The Lawman's Rebel Bride. Amanda Renee

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ excuse. He’d heard it numerous times on the job and it only made him slap the cuffs on faster. But damned if he didn’t understand the expression today.

      “Toast, toast, toast,” their wedding guests chanted. Where did they come from? And the champagne and wedding cake. He hadn’t even planned on wearing a tuxedo until Samantha told him Belle looked beautiful in her wedding gown. He’d made a mad dash for the tuxedo rental place and prayed they’d have one. The fit wasn’t perfect, but he was presentable.

      “Belle and Harlan.” His uncle Jax raised a glass in the air. “It’s anyone’s guess when you two got back together, but I’m glad you did. Here’s to a lifetime of health and happiness.”

      Harlan clinked his glass against Belle’s. He wasn’t sure if she was in a state of shock, overheating in her dress or was about to toss her cookies on his shoes. Regardless, the deer-in-the-headlights look didn’t suit her.

      Belle had looked stunning as she walked down the makeshift aisle. Never in a million years did he imagine she would still have the dress and the rings. She was even more beautiful than she had been during their first wedding. They both had matured since then. If they had waited to get married instead of allowing their teenage hormones to make all their decisions, they probably would have had a chance at something real and lasting.

      “What did that man mean when he said he didn’t know when you two got back together?” Trudy asked.

      Harlan squatted beside her wheelchair. “That’s my uncle Jax. He has a lot going on at his guest ranch, so I guess he got a little confused.”

      “I never liked that man. Where is Ryder? Isn’t he supposed to be your best man? And where are your parents?”

      Trudy’s questions caught Belle’s attention. She set her untouched glass of champagne on the table behind them.

      “Grammy, why don’t we go inside?” Belle turned Trudy’s wheelchair toward the door. “It’s too hot out here for you in the sun.”

      “All right, Bubbe. I’m a little tired.”

      “I’ll take her in,” a nurse’s aide said. “Enjoy your wedding and congratulations.”

      “Thank you.” Belle faced Harlan. “I’m sorry. She doesn’t remember.”

      Harlan shrugged. “It’s okay.” He made a mental note to drive out to see Ryder at the state penitentiary in Deer Lodge soon. It had been a few months, but the three-and-a-half-hour drive wasn’t exactly next door. He missed his brother every day. They’d been best friends until the night Ryder killed their father. The decimation of his family had been instant. His mother had moved to California shortly afterward and he and his four brothers rarely spoke anymore except for him and Dylan. He missed the family they once were. “I understand. Did you expect this many people?”

      “Absolutely not.” Belle scanned the crowd. “And I can’t wait to hear the gossip once we have this annulled. I’ll be pitied. You’ll be vilified. They’ll wonder what’s so wrong with me that you ditched me twice. It will be a regular Saddle Ridge free-for-all. Happy days ahead.” She frowned. “They still whisper about our last wedding debacle. This was the last thing I wanted.”

      Harlan sighed. He’d been responsible for every ounce of gossip. She’d always been an awkward social butterfly because of the past her mother bestowed upon her, but she had been an active part of the community. She had organized parties for friends and had even been on the church’s social committee alongside her grandmother. All of that ended eight years ago to the day when he left her at the altar. And then her life burst in flames once more when he married Molly. Belle had become a rebel who’d rather spend her time with animals than people. The rumors rolled off his back, but she shouldn’t have to endure them. Not again.

      “Then we stay married.” Harlan said the words without thinking twice. He owed her. “I’m not saying we have to stay together forever.” Although he’d willingly spend the rest of his life seeking redemption. “But a few months longer than we had intended. Then we can say we gave it a shot and it didn’t work. I’ll take the blame.”

      “I want to argue with you, but I can’t think of a better solution right now.” Her shoulders slumped in defeat despite the smile she wore for their guests’ sake. “I am grateful to you and for all of this, but I should get home. I’ve already been gone longer than I had anticipated.”

      “Is someone waiting for you?” An uneasiness swept over him. Okay, maybe there was a twinge of jealousy in there, too. But why? He had no claim to Belle, except for the fact he was legally her husband.

      “Time for cake,” Samantha interrupted before Belle answered him. “I realize it’s not big and multitiered, but when the kitchen learned you didn’t have a cake, they insisted on making one.”

      If that didn’t amp up the guilt factor, Harlan didn’t know what else would. He vowed to make an anonymous donation to the nursing home to cover all the expenses for the event. The least he could do was pay for one of his weddings to Belle.

      After they cut the cake, Belle fed it to him with a bit too much enthusiasm. Her uninhibited laughter more than made up for his face full of frosting. He had missed that laugh as much as he had missed her.

      His phone vibrated in his pocket. He’d set an alarm for two o’clock so he’d be home when Ivy got off the bus. Their neighbor across the street watched her after school, but he didn’t want to chance her hearing what happened today from somebody else. He hadn’t expected news of their wedding to become public knowledge or else he would have told Ivy last night...if he had found the words. How was he going to explain to a seven-year-old he’d pretend-married the woman he once jilted? He was about to find out.

      “I’m sorry, Belle. I have to leave,” Harlan whispered in her ear as their guests mingled. “I need to have a little talk with Ivy.”

      “I’m sure that won’t be easy.” Belle twisted the ring on her finger. “I shouldn’t have gotten you into this mess.”

      “I talked you into marrying me, remember?” He covered her hands with his own. The warmth of her skin caused his heart to still. In that briefest of moments, everyone around them faded away. Their wedding should have been spectacular. They should be sharing their first dance and celebrating the rest of their lives. Instead the woman he’d never stopped loving had been forced to settle for a charade of a marriage. “It will be okay. We’ll get through it...together.”

      She lifted her gaze to his as happiness dissolved into reality. “Sure, okay.” She withdrew from his grasp and gathered up her skirt, rebuilding the wall between them. “I’ll walk out with you. I want to bring my grandmother a piece of cake before I leave.”

      The two of them managed to sneak away and head down the hallway to Trudy’s room unnoticed. She was already asleep and Belle told him to go on ahead. She wanted to stay a little while longer. He sat beside her and took her hand in his as they watched Trudy in silence. Pretend marriage or not, Harlan had meant his vows. In sickness and in health was the reason they were together again, for however long. He wouldn’t leave Belle. Not with a garden full of wedding guests and not when she needed him most.

      * * *

      IT WAS CLOSE to five o’clock by the time he picked up Ivy. He’d called his neighbor and filled her in on some of the details. Between her chiding tsks, he persuaded her to keep Ivy inside and away from any of her friends until he arrived home. He’d run СКАЧАТЬ