He changed the subject.“Did you reload the shotgun?”
“What?”
“My mother’s shotgun wasn’t loaded the last time I visited.I took out the shells.Did you reload it?”
“Yes.”
“Why?To shoot coyotes?”
She didn’t answer.
“I don’t want her to have access to a loaded gun.”
“I need it for protection,” she blurted.
“From me?”
“No,” she said quietly.“I’m not afraid of you.”
Before he could ask the next logical question, she turned and fled.He followed her outside but didn’t try to catch her.He watched in silence as she ran into the house to escape him.Then he turned the lights off in the barn, disturbed by her reaction.Women didn’t usually treat him like the plague, and it wasn’t a pleasant experience.Mary’s opinion mattered to him.He wanted to get to know her better.He wanted to go to bed with her, too.He couldn’t believe she’d walked in on him sniffing her soap like it was a pair of her damned panties.She probably thought he was a total creep.
He returned to the living room floor, his mind in turmoil.Lying down, he stared into the night and took steady breaths.Although the release he’d been seeking hadn’t come, he was able to relax his muscles and summon calm.
To his surprise, he fell into a deep and dreamless sleep.
Chapter Ten
Meredith successfully avoidedWade the following morning.
She woke early, ate a cold breakfast, and started doing chores.She didn’t want to meet his eyes over a cup of coffee, or bump into him on the way to the bathroom.After their awkward conversation last night, she didn’t want to see him at all.She couldn’t even think about him without blushing.
She went straight to the chicken coop, which was due for a good cleaning.Raking out muck would cure her of sexy thoughts.It would scrub her mind of the memory of Wade Hendricks in the barn.When she’d seen the light in the window, she’d gone out to investigate.She hadn’t expected to find him with a visible erection.She wasn’t shocked by his condition so much as tempted to explore his hard body.
This was why she had to avoid him altogether.The urge to shove him against the nearest surface and kiss him was overwhelming.
She shooed the chickens into the yard, collected eggs, and cleaned the coop from top to bottom.Then she visited Bonnie and Clyde, who were in high spirits.It was a warm day, almost eighty degrees before eight o’clock.After she fed the goats, she watered the garden.Chico accompanied her on this task.He had a sunny spot in the corner, in one of the raised beds, where he liked to curl up and nap.
The lavender was ready to harvest, so she left the garden and went to get her clippers from the tool shed.As she walked that direction, Chico trotting close behind, she spotted Wade coming in from a bike ride.
It was too late to run or hide, so she stood very still and hoped he wouldn’t notice her.Instead of putting his bike away on the front porch, he hopped off and drove it toward the tool shed.He was shirtless, wearing only a pair of loose-fitting running shorts.His tawny hair appeared damp, clinging to the nape of his neck, and his chest muscles glistened with sweat.Her mouth went dry at the sight.
And Chico raced forward to bark at his heels.
Wade ignored the dog but spotted her—of course.He acknowledged her with a sardonic salute and continued into the shed.Meredith flushed to the roots of her hair.He’d caught her staring at him, admiring him from afar.He put his bike away and left without speaking to her.Chico returned to her side, his little tail wagging.He’d made a valiant, but unsuccessful, effort to bite Wade’s ankle.
“You are not a good boy,” she said, pointing her finger at him.
Chico rolled in the dirt, unconcerned.
Meredith strode into the shed to grab her clippers and hat.She worked in the garden until the sun was high overhead.
At lunchtime, she took a break and went inside the house.It was cool and quiet.Wade must have gone to work, and Wynona hadn’t emerged from her room yet.She could sleep all day if she was in a dark mood.Meredith ate a sandwich and ducked into the office to use Wynona’s computer.She’d been meaning to check the internet for news of Tripp.Keeping tabs on him helped relieve her anxiety.
Meredith went incognito mode before entering search terms.She typed the way she wrote, slowly and with great difficulty.Tripp’s official website wasn’t hard to find, however.He had a team of publicists to manage his social media platforms.According to the home page, Tripp was on the East Coast.His spring tour had sold out tickets at every venue, and his latest single, “Poison Rose,” topped the country music charts.
She didn’t begrudge Tripp’s success.She only hoped it kept him too busy to come after her again.Of course, he had people for that, too.He employed several bodyguards and handlers.He didn’t have to hunt her down and capture her with his own hands.
Closing that tab, she entered another set of terms.MISSING KANSAS WOMAN.This search hadn’t yielded anything related to Meredith before.Today, it did.When she clicked on the first link, the screen filled with a high-resolution photo of herself.Her old self, with tousled hair and smoky eyes, in a flashy silver tank top.She looked thin, almost brittle, and her smile masked a thousand hurts.
