Janine clutched the armrests on the airplane seat as the tiny plane touched the ground and took her first deep breath in three hours. Not that she’d been counting. She’d been too nervous to even let go of the seat. This was only her second time in an airplane and the first time in one this tiny. She hoped she’d never have to do it again.

The plane slowed to a stop then the door on the side opened and she knew it was time to get up. It took her a moment, but she took a deep breath, picked up her handbag and stood. She wasn’t sure what kind of life she was walking into, but she was pretty sure it had to be better than the one she’d left behind. Besides. Mrs. Creed had promised her that her new husband wouldn’t abuse her. Though Janine did wonder at some of the stipulations of the contract. No parties, no guests, no travel. Janie was more than okay with them, she’d been fearing having to dress perfectly and be a society hostess when she’d signed on with the agency, but somehow, they seemed to have found something that fit her inclinations. She was happy to have a safe home and be a homebody. Nothing more needed. Mrs. Creed had personally promised her that she’d had this man thoroughly checked out. He was nothing like what she’d left behind.

She stepped off the plane and squinted as she looked around, wishing she had a pair of sunglasses, then shook her head. There was nothing around. The plane had landed on a long stretch of bare ground surrounded by grass and…nothing.

Her shoulders fell and she wondered if her groom had changed his mind. She should have known the offer had been too good to be true. She was about to turn and climb the stairs in to the dreaded tiny aircraft when the pilot appeared at the door.

“Ms. Hamilton?” He frowned. “Is something wrong?”

“There’s no one here. It appears I’ve been forgotten.” She scanned the edge of the narrow dirt airfield again. Sure enough, no one had shown up in the last two minutes.

“There’s a pickup on the other side of the jet.”

“Oh. Thank you.” Now she felt like a total idiot.

“Give me just a moment and I’ll have your bag.”

“Thank you.” She waited while the man who had flown the craft she hated unloaded her bag then, dragging her bag behind her, she walked around the small jet. Sure enough, there it was. A pickup. It wasn’t quite what she’d been expecting, given the level of luxury she’d lived in in Dallas, and the plane she’d just climbed off from, but it looked much more like what she’d grown up with. Though it too was years newer than what her mother had driven. With a deep breath, she steeled herself to meet the man she was to marry and dragged her suitcase as she closed the distance.

It wasn’t until she was fifteen feet from the truck she realized it was strange that no one had gotten out to meet her. She was close enough to touch the bumper when the driver’s door opened and a man wearing hoodie got out. The hood was pulled over his face and his head lowered so she couldn't’ tell anything about him, not even his age.

“Janine Hamilton?” The voice was low and honeyed as he asked her name.

“Yes.”

“Is that your only bag?”

“For now. They said they’d ship the rest.”

“Fine. Less to ship back if you decide you can’t stay.”

“Why would I do that?” She frowned, wondering why he wouldn’t look at her.

“Can you live looking at this every day?” He lifted his head and flipped back the hood revealing his face.

The first thing she noticed were his bright blue eyes. There was something sad in them that spoke to her. It took her several seconds to realize he wasn’t talking about that though. The right side of his face was mottled with healed scars. It looked like he’d been cut in several places, and perhaps had lost chunks in some places.

I wonder how much easier it is to have your scars on the outside where everyone can see you’re damaged?

She wondered how much pain he’d gone through. How much it had hurt when he’d been injured and how long it had taken to heal. Janie knew she needed to say something. Or he was going to send her back. What would happen if she were rejected before they’d even said hello? She didn’t want to find out.

“All I see is someone strong enough to survive.” Survival was something she understood. It was what she’d done for years. Now, she was learning to live, to enjoy things but still, some days it was just about survival. She didn’t want to look too long, because it would seem like she was staring, and she knew how that felt. At the same time, she couldn’t look away too soon or he would think she couldn’t take it and would send her away. She stood there, waiting, one hand still wrapped around her suitcase handle as she wondered how long this would go on.

“All right,” he said after what seemed like hours. “Give me that.” He stepped forward and reached for the bag and she caught sight of the back of his right hand. It was just a glimpse, but enough to know that his face wasn’t all that was scarred. “Get in and we’ll get this done.” He took her bag and she did as he instructed, walked around to the far side of the truck, climbing into the passenger’s side as he loaded her suitcase into the bed. She couldn’t help but be glad he took care of it because it was heavy enough she could pull it okay but lifting it was almost impossible.

She settled into the seat, buckled her seatbelt and folded her hands in her lap. Looking at the interior of the truck she realized it was nicer than she’d thought from the outside. The man who she was to marry climbed up in the seat and turned the key without even looking at her. She was okay with that. She knew her appearance was merely average.

“Let’s get this over with, shall we?” He glanced in her direction for a split second before the truck lurched into motion.

He seemed to not want to do this, but if that was true, then why did he send for her? Why had he contracted with a company to find him a wife?