Missing: One Bride. Alice Sharpe

demanding, “Why?”

      “To catch a plane.”

      “Of course. But what plane and to where?”

      Another moment of silence as the man thought about his options, threw Alex a glance more furtive than the previous one, then finally heaved a beleaguered sigh. “Miss Blackwell wanted to shop. I overheard them talking. They said something about Seattle.”

      “Have they checked out of the hotel?” Alex asked.

      “No.”

      “Then they’ll be back?” Thorn added.

      The clerk nodded. “Mr. Blackwell said they would return this evening.”

      Alex mentally prepared herself for a day of lobby sitting, but Thorn took her arm. “Thanks, Alfred.” He looked down at Alex and added, “Let’s go get some breakfast.”

      

      Suddenly ravenous, Thorn ordered a big breakfast of steak and eggs, damn the cholesterol. He was a little surprised when Alexandra echoed his choice. She was smaller than Natalie and he’d expected her to eat the same way her friend did, which meant dry toast and tea for breakfast.

      Once the food was consumed, he sat back in the leather armchair and stared out at the ocean, a second cup of coffee on the table in front of him.

      “Thorn?”

      He turned back to face Alexandra.

      “I think I should go home,” she said softly.

      He leaned his arms on the table. “I can’t drive you back now,” he said. “I have to see this through.”

      “I know you do. But I don’t belong here, and besides, I don’t think you really need me hanging around.”

      He stared into her eyes and felt a stab of panic assail him at the thought of her leaving. “Yes, I do,” he said. “You’re Natalie’s friend and you have to be here to keep me from throttling her.”

      “You’re not going to throttle her,” she said with a slow smile.

      “Okay, I’m not going to throttle her. Still, I wish you’d reconsider. Besides, it’ll be over tonight.”

      “But I work tomorrow—”

      “I’ll drive you home after we see Natalie.”

      She bit her bottom lip. “I don’t know—”

      “I’ll make the wait worth your while,” he said suddenly.

      This earned him another smile. “How?”

      “We’ll do something fun today. No reason we have to sit in the lobby when they won’t be back until tonight.”

      She regarded him with her steady gaze that reminded him of the stars. “You’re different this morning,” she said.

      “How?”

      She shrugged. “I don’t know. More lighthearted. Less…broken.”

      “Well, let’s see. My fiancée is staying here under an assumed name with a man old enough to be her father, who may actually be her father—and if you believe that, I have a bridge to sell you. I spent yesterday in a daze, and tonight I’m going to hear her side of the story, but today, here I am at the beach with a pretty girl and a few hours to kill. Let me assure you that inside, I’m still shattered, enraged, perplexed and boondoggled, but damn, I’m tired of wallowing in it. Allow me this charming front.”

      She laughed. “Okay.”

      “And stay with me, please.”

      “As a distraction?” she asked, her eyes now mocking.

      “Yes,” he admitted. “Will you? You’ve come this far. Of course, if there’s someone at home who will miss you, parents or friends you need to call, or pets to care for—”

      “Nothing like that,” she said, interrupting. “I live alone, my parents are in Arizona and my only plans for today involved laundry. Okay, I’ll see it through.”

      “Good. Finish your steak, Alexandra, we have a lot to arrange.”

      “I’ve eaten all I want.”

      He nodded. For a man who should be feeling dumped and dismal, he felt remarkably good. Of course, a hearty breakfast always did wonders for his morale.

      “There is one problem,” Alex said. “I don’t have a comb or a toothbrush.”

      He looked at her hair, really looked at it for the first time that morning, and grinned. She was a mess, all right. Of course, a few stray hairs didn’t really detract from her face, but he could see that she needed some personal items.

      “Then that’s where we’ll start,” he told her.

      They found a sundries store on the floor below the lobby and Thorn stood by as Alex picked out the three or four things she needed. He couldn’t help but notice how modest her choices were or how often she told him she’d repay him. He tried telling her that she was there because of him, but in the end, he let it drop. If it made her feel better to repay him thirteen or fourteen dollars, then so be it.

      He sent her up to the room by herself, then went back to the lower-level shops and found one that sold women’s clothing. There wasn’t a whole lot to choose from, but as this was the only store he could shop at, he adapted to the limited selection.

      Estimating her size, he chose a blue bathing suit with lots of little straps around the back. The only sweatshirt without a picture of some big-eyed animal plastered on the front was a bright purple one with pink sleeves, which he kind of liked. He grabbed a pair of red pants that looked as though they were made out of parachute material and should be cool or warm depending on the situation, then found the only sandals in the place—gold ones with flowers on the toes.

      “Oh, Mr. Powell,” the clerk told him as she rang up his purchases. “Are these things for the new Mrs. Powell?”

      Thorn was bent over a rack, trying to decide what SPF the suntan lotion should be. He looked up at the clerk and said, “No.”

      “What!”

      The woman’s shocked voice roused him. He said, “What?” back at her.

      “I asked if these items were for your new wife. The hotel grapevine, you know.”

      Oh, brother. “Ah—well, of course they are,” he mumbled.

      The woman, tight-lipped because she obviously didn’t believe a word he said, wrapped his purchases in tissue paper, ran the hotel credit card through a machine and handed him the bag. “I’m sorry if I pried into your personal life,” she said, her eyes downcast.

      Great, Thorn thought. Now the entire hotel will think I’m cheating on my wife of one day. “You don’t understand,” he began, but then he dropped it. What was the use? When this was over, he’d just have to stay away from the Otter Point Inn for a while. But after the confrontation he envisioned with Natalie tonight, he doubted very much that he would want to come again anyway.

      Back in the lobby, he cornered Alfred and arranged for a picnic and a couple of Boogie boards and wet suits to be delivered to his car. Then he took the elevator back to his room. Instinct told him what he needed was some sort of physical activity to make the time pass, to take his mind off what was to come. For a second he wondered if all his plans would blow up in his face—maybe Alex was as cautious about the water and the sun on her skin as Natalie was, but somehow he doubted it. Still, he’d skip the details until it was too late for her to back out.

      

      Alex spent the time alone in the room to move her maidof-honor dress and the truss to the empty closet where Thorn wouldn’t have to constantly see them. She was just getting out of the shower when she heard a loud knock on the bathroom door. After wrapping herself in a towel,