Have a Little Faith by Kadi Dillon Page B

and thought her spine had snapped. Before she could even catch her breath, he had her by the shirt, yanked her up, and slammed her against it again.
    “Take your fu cking circus back to California,” s he heard him say through the roaring in her ears before he released her abruptly. She sunk to the ground and shook violently. S he heard the start of his rusty, old engine.
    It physically hurt to push air in and out of her lungs. Her chest ached from the attempts to catch her breath. Because she felt like weeping, she let out a stream of curses while she attempted, and failed to stand up. Giving in, she laid her back against the hard ground and peered up to the bright , blue sky for a moment.
    When she began to feel her back again, Alex sat up. It infuriated her that tears were streaming down her face. She wiped at them furiously.
    It had been years since she had been physically hurt by a man. Her father had left her alone since the day Faith died. Not so much as ten words had passed between them since that day almost seven years ago. And Alex liked him the better for it.
    She walked stiffly over to Joy. Her entire back side protested as she mounted her and the pain intensified as she took her home in an easy trot.
     
    Lane’s mood had not improved when he walked into the house a little before six. One thing Lane didn’t mind was disgruntle members of the communities where his company built their parks , but it wasn’t something he should have been worrying about on his wedding day.
    Yet, his wife treated their wedding day as if it were any other day of the week. Not that he could rightfully blame her, h e mused. He had made it a point several times to establish their union as strictly business.
    The thought cr ossed his mind that he might in deed have hurt her feelings by referring to their marriage as business. He doubted they would even be married had he told her he wanted her to be his wife because he felt for her more than he had his first wife. Well, he decided as he walked up the stairs, it was time they had a talk and time that she opened up to him.
    Lane knocked on Alex’s bedroom door and waited. When she opened the door , he could only stare. She wore a black dress that stopped above her knees and hooked around her neck, leaving her creamy shoulders bare. Her long , ebony hair was curled in loose spirals down her back and over her shoulders.
    “You look—” H e trailed off when he couldn’t find the proper words .
    Alex shifted nervously and reached over to grab her purse. “You said you’d made reservations so I assumed it was formal.”
    “It is. I need to go change.” He took a step over the threshold to her room and touched the tips of her hair. “You look stunning.”
    “Thank you.”
    “Ten minutes,” he promised and strolled down the hall into the guest room.
    Within an hour, Lane was sliding in across the table from Alex in the corner booth of the nicest restaurant in the city. He ordered a bottle of wine that had the waiter ginning like a fool. They both ordered their meal and Lane took her hand, caressing her fingers in an absent gesture that sent her heart racing.
    “I booked us a room here tonight. Kind of like a honeymoon.”
    “You did? Here? ”
    “Yes. Well, at a hotel.” He chuckled lightly. “ And I’ve already got Jack on all the chores you do in the morning so you’re not to worry about anything.”
    “I don’t have clothes.” She had to wor ry about something.
    “You won’t need them.”
    “Oh.”
    The waiter brought a bottle of pale wine and popped the cork. After tasting and approving, he left them alone again. Lane poured for Alex and smiled when she delighted in the taste. “It’s my favorite,” he told her sipping from his own glass.
    “It’s wonderful. I feel like a queen or something. Everyone is staring at us.” Because it made her self-conscious, Alex studied the desert menu.
    “We’re probably the richest couple here. People are