a back door to sneak out of, I’ll save you the trouble of looking. There isn’t one. And if you’re not back here in exactly fifteen minutes, I’ll come looking for you.”

Lorelei yanked the suitcase from him and flounced off down the narrow hallway. She paused a moment before the door marked Ladies and glanced back in the direction from which she’d come. Jack stood there watching her. With his feet spread apart, the light from the dining room casting shadows across his unsmiling face, he looked every inch the dangerous pirate she’d accused him of being. Tipping up her chin, Lorelei pushed open the door and stepped inside the bathroom.

The place was small but clean. Two stalls took up most of the space. A single basin with a small square mirror positioned above it filled one corner of the room. A coun-tertop no more than a dozen inches wide ran across the back wall. An oval-shaped mirror sat in a stand to one side. Centered four feet above the counter was a narrow window that she judged to be only a fraction wider than her hips. What I wouldn’t do to have Clea’s slim hips right now, Lorelei thought. If she ditched the wedding dress, she might just be able to make it. But she’d have to hurry.

Moving quickly, Lorelei hoisted the suitcase onto the countertop and pulled out a pair of jean shorts, T-shirt and the hiking boots. She frowned as she thought of Desiree packing her things without her even knowing it. She’d deal with her little sister once she got back to Mesa, Lorelei promised herself. Kicking off her ivory pumps, she reached for the hooks and detached the train at the back of her dress. Bundling up the length of satin, she stuffed it in the top of the suitcase, then went to work on the tiny satin-covered buttons that ran down the back of her dress.

Several minutes later her arms ached from stretching behind her, and she had succeeded in opening no more than a half dozen of the buttons. Frustrated, Lorelei strained against the fabric, trying to pop the buttons free. It was no use. The things didn’t budge, let alone break loose. Oh, God. What possessed me to buy a dress with so many stupid buttons?

Because you hadn’t planned on unbuttoning them yourself , Lorelei reminded herself. At least that’s what Desiree had said when she’d encouraged her to buy the dress. Yet for the life of her, she had to admit that she hadn’t experienced any great anticipation at having Herbert undo them for her, either.

Lorelei glanced at her watch. Twelve minutes. She’d been gone twelve minutes already, she realized. Jack would come looking for her any moment now, and she hadn’t even managed to change clothes yet, let alone escape through the window. Arching her shoulders, she strained to break the buttons free.

She heard a tap at the door. “Lorelei?”

“Go away,” she told Jack.

“What’s taking you so long?”

“Nothing. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

She took a deep breath and arched her back and shoulders again. Nothing. Zip. Nada. The dratted things were evidently sewn on with steel thread.

“Need some help?”

Lorelei jumped at the nearness of his voice. She glanced up in the mirror and saw Jack standing behind her, an odd expression on his face. “I can’t unbutton the stupid dress.”

“Want me to do it for you?” he asked, a smile sneaking across his mouth. “At the rate you’re going, you’ll be lucky to get changed before breakfast.”

Too irritated to speak, she whipped her hair around to fall across her shoulder and offered him her back.

The breath stilled in her chest as Jack moved closer and began to unfasten the buttons. One. Two. Three. Four. She could feel his fingers moving down her back, slipping the buttons free from the satin loops. His fingers brushed along her bare skin and sent sensation skipping down her spine. Lorelei closed her eyes and bit down on her bottom lip to keep silent.

“You always had the most beautiful skin. The color of cream.”

“I have freckles,” she somehow managed to reply.

“Only a few.” He slipped open another two buttons and skimmed the backs of his fingers against her bare flesh. “So soft. Like silk. Sometimes when I’d be out at sea, I’d lie awake nights and look up at the sky and remember how soft and beautiful your skin was.”

Lorelei caught the note of longing in his voice. Glancing up, she discovered him watching her in the mirror. The last of the buttons were freed, and her dress fell from her shoulders to her waist, leaving her breasts hidden only by the thin strapless bra.

Jack lifted his gaze to meet hers.

Her breath hitched. She couldn’t move as she watched desire flare in his eyes.

“Lorelei,” he whispered before lowering his mouth to her shoulder.

Lorelei gasped as first Jack’s lips and then his tongue touched her shoulder. The feeling was so erotic, yet so familiar. A surge of longing raced through her.

“Come on, Sarah, let Mommy wash your—” The door to the bathroom burst open, and the mother of the five children stood there staring at them. She started to back out of the room. “Oh, my. I’m so sorry. I thought this was the ladies’ room.”

“It is,” Jack said, spinning around to stand in front of Lorelei like a shield. “I was just helping my wife with her dress. We’ll be out of your way in a moment. I’ll wait for you at the table, sweetheart.”

Once he was gone, Lorelei avoided the other woman’s knowing eyes and scurried into one of the stalls to change. Dear God, what had she been thinking of? Lorelei asked herself as she stepped out of the gown and threw it across the bathroom door. She pulled off the silk nylons and tossed them over the gown. Hurrying, she shrugged into her shorts and pulled on the T-shirt. She had to get away, Lorelei told herself as she sat on the toilet seat and slipped on her socks and hiking boots. And she had to do it now.

Lorelei remained in the stall until she heard the woman and the little girl leave. When she was alone again, she pushed her suitcase aside and hopped up on top of the counter. Using the heel of her hand, she shoved against the worn window lock. Finally it opened. She pulled up once, twice, cursing when she broke a nail. Determined, she tried again and the window finally came free. The sky was already growing dark, and Lorelei could feel the slap of heat as she shoved the window up to the top.