“You mean I should leave without doing the job that I was hired to do? “
Bonnie felt a little uncertain with him glaring at her like that, but she said nothing.
“I did get the impression you could handle yourself in almost any situation. Look at how well you took care of those drunkards? You didn’t even get bruised, and there were three of them.” He said in a tone laced with sarcasm.
“I know what you are trying to do, and it’s not going to work. I did need your help, but I managed to lay one of them low.” Bonnie said, absolutely proud of herself.
“That was after I showed up”
She could feel the blush starting at her hairline and traveling down to cover her entire face.
“Yes, well…”
He seemed to give up. One minute he was rigid, his posture so imposing she had to use all her willpower not to cower. Then suddenly, he was idly rubbing his forehead. “Let’s get out of here first.”
Bonnie hesitated. “Where to?” she asked.
He gave her a puzzled look, “Well, you didn’t plan to spend the night here, Miss Rimmer. Did you?”
“Of course not, Mr Stewart. I might not know this place as well as you do but I’m not crazy”
“David…” he corrected.
“David…” she continued. “Not that I’m doubting your story, but I can't go anywhere with you before I confirm what you said. I have to call my father”
David shrugged. “Suit yourself” he said, “I’m sure he will be happy to hear from you, but you can call him from the car. It’s getting really late and we have to get the hell out of here.” Bonnie made no attempt to move so he added. “Relax, Princess, if I meant to hurt you, I would have done that already.”
She frowned at being called that , but he was right, Bonnie thought. She had been alone with him for quite some time, and although he looked intimidating, there was something about him that made her feel safe. It was weird, but she still had to make that call.
He pointed at the door. “Ladies first” he said with a smirk.
Bonnie rolled her eyes and reached for the door knob, but he took her arm and led her out of the store room. “I wonder where you have been crashing all this time. I’ll bet you are staying in a fancy hotel or in a big place with plenty of rooms, aren't you?” He chuckled and Bonnie eyed him with a wary frown. She wasn’t certain how much she should tell him about herself even if she knew he probably knew a lot…if not everything about her.
“I have enough space, I suppose.” She replied.
He asked abruptly, “How did you get here….i mean after you ran out on your wedding”
Wow, straight to the point, Bonnie thought, memories of what was supposed to be one of the happiest days of her life flooding back. It had taken a lot to make the decision to run away. To disappoint her entire family and to walk away from everything she knew and was familiar with. She didn’t want to talk about it, so she said, “Actually, I took the public transport. Took a while to get here but as you know, I didn’t have enough time to take my car with me.”
Another chuckle. “No doubt. What did you drive, anyway? A Rolls…Yeah…Probably would be very hard to drive around in that thing without getting noticed…and you didn’t, want that, did ya?”
The mockery of her situation wasn’t funny to her, but she was determined not to let him get under her skin, so she shook her head. “Of course not.”
“So?” He pulled her out the door and into the brisk night. “What do you tool around in now?”
“Tool around? I take the bus, just like other people. Trying to blend in.”
“Ah.”
“What does that mean? Ah?” She asked.
He was moving her along again, treating her like a dog on a leash. And with his long-legged stride, it was all she could do to keep up. He stopped near a back alley, and Bonnie realized they were at the rear of the bar. “Why didn’t we just go out the back door instead of walking all the way around?”
“’Ah’ means your choice of transportation shouldn’t surprise me. And we came this way so I could spare you from being harassed. Believe me, the men at the back would have a field day with an innocent like you. They are probably friends with those men I saved you from…And you ask too many questions.”
Don’t ask. Don’t ask, but still Bonnie found herself saying; “What makes you believe I’m an innocent?”
David didn’t reply, but simply gave her a look that suggested that the answer to her question was obvious. Bonnie decided to ignore that look.
Scared that her phone would be tracked, she had decided not to replace her sim and phone that she had left in her hurry to get away from her wedding, but now that she had been found the jig was up. “Can I use your phone to call my dad?” she asked.
He passed it to her without saying a word and Bonnie dialed the number. She wasn’t surprised to see that he had her father’s number saved on his phone. Her call was answered on the third ring, and the next voice she heard was her dad’s.
“Please tell me you found her for real this time” Robert said.
Bonnie sighed and rolled her eyes. “Yes, dad. He found me. Are you happy?”
There was a pause, then he said, “Is that you, honey”, but before she could reply, he was calling out to her mother. “Honey, it’s Bonnie. She’s on the phone”
“Baby, are you alright?” he asked her.
Hearing the relief and anxiety in his voice, Bonnie felt so sorry and ashamed of herself for putting her family through so much pain. It had never been her intention to cause them pain, but the desire to leave that day had been so strong. It was something she just had to do. Anything was better than being married to Prince Marcus. It had not been easy, but now that she was out, she knew that she had made the right decision, and she wasn’t going back--Not until she was ready. She just hoped that they would understand.