From a sitting position in the backseat of a vehicle with smooth leather seats, Cassidy tried to rub her forehead—her arms were too heavy and she heard the clink of metal. She cautiously opened her eyes and saw the handcuffs around her wrists.

She blinked at the fast-moving trees beyond the car’s window—was she moving? Cassidy didn’t recognize the black leather interior of the vehicle—an SUV. The same one that had plowed into her limo? “Where am I?”

The driver coughed and Cassidy stared at the blonde, blue-eyed woman in the driver’s rearview mirror. Lucinda. Instantly the crash replayed in her mind. Lucinda had won. She must have stopped the wedding.

The model’s pretty face wore a snarl no magazine would print. “Nice, at the moment, but that’s just for the night.”

This didn’t make sense. Lucinda could have any man she set her sights on. She didn’t need Remy. As a supermodel, she was so beautiful that any noble or rich man would want her. She had more options than Cassidy might even imagine. She leaned forward and saw her cell phone between the front seats. “Lucinda, taking me out of Avce won’t win Remy back.”

She laughed but stayed focused on the road. “He must marry within weeks. If you’re no longer the safe bet, then he’ll return to me. He doesn’t have many choices.”

Cassidy’s handcuffs rattled, so she kept them as still as possible, but her gaze returned to the phone that fell between the seats. If she had a way to reach Remy, he’d get her out of this. “This isn’t how to find a husband. Look, I’m good at matchmaking. I found the royals their brides, the Duke of Oakley his bride—give me a computer and five minutes and I can find out who your true love is.”

A scoff echoed through the car as Cassidy kicked her foot forward and tried to drag the phone backwards. “True love is a joke for people like you.”

Her hands went to her heart like she was offended but she stayed close. “Like me? I planned to marry a man I grew up with, Lucinda. Remy and I were never about love.”

“Yet you slept with him.” Lucinda upturned her lips like she was disgusted as she answered fast.

How did Lucinda know that? She swallowed and reached down to the floor to swipe the phone as she asked, “Would you marry a man you couldn’t have sex with?”

Lucinda shook her head like Cassidy was a child. “Sex is the way a woman controls a man.”

“Wait, what?” Cassidy sat on the phone. With luck, Lucinda wouldn’t notice what happened to it.

Lucinda met her gaze through the driver’s mirror. “If he desires what you do for him in bed, then a man is yours for the taking. Didn’t your mother teach you that?”

Her cynical view was sad. Love existed—she’d found proof in her royal matches. Cassidy kept the conversation going so Lucinda never suspected anything, even though the phone was warm under her thigh. “My mother married my father. Why would I listen to her on men?”

“Fair point.” She reached across the seat for her pocketbook. “It’s time for you to sleep.” Was she reaching for another needle?

Her heart beat fast. There had to be a way out of this situation. She jolted backward in her seat but met Lucinda’s gaze in the mirror. She needed to appear fine and use the phone away from her gaze. She moved her leg so she could reach underneath when she wasn’t looking as she said, “No wait. I’ll be quiet. I swear. In a way, you saved me from marrying a man who didn’t love me.”

Lucinda rolled her eyes. “Shut up.”

She leaned closer as the phone wiggled between her legs. “No, I mean it, Lucinda. I’d like for us to be friends.”

Lucinda gripped the wheel and her nose wrinkled. “You promised to be quiet.”

“Like a mouse,” Cassidy agreed though she had so many questions, like what Lucinda planned. Her questions mattered less than getting out of here.

She sat there for minutes without daring to move. Lucinda acted like she was completely in control of everything as she drove forward. She slowly slipped her hands to her lap and kept her legs as a buffer so Lucinda couldn’t see what she did. She quickly searched the phone for info and copied it to her text. Remy, the IP address of this phone is fe80::5efe:173.117.187.133 and the DNS Server is 68.28.58.92 68.28.50.91. We’re past Nice but on the move.

“What are you doing?” Lucinda asked.

She slipped the phone under her thigh and let out a dramatic sigh. “Looking out the window. Can I talk?”

Lucinda then said, “Yeah, I don’t like when you’re that quiet.”

At least she had hope now. The road was sparse of much traffic. “So, are we heading to Paris to find alternatives to Remy? If so, I ran the computer program for my sister Chelsea and there is supposedly a wine grower near Nice that is her true love.”

A laugh echoed through the SUV. “You honestly believe in that fairy tale, don’t you?”

For other people. For her own life, she didn’t get her hopes up. Remy would never love her and she knew it, but she smiled and nodded. “Yes. I always wanted to find the one guy who was supposed to love me.”

Lucinda turned around. “Then why did you change so much for Remy?”

Her hair? The makeup? Okay, the makeup was dramatic today, but she’d intended to get married. “I did it for Gigi.”

Lucinda’s face softened slightly as if she finally understood Cassidy’s motivation. “You were always at the house like a squirrel, talking to that battle axe.”

Gigi hadn’t liked any of Remy’s girlfriends in years, including Lucinda. She often complained about them. Cassidy chose to keep that to herself. She leaned forward again. “She’s like my own grandma. Mine died years ago during the Russian takeover saving Gigi and Remy.”

“You really are like family to him,” Lucinda said and the car skidded a little. A curl fell near her ear and she shivered. Nice was further north and it was winter now. There must be ice on the road, as they were heading north. In her borrowed gray sweats and white button down shirt, she wasn’t dressed for inclement weather. The pearls in her hair were at odds with her clothes, she’d never met anyone who might see hair pearls as some sort of money to use as bartering. But she could try if she had to. “I had no idea.”

Lucinda regained control of her SUV.

Cassidy sat back and nodded fast to encourage Lucinda’s trust which might allow her to lower her guard. “Yes, he said I was the closest thing he had to a sister.”

“All men are idiots,” Lucinda said, like they were best friends now. Cassidy began to relax but then Lucinda’s voice became more edgy. “Before or after you had sex with him?”

Her face went red. They were not friends—Lucinda had drugged her, handcuffed her, and kidnapped her. “Before. It fueled why I felt I had to do it.”

Lucinda made a tsk sound in her throat like she clearly didn’t believe her as she said, “The night before your wedding?”

There was no way to escape Lucinda’s questions. Cassidy lowered her eyes. “How did you know?”

“I still have a video camera in his room.”

Her gaze shot up. Seriously? Who would do that? There was so much she wanted to say about that but all she managed was, “Why?”

“I’m going to marry Remington.” She answered like it was her destiny.

No man was worth kidnapping another person over. She held her thought and said instead, “He didn’t seem too interested the other day when you came by.”

The steering wheel began to shake uncontrollably as the car skidded on ice. “He’ll be desperate soon.”

The SUV jerked and spun out on the road.

“Watch out!” Cassidy said, with almost no hope to save herself, but held onto the seat in front of her to block any glass.

Her entire body shook as the car thundered into a tree next to the road. Cassidy braced and held her entire body tight as she heard the crack of tree limbs and metal all around her.

Then stillness ruled. Cassidy sat straighter once she could and saw Lucinda bleeding on her forehead. Cassidy unbuckled her seat belt and reached for Lucinda’s pocketbook. She found the keys to the handcuffs and unlocked herself. “Are you okay, Lucinda?”

Lucinda didn’t say anything. Cassidy quickly flipped through Lucinda’s bag and wallet for a clue on her plan, but she didn’t find anything. Lucinda moaned, and Cassidy’s pulse raced. Once she was free, she picked up the phone and quickly checked her wallet. She needed money if she wanted food or anything else, so she took the little cash that was there, but left the credit cards.

Lucinda still didn’t move but another moan meant she was alive. Cassidy opened her door—it was time to run before Lucinda came to. “Well, it’s been real, but I’m going.”

She ran through the thin strip of green trees that lined the highway and found a small side road. She’d have to find a house or a restaurant or something, but she kept her pace as fast as she could. She slowed down to text, Remy, please find me. I’m alone on a road in the South of France.

I’m flying there now. Remy texted back. Keep the phone. She could breathe easier though she could see her breaths as her feet in her tennis shoes numbed. Now all she needed was shelter or a place to hide to wait for Remy.

She texted back, Lucinda kidnapped me. Hurry.

Remy knew everything. Soon, she’d get out of this mess. She rubbed her arms to keep the gnawing bitter cold at bay and ignored the goosebumps on her bare legs.

Once she was home, she’d hug her parents, Remy, Gigi and even Chelsea. A shiver rushed through her and her skin turned bluish from the gusty winds whipping her body. The memory of Remy’s hot kisses last night had to be enough to keep her heart warm or she might die from exposure.