Page 9 of Impulsive Saint
He wasn’t at all one of her father’s yes men, and he was about as different from Aaron as night was from day.
He’d said he liked to travel, something she’d always dreamed of doing. From the way he made it sound, he was a thrill-seeker and she’d run out of that church because she’d wanted an adventure. She wanted to do the things that scared her, the things that her father had always told her were impossible for a girl of her standing. Just this once she’d wanted to be reckless and irresponsible and she’d run out of that church and straight into the arms of a man named Tyler St. James, a perfect stranger that also happened to be perfectly suited to deliver on her desires.
“Ashtyn. Ashtyn.” He was snapping his fingers in front of her face and she smacked his hand away.
“Stop that.”
“You zoned out on me. I thought you were going into shock or something.”
“Why on earth would I be going into shock?” She pursed her lips and glared at him.
“Because for the first time in your life you did something your daddy isn’t going to like?”
She hardened her features and shook her head, “First off, don’t call him my daddy. It sounds weird coming out of your mouth. Second, I’m a grown woman and I made a choice, one that he’ll just have to live with.”
“Uh-huh.” Tyler nodded though it was clear he wasn’t agreeing, “I’m guessing you didn’t have this conversation with your dad before you came running out of that church like a bat out of Hell then?”
“God no.”
“Figured.” Tyler sighed and glanced around the parking lot, “So… now what? You want me to take you home?”
“No!” She took a step back in horror, “No, I can’t go home. That’s the first place they’re going to look for me.”
“And?”
“And…” She bit her lip when he did that thing where he raised one eyebrow again, “Well, I’m not ready to go home yet.”
“Okay, so where do you want to go?”
Ashtyn stared at him. She took in his slacks and crinkled white dress shirt layered underneath his suit jacket. She noticed the dark tendrils of a tattoo peeking out of the collar of his shirt. She catalogued his stocky, muscular body and remembered the way his dimples flashed wickedly when he smiled. And then she looked at the motorcycle he was so casually leaning against as if it were an extension of his own body.
It had been a sign. She was sure of it. She’d needed to get away and there it had been. Therehehad been. An item crossed off her bucket list, just like that. As if she’d thought about it and it had happened. No, that wasn’t right. She hadn’t just thought about it, she’d taken a chance. She’d made a choice and then she made it happen.
Tyler rubbed his jaw and shot her a wary look, “Ashtyn? Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I know where I want you to take me.”
“Sure thing, princess. You just tell me which direction we’re heading. You want to go to your father’s house or...”
“No!” The word came out high and strained and she forced herself to clear her throat and try again, “No. My friend, Kelsey, is dealing with my parents for me.”
And thank god for Kelsey. Ashtyn would owe her forever after today. She’d left her best friend behind to clean up her mess and though she’d cleaned up plenty of Kelsey’s in their nearly two decades of friendship, she’d never had to deal with an irate groom left at the altar.
“So…?” Tyler looked like he was ready to dump her on just about anyone to be rid of her which was not a good thing. “You don’t want to go home, you don’t want to go to your parents’ house. I’m guessing going to the Mayor’s home is out of the question. Do you need me to get you to a hotel or do you want to hang out at my place for a little while, just until things cool down or…”
“I want you to take me to Vegas.” she blurted.
She expected Tyler to give her that look of confusion again. She half expected him to sneer at her and accuse her of being bossy and entitled and she supposed she couldn’t have even blamed him for it this time. What she hadn’t expected was for him to burst out laughing.
Ashtyn frowned.
Tyler tipped his head back and laughed at the sky. He laughed long and loud. The sound was sort of sexy actually. Low and deep, husky and full-bodied, she wasn’t sure that she’d ever heard anyone laugh so openly and so completely. Tyler laughed until he finally leaned over and put his hands on his knees, dropping his head down and shaking it as he struggled to catch his breath.
“Are you about done laughing at me?” Ashtyn hissed, hands on her hips.
“I’m not sure.” Tyler tilted his head up from between his legs and grinned, “Tell me again that you want me to take you to Vegas and we’ll see if it still sounds as absolutely fucking crazy as it sounded the first time.”
She pouted, “It’s not crazy.”
