Billionaires Runaway Bride

by Claire Adams

  By five o'clock, my mother had begun calling every fifteen minutes, and at six-thirty, I finally gave up the ghost and answered.

  "What do you want, Mother?" I said sharply.

  "Finally you pick up!" she said in an exasperated tone. "I need you to come back and be here for the Vasquez party tomorrow night."

  "Why on earth would I want to do that?" I asked only slightly stunned that my mother would think that my short absence would erase the way she and my father had treated me.

  "Because I'm asking you to," she said without an apology.

  "You're a piece of work, you know that, don't you?"

  "Adam, look, I don't have time for your hurt feelings or your childish temper tantrums," she continued. I could hear her fingernails clicking as she tapped on something impatiently. "I know your feelings are hurt and you're mad, but this is business, son. You need to hightail it home and be here for the reception tomorrow night."

  "Or what?" I asked my voice dripping with contempt.

  "Or I will hunt you down and make you pay for your insolence, you ungrateful boy," she hissed. Something about her tone made me shiver. Unlike my father, my mother didn't often issue threats, but when she did, she meant it. "I don't know what little game you're playing down in the hinterland, but I suggest you get yourself back on the road toward home ASAP, son."

  "I don't have anywhere to stay," I said adding, "And I don't have anything to wear."

  "I've booked you a room at the London House where the event is taking place, and your tux will be pressed and waiting when you arrive," she said without pausing.

  "What makes you think I'll show up?" I asked.

  "Because I asked you to," she said before disconnecting.

  "Bitch," I muttered into the phone knowing she couldn't hear me.

  "You don't like your mother, do you?" Honor said making me jump.

  "Don't sneak up on me like that!" I shouted as the phone slipped out of my hand and hit the ground. Honor picked it up and handed it to me without saying anything. I took it saying, "It's rude to sneak around."

  "Why don't you like your mother?" she asked as she squinted up at me. Her face was streaked with dirt and sweat, and her hair was flying out from under her white cap.

  "It's complicated," I said trying to think of a way to explain the situation to her, but the more I thought about it the worse it all sounded. How could I explain my estrangement from my parents to a kid who'd just lost her parents?

  "You didn't get along with them," she said.

  "Yeah, something like that," I nodded as I wiped the phone off and tucked it in my pants pocket.

  "Did they do something mean to you?" she asked. "I used to get really angry at my parents when they'd punish me for something I didn't think was wrong, so I know that feeling."

  "It's more complicated than that," I admitted. Honor stared up at me awaiting a real answer, and when I didn't immediately provide one, she sighed heavily and walked toward the front porch.

  "You know," she said turning around and shielding her eyes with her hand. "Everyone thinks I'm too young to understand things, but I do understand them. I understand them a lot better than anyone thinks."

  "Look, Honor, I'm not trying to avoid your question," I said as I followed her to the porch and sat down on the step next to her. "It's just that I don't know how to explain what happened in my family, and I don't like the way it makes me feel."

  "Kind of like how I feel about Mamm and Dat dying?" she asked with a sad, but hopeful look on her face. I debated what to say next and then finally decided that being honest was my best bet.

  "I know you're not stupid, but there's stuff about my family that even I don't understand," I said as I tried to explain. "My parents want me to do what they want me to do, not what I want to do. They're angry at me because I'm taking a different path than they planned and it doesn't match the one that they'd already made for me. I think they're partly mad at me, and partly mad at themselves."

  "Yeah, I know what you mean," she nodded as she bent forward and brushed some dirt off her foot. "Mamm and Dat wanted me to stay here and be part of the community, but I told them I wanted out. I want to do what Grace did. I don't want to live here my whole life and never see anything or go anywhere."

  She looked up at me and when I simply nodded, she continued speaking, "It was hard to convince them that I should be allowed to make my own choices, you know? As Amish, we're taught to do everything for the good of the community, not for ourselves, but I told them that if I was forced to stay and I ended up miserable, that wouldn't help the community, would it?"

  "That's a very logical argument," I chuckled. "Maybe I need to take you with me when I go see my parents."

  "Maybe you do," Honor said seriously. "English, Grace loves you. I can tell."

  "Wait, what?" I said trying not to sound too surprised. "How can you say that, we've only known each other a short time? You can't fall in love with someone you just met."

  "Wanna bet?" Honor said. "Verity did it. And Hope and Faith did, too. And Mamm once told me that she fell in love with Dat the day she met him, but that they couldn't get married in second grade, so she waited."

  "That's insane," I laughed out loud, making Honor frown. "Sorry, I'm not laughing at you, I'm laughing at the idea that you can fall in love with a complete stranger. Mamm and sisters all knew the men they married as kids, Grace and I only met a few weeks ago, and we're grownups."

  "You English are really stupid, you know that?" she said rolling her eyes as she hopped up off the step and stood with her hands on her hips looking down at me. "I'm telling you that Grace loves you because I've known her my whole life, and if you ask Verity or Danny what they think, they'll tell you the exact same thing. Grace loves you, English."

  "Well I'll be damned," I muttered as I looked away.

  "Just saying," Honor shrugged. She stared at me for a few seconds and when I didn't say anything more, she turned and ran back toward the barn and left me sitting on the steps trying to figure out what to do with the bomb she'd just dropped.

  #

  I'd just entered the house when my phone rang again, I hesitated to pull it out of my pocket, fearing that my mother would be calling to make additional demands. When the ringing stopped and then started again, I yanked the phone out ready to go on the attack only to find Grace on the other end of the line.

  "Grace," I said. "How was your meeting?"

  "It went well; I got a promotion," she said. I could feel her excitement through the phone and I smiled.

  "That's fantastic, congratulations!" I said as I pictured her standing in an office somewhere in the Loop, modern and in control. "We're going to have to celebrate when you come back down."

  "Or when you come back to the city," she said dropping her voice to a low murmur. "I miss you, Adam."

  "I miss you, too," I heard myself saying. "But you'll be back on Monday and we'll get things all straightened out."

  I knew exactly why I was holding back the fact that I'd be in Chicago the next night, but the part of me that had actually listened to what Honor had said wavered.

  "Yeah, I'm going to go to some business thing tomorrow night to meet with the folks who are going to be on the merger team," she sighed. "I don't want to do a business dinner on the weekend, but Mike thinks it's important now that he's promoted me to department leader."

  "Then it's good for you to go," I urged. "We'll hold down the fort until you get back. I promise."

  Lying, even if it was simply a sin of omission, didn't feel good, but having to explain my parents and their manipulative ways felt even worse knowing what I knew now about the Millers. If Grace loved me right now, I didn't want to risk her learning anything about my family until we'd had more time to get to know each other. And I definitely didn't want her attending a gala that my mother had any part in arranging. I cringed when I thought about how my mother would react to me bringing a girl like Grace to one of her million-dollar parties, and then I felt angr
y at myself for thinking that way.

  "Adam?" Grace called into the phone. "Are you still there?"

  "Yeah, I'm here. Sorry, got distracted thinking about your pink nightgown," I said trying to cover my silence.

  "You're hopeless," she laughed. The sound of her laughter made me smile and also made me miss her even more. Maybe when I got to Chicago, once the party was over, I'd call her and surprise her. No, she wouldn't like the fact that I'd promised to stay with her family while she returned to take care of business. I'd made a promise, and I intended to keep it—after I'd made an appearance at the party.

  "I'm something, but I'm not sure it's hopeless," I flirted making her laughter flow through the phone again.

  "Hey, I wanted to ask you something," she said just as Honor came pounding up the porch.

  "ENGLISH, your car is here!" she shouted. "Come see this machine!"

  "Oh crap, they brought the Mustang over," I said peering out the screen door and seeing one of the service guys climbing out of the car. "I have to go take care of this; can we continue this conversation later?"

  "Of course, go do what you need to do," she said. "I've got to go find a dress and shoes for this affair tomorrow night."

  "Just do what you normally do; you always look good to me," I said. "But not the Amish dress."

  "Oh heavens no!" Grace gasped before she started laughing again. "Perish the thought!"

  "I have to go or else Danny's going to hop in the car and try to drive off," I said. "And given his propensity for learning new technology, I'm not sure that's entirely impossible!"

  "Go! I'll take to you later," she shouted before I disconnected and headed out to see what they'd managed to do to fix the car.

  "Hey, you guys were supposed to call me when you were done!" I shouted as the young mechanic finished polishing the side mirror.

  "Yeah, well, I told them I'd drive it out to you," he said with a sheepish grin. "It's not often that we get a car like this in for repairs."

  "I can totally understand," I said as I walked around the car and let out a low whistle. "Man, you guys did an amazing job of fixing her."

  "It helped that we were able to get authentic parts shipped in from Indy," he nodded. "But the guys in the shop are really talented and that helps."

  "Okay, what do I owe you?" I asked as I pulled out my wallet and fished in it for the credit card I'd use to cover the bill.

  "Nah, we billed the insurance company listed on the paperwork in the car," he said waving me off. "They paid immediately, so the bill's all taken care of."

  "You're kidding me?" I said stunned that they'd taken care of everything so quickly and efficiently.

  "Nah, the boss negotiated with the insurance company and they agreed to pay after he got a copy of the accident report from the sheriff," the man said.

  "I didn't file an accident report," I said looking at him and feeling confused.

  "Mr. Wallace, this is a small town," he said with a wide grin. "We have ways of making sure things get done efficiently."

  "I'll say," I muttered as I watched Danny open the door and sit down in the driver's seat. I turned back to the man in overalls and said, "What did you say your name was?"

  "I didn't, but it's Al," he said vigorously rubbing his oil stained hand on his coveralls before offering it to me.

  "Al, you and your team seem like people who can get things done," I said as a plan rapidly began taking shape in my brain.

  "I reckon," he nodded. "What'd you have in mind?"

  "I want you to meet someone," I said as I turned toward the house. "Come with me."

  Al followed me to the kitchen screen door where I called to Verity and asked her to come outside. As Honor and Danny traded off playing racecar driver, I explained my idea to Al and Verity. By the time I was done, they both nodded and agreed that my plan had merit, but Al needed to get the word out to local farmers who weren't part of the Amish community.

  Verity said she'd go into town and make sure the store was ready, then asked if I wanted to go with her. I shook my head and told her we'd talk about it over supper. I didn't want anyone outside of the family to know that neither Grace nor I were going to be at the house over the weekend. It seemed less risky.

  Al said he'd check in with me as soon as he'd had a chance to connect with the people who might be interested in putting turbines in their field. I shook his hand as a blue pickup pulled into the drive and honked twice.

  "That's my ride," Al said tipping his baseball cap at Verity and saying, "Ma'am, good evening."

  I watched him climb into the cab and ride off toward town before I turned to Verity and said, "I've got to go to Chicago to take care of something. Can you handle the plans until I get back on Sunday afternoon?"

  "What about Grace?" Verity asked.

  "She doesn't need to know about this; she's got enough on her plate right now," I said knowing full well that Verity knew I wasn't telling the truth. The look on her face made me feel ashamed for a moment, but then I remembered my parents and said, "Look, I wouldn't lie to Grace for the world, but this thing with my parents is messy and I don't want to drag her into it. You can understand that, right?"

  "It's never a good idea to lie to someone you care about, Mr. Wallace," she said shaking her head.

  "Oh stop with the Mr. Wallace stuff," I said running a hand through my hair and then giving her a beseeching look. "Verity, c'mon, I'm doing the best I can. I'll be gone for less than twenty-four hours, and then when we've put our plan into action and gotten what we need, I'll tell Grace what happened and why, okay?"

  "I don't like it at all," she said shaking her head disapprovingly. "I'm not going to lie for you, Adam. I won't tell your secrets straight out, but if asked, I'm not lying. Do you understand?"

  "Understood," I nodded as I crossed my fingers and hoped that everything would go as planned and no one would be asked to lie.

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Grace

  I'd checked with Betty, Mike's secretary, and found out that the reception Mr. Vasquez was throwing was definitely formal, and since I didn't own anything glamorous enough, I headed straight for a small boutique just south of the Loop that sold once-worn formal dresses at reasonable prices. I quickly booked a hair and makeup appointment for the next day and then caught a cab to At Last Boutique on Roosevelt.

  The car had dropped me off at the office without stopping at my apartment, so when I walked through the door pulling my suitcase, the woman behind the register raised an eyebrow. The shop was an eclectic mix of tasteful vintage furniture in shades of crimson, eggplant, and gold. The place could have looked like a high-end bordello, but the way the designer had created an intimate space by placing velvet upholstered settees and chairs around the room made the racks of dresses look like icing on a very expensive cake. I felt intimidated.

  "We don't buy dresses direct," the woman said. She was tall and thin with long burgundy colored hair that elegantly framed her smooth, dark face. "We only buy dresses that have been returned to retail stores and can't be resold."

  "I'm...I'm not selling anything," I said as the heat rose in my cheeks. No matter how long I lived in Chicago or how financially secure I was, shopping in the city still made me feel like a small country bumpkin. I'd prepped myself a hundred times for trips like this, but it didn't take much to send the fortress walls tumbling down. I looked at the tall brown saleswoman and said, "I need a dress. A formal dress for tomorrow night. And shoes."

  "Well, why didn't you say so, hon?" the woman smiled as she extended her hand. "I'm Vivica, but everyone calls me Viv. What kind of dress do you need, hon?"

  "Something pretty?" I said unsure of what she meant.

  "Pretty? You need something pretty?" Viv chuckled. "Darlin', we have all kinds of pretty in this shop. You're going to have to be much more specific than that!"

  "It's a formal reception at London House," I said not sure what else she wanted to know, then quickly adding, "It's for a business merger."
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  "Oooooh, now that's a serious kind of fancy," Viv said as she quickly crossed the small shop and began rifling through a rack of dresses that were set off to one side. She turned back and looked at me, asking, "What's your name, hon?"

  "Grace," I said. "Grace Miller."

  As she perused the dresses Viv said, “Well, Grace, go ahead and put your suitcase down and come tell me how you want to look tomorrow night."

  "I don't know," I admitted. "I just want to look beautiful and elegant."

  "See? You do know," Viv gently scolded. "Every girl knows how she wants to look for the ball."

  "It's just a business function," I reminded her. "It's not like a wedding or something. I just want to look like I belong."

  As soon as the words left my mouth I felt myself tearing up. Everything that had happened over the past month came tumbling into my brain all at once. Mamm and Dat were gone. Faith and Hope had shunned me along with the rest of the community who were now threatening to shun the siblings I'd left behind. The store was deeply in debt with no way of digging out of it now that Uncle Amos had made it off limits to the community and forbade them from shopping there. We had no real income to support the farm. And Adam. Then there was Adam Wallace.

  "Hon, what color do you want to wear?" Viv asked as she pulled a bright green dress from the rack and then shook her head and put it back.

  "Nothing flashy," I said not wanting to stand out from the crowd. "I want to look elegant. Classy."

  "Ahh, how about a beautiful, black gown?" Viv suggested, holding up a lace and taffeta dress that had a plunging neckline that was way more than I was willing to risk.

  "No black!" I declared. "None!"

  "Okay, well, tell me how you really feel about it," Viv chuckled as she pushed a few more dresses aside before looking me up and down as she murmured, "Six maybe, eight, or a small ten."