The Outlaw Takes A Bride: A Historical Western Romance (Bernstein Sisters Historical Cowboy Romance Series Book 5)

by Amy Field

  “Thanks, but you should have woken me up,” Bonnie said weakly.

  “You are in no state to go to work. Have you looked at yourself? We have to keep this under wraps remember?”

  Bonnie nodded, and Maria said, “Get dressed. We’ll try to think of something.”

  Bonnie went to freshen up, and when she came back, Maria was sitting down for breakfast. Bonnie picked at it, her appetite non-existent. She couldn’t force herself to eat. Not when Dustin was in trouble. Finally, she pushed the plate away.

  “Don’t be like that, you have to eat and keep your strength up.”

  “Sorry. But I just can’t eat. Not when Dustin is locked up somewhere like a wild animal. Can you imagine what they are doing to him?” she sighed, trying her best to keep it together.

  “You have to eat; it will help you to think with a clear mind. I know this is a grave situation, “but you can’t give up on yourself. We’ll get him back,” Maria said reassuringly

  Bonnie tried to put on a brave face. She appreciated Maria doing her best to be a supportive friend. She had always been against her relationship with Dustin, but friendship came first and Maria was going to help her. With her support, Bonnie saw some glimmer of hope.

  “We have to find a way to gather the money. I wish I had the money to help, but I don’t,” Maria said.

  “It’s fine. I’ll try to take a loan against the bond. That, with the rest of my savings, could cover it."

  “Are you sure you can do that?”

  “I have to try.” She didn’t sound confident at all.

  Neither of them mentioned the Nate option again.

  Chapter Seven

  The hours ticked by. Her panic increased as day followed night, and she tried to maintain a semblance of normality in her life. She methodically went through the motions of gathering the ransom money. She asked for loans from her company, who turned her down due to strict company policy, and the bank, well they could loan her money, but it wasn’t nearly enough.

  She managed through the Monday, the Tuesday she spent trying to bet loans, now it was already Wednesday, and with only two days left before the deadline. Bonnie was at her wits’ end. The option of asking Nate for money was very quickly starting to look like her own and she dreaded it.

  Nate hadn’t been back to see her since the work was concluded, and she couldn’t expect him to come now, so she had to go to his. She called him, saying there was an urgent matter she needed to discuss. She dreaded the meeting, but she knew she had to go through it for Dustin. Nate agreed immediately, suspecting nothing.

  She was almost thirty minutes early for the meeting and sat in the waiting lounge of his building. Like the first time they met about his project, she was contemplating her approach. She was simply going to have to be honest; there was no point in beating around the bush. Nate was sharp enough to smell out any shenanigans quickly. Her heart was racing and it felt as if it was pounding the air out of her

  Finally, the PA came around and invited her to Nate’s office. It was large and tastefully furnished and light flooded in through large windows with breathtaking views of the city. His desk was neat, and instead of sitting on the chair by his desk, she opted for the sofa. It was soft to the touch and she sank deep into it

  The door opened and Nate walked in, looking handsome as usual. Bonnie felt her heart jolt at the sight of him, but she reasoned that it was nerves. Her hands tightened over her skirt and she had to look down so that he didn’t see the color flooding her cheeks. He sat down beside her and looked at her.

  “This isn’t about work, is it?”

  Bonnie hesitated. Maybe she’d made a mistake coming here. But the way he looked at her, and the way he sounded so sincere broke down her defences.

  “Or is this about the campaign?” he asked, “You know I trust your vision, you don’t need my approval.”

  That gave her some courage.

  “No, it’s not work related," She gathered up all her courage. “I have to ask you something, something personal.”

  Nate sat upright and tilted his head sideways, “

  I’m listening.”

  “I don’t know if you knew, but I have a boyfriend, he’s ex-military. Well, he left for a mission a few weeks ago and he was supposed to be back on Monday…” It felt as if her throat was closing on her, and she cleared it, “On Monday I received a call, he is being held hostage…”

  She could feel her lips tremble and she fisted her hands in tight balls on her lap, trying not to lose her calm.

  Nate didn’t move, but he looked as if he wanted to comfort her.

  “Anyway…I got a call and the man on the other end said that I had one week to pay one million dollars in ransom money or they are going to kill him. I have been to the bank, but they can’t really help me, and I don’t know who else to turn to.”

  "So for his release, they want a handsome figure?" Nate asked sharply.

  “They didn’t mention anything else. All they gave me was an email address to notify them when I have the money.”

  “You sure there was nothing else you could get from them? How about the voice, was there anything distinct about it?”

  “No, it sounded muffled and foreign. I wouldn’t be able to identify him.” Her voice grew desperate, “If I had any other option I wouldn’t be here, asking you to help me.”

  Without hesitation, Nate shifted and nodded his head, “I will help you.”

  “This is just a loan, I promise to pay you back every cent,” she said to make a point.

  “Let’s not worry about that. I’ll get it ready.”

  Bonnie sat stunned. Was this going to be so easy after she struggled so much with the banks and her company’s finance people?

  “Thank you, Nate,” she said simply. Inside she felt like hugging him, but she stopped herself.

  She walked out, relieved. The nightmare was almost over and very soon Dustin will be home safe and sound.

  Chapter Eight

  It was now two days after her meeting with Nate and her bank account was still devoid of the one million. Bonnie was biting her nails, something she hadn’t done since she was a child. The deadline was approaching and she didn’t have the money. She couldn’t send the email without the money. The tension was building up by the second. Why hadn’t Nate sent the money over? Had he changed his mind? He wasn’t that type of person, that’s not how she’d gotten to know him while working those endless hours on his project. Had she misjudged him? No, that wasn’t like her. She was a good judge of character. He might be a womanizer, but he wasn’t a charlatan.

  Her cell was connected to her bank account, and the second she got the money, she would get a notification, but why wasn’t it working now? She wanted to call him and ask him, but she couldn’t do it. She kept her eyes on the clock. It was past eleven, quickly approaching midnight. If it passed midnight, it was over and she would have lost her chance to save Dustin.

  Bonnie looked at her laptop which had her email open. The message had already been typed up and all she had to do was send the email. She couldn’t, not without having the money. Just then her cell phone pinged and there was the confirmation that she had been waiting for. She sighed with relief and jumped into action.

  Quickly, she pressed the send button just as there were two minutes left until the deadline. She hoped that they hadn’t given up on her and that it was going to work. She waited for a response, and five minutes later, an email arrived. She opened it and it had only one line.

  We’ll contact you again for a pick-up point.

  Bonnie collapsed with relief. But the tension returned within a few seconds. When exactly were they planning on returning Dustin to her?

  “Are you okay?”

  Bonnie sat motionless for a few seconds before she registered the question and stared blankly back at Mr. Winston, who was waiting for her answer. He was in his mid-forties but with a youthful, pleasant demeanour.

  “I am fine,” she finally said.
>
  “You don’t seem very happy, Bonnie. We are here celebrating the Woodrow campaign that you worked on, but you seem less than thrilled,” he replied, a slightly worried look on his face.

  “I am sorry, I am just tired.”

  He patted her on the shoulder. “Let loose and enjoy yourself a bit. Mingle with everyone. You deserve it.”

  Mr. Winston walked away, and Bonnie downed the drink she had in her hand. She was trying to stay calm, but everything around her was spinning. The last thing she wanted was to be at this party. The thought itself surprised her because she always loved coming to these celebrations. But all of this faded into insignificance right now. Today, her mind was on Dustin. It had been four days and there was no word from the kidnappers. Had they decided that they weren’t going to return Dustin? Had she bargained for no reason?

  The thought made her go cold all over, and she shivered. She couldn’t give up on Dustin. She had to cling to the hope that he was alright and that she was going to get him back. She poured herself another glass of wine and gulped it down to try and calm her nerves.

  Have hope, she told herself.

  She could see Mark in the distance, flirting with the new interns and she had to smile. Then her eyes fell on Nate, socializing with everyone. He saw her and smiled, his smile making her heart jolt. Why did he have this effect on her? She nodded in response and then she turned around and began to walk away. She wanted to be alone and she clearly wasn’t going to have that if she stayed in the thick of the party.

  She had to commend the planners. They had done a fine job of everything from the food to the wall-to-wall streamers and balloons. Everyone on her team had come by to enjoy the party. If only they knew about her turmoil, but why would they care? She had to deal with her own pain. Suddenly, she felt terribly alone. Maria had been no help here. She thought it was Dustin’s own fault that he was in trouble. Bonnie wouldn’t admit to that. Admitting would mean that she didn’t care about Dustin, and she did, a lot. He was the love of her life.

  At the thought of the last few words, she didn’t feel the usual warmth that she always did, but she concluded that it was because she was tired.

  She eventually found herself in the corner of the room with no one else around her. She sat down on one of the chairs and looked dejectedly at her empty wine glass. She should have brought some drinks from the bar. It was one of those times when she wanted to get drunk and forget about everything.

  “Can I interest you in this?” a familiar voice said.

  Bonnie looked up and saw Nate walking towards her, a bottle of gin in his hand. He had an empty glass in his other hand, and she took a few seconds to take in how handsome he looked in the dim light. Then again, he was always handsome and this wasn’t the first time that she had noticed that.

  “I have the wrong glass,” Bonnie said, raising hers.

  “Who cares, it’s a glass isn’t it?”

  He drew up a chair and sat in front of her, filling her glass with some gin. She knew it was way too strong for her to consume, but she sipped it anyway, maybe this would ease her troubled mind for the moment. She shuddered as the bitter strong taste burned its way down into her stomach, and watched as he did the same.

  “So how are you holding up?” he asked quietly.

  “I am as good as I can be,” she said but then added, “I mean it’s not every day your loved ones get kidnapped, is it?”

  “I understand,” he said, nodding. “That’s why I am asking how you are. I hate to see you have to go through this.”

  "Why would you even care so much about a stranger?" Bonnie commented blankly. "I thought we had a perfect life, you know? He was messed up from his last tour, but I thought that we could get through it together, but it turns out that it didn't work. He didn't care about getting back to normal. All he wanted to do was to go back and serve the military.

  "Some men have a very deep sense of duty, and unfortunately once that settles into them, it's like an addiction," Nate said.

  “I know he did. He wants to be patriotic, but why did he feel the need to do that when I was in his life? I was always there for him, why did he have to leave?” Bonnie demanded and she bit back her tears.

  Nate took out a handkerchief and handed it to her. She wiped her eyes and sighed. He filled up her glass, and she knocked it back as he did the same.

  “It doesn’t matter. I just…I don’t know what to do. I have the ransom money, and now I wait What for I have no clue!”

  Nate looked down at the floor and then up at her, “I am sure they’ll contact you again and return him to you.”

  I could only hope, she thought, her head had already started to become fuzzy.

  “Thank you for your help, Nate. I really didn’t want to ask you for such a favor. I promise I’ll return everything to you. No matter how long it takes me.”

  “Don’t worry about it. I am not a loan shark,” he said. “I admire your determination to get Dustin back.”

  Bonnie smiled and tentatively put her hand over his. Nate looked surprised by the contact and even she wasn’t immune to the rush of heat under her skin. She cleared her throat.

  “Thank you.”

  “We should go back to the party,” Nate said, looking around at the patrons.

  “Why? I like staying here,” Bonnie said. Immediately, she was surprised at her words. The room was swaying a bit, she noticed.

  “I am very intoxicated right now, and I don’t know what I am going to do if I am alone here with you,” Nate said slowly.

  Bonnie’s mouth dropped open, and she looked at the gin bottle to see that it was almost empty. She was drunk too and somehow she felt braver than usual. She wanted to know more about it or feel it somehow.

  “Ooooooh, so the great Woodrow feels tempted,” she said mockingly, “But it is rather open here…”

  Nate raised his brows and said, “What do you suggest then?”

  “My office...” she whispered.

  Bonnie could hardly believe what she was saying. She was encouraging him! But she couldn’t stop, her heart thumped wildly against her chest and the heat rushing through her was stopping her from rescinding that invitation. She wanted this, and the lust was pushing it forward. She was throwing caution to the wind.

  Nate didn't say anything and began to walk in the direction of her office. After a second, she followed him. She was unsteady on her feet but kept on walking until they reached the office. Inside, she drew the blinds, and for a second, neither of them moved. All they did was staring at each other as their chests rose in unison.

  The tension was palpable. She felt a strange feeling unfurl in her lower belly and she bit her lip. In one fluid motion, his hands were around her and his lips crashed down on hers. It was sloppy for a second, but they found their pace. He pressed her against the wall and she clung to him to stop herself from drowning. He was the only one who could save her and keep her afloat. That’s all that went through her mind.

  She couldn’t remember at what point they got rid of their clothes. She felt the world disappear in a range of fuzzy colors. All she was aware of was Nate and his voice, whispering hoarsely. She didn’t know what he was saying, and she wasn’t sure if she wanted to know either. Pleasure; that was what this was all about. She needed the distraction that he was giving her. She didn’t want to remember the trouble that she was in right now, but even as it was happening, she felt a hint of fondness for Nate. The last thing she remembered was his fingers running through her hair, reaching towards her back…

  Bonnie woke with a start. She was lying on her office couch under a blanket, which she normally kept in a cupboard for power naps. She sat up. How long had it been since…? The gravity of her situation slowly dawned on her. Nate stood with his back to her, busy dressing.

  Oh my word, she thought shocked, I’ve had cheated on Dustin!

  How could she have done such a thing? How could she have given in to temptation?

  Bonnie breathed in and out, try
ing to calm herself, but it didn’t work. She buried her face in the blanket. Waves of guilt drowning her, she had actually cheated on him. And worst yet, was that he was still in trouble! How selfish of her.

  Nate had turned around, and smiled. “Bonnie…”

  “Before you say another word, this did not happen,” she blurted out and reached for her clothes, which lay in a pile next to the couch.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked and approached her, but she held out her hand.

  “All of this is wrong, I’m engaged to be married Nate,” she said under her breath. “I was drunk and this was all a mistake.”

  For a moment she saw hurt flash in his eyes, but he quickly blanked over and nodded, “Indeed it was. I promise you that this won’t happen again. What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas,” he joked and grabbed his tie, slinging it over his shoulder before marching out of her office.

  Bonnie slumped back against the arm of the couch and closed her eyes. What had gotten into her?

  Chapter Nine

  The next day, things weren’t any better.

  When she woke up, the scene from last night flashed in front of her eyes. She had actually done it. She had cheated on Dustin and enjoyed it. She was the worst person in the world. She had done it without a second thought, and though she was drunk, it shouldn’t have happened.

  Bonnie couldn’t force herself out of bed. It was only because of the incessant ringing of her cell that she finally got up. She reached for it and picked it up without thinking.

  “Hello Bonnie,” Nate’s voice sounded.

  “Nate, I don’ think…” she started.

  “Bonnie wait, just hear me out,” he half pleaded.

  Irritated she sat upright, “What do you want from me Nate; I told you that it was a colossal mistake.”

  “Well I don’t think it was a mistake,” he protested.

  Bonnie was silent and she could hear his breathing on the other end.

  “I know you regret what happened between us last night, but believe me, I have no regrets. I wanted you from the first day I saw you, and trust me, I tried not to react to my desires, but working with you every day was torture.”