Page 18 of Wanted by the Lawman

CHAPTER 6

WYNN WOKE UP feeling stressed. The mattress had more popping springs than a bed in a whorehouse, and just like everything else in the old place, it either needed replaced, remodeled, or trashed. She’d have to replace the bed because sleep wasn’t a luxury, but a necessity. Back in her youth she could stay up for hours, get a few winks and get up refreshed and ready to hit the day. These days, eight hours were mandatory. Back then though, she could also eat all the chocolate, ice cream, and pasta she wanted, but those days were over too. She didn’t mind being on the voluptuous side but being healthy mattered.

This morning required more than fifteen minutes of stretches before she ate oatmeal and fresh berries. Thankfully, the local corner market did have a decent selection of organic, healthy foods. She had a vision of a large garden out back, that was if she lasted the winter here in Crooked Creek, Wyoming.

Surprisingly, she hadn’t seen her neighbor since he’d dropped off the heaters and pile of wood. Mysteriously, a furnace man showed up the next day and then a truckload of cut wood. Although she couldn’t prove Zander had anything to do with either, she would go out on a limb and say he had considering the furnace man gave her a deal she couldn’t refuse. She hoped Mr. Sexypants didn’t get the wrong idea. She remembered how Rory would do sweet gestures for her and she’d fallen like a love lost penguin. Well, she wouldn’t go down like that ever again. A man, if she ever met a trusting one, would have to see her as a woman who could stand on her own two feet.

Not bothering to dress, she went in search of the best “zen” place in the house. The last bedroom down the hall was her grandma’s old craft room. There, she cleared out a spot by the large window and spread the blanket on the floor. Clicking on the dusty radio, she found the classical music station and dropped to the blanket in a cross-legged position. Extending her arms to the sky, relieving some tension in her back, she slowly dipped to one side for a count of ten. Then repeated the action on the other. Dropping her palms to the floor, she eased her upper body over her legs and stretched. She stayed in this position, focusing on even breathing as she released more tension from her sore body.

She got a cramp in her side, but she ignored the ache.

What was wrong with her?

Eventually, she was able to zone out, connecting with tranquility…

And then she heard faint barking from Susie-Q.

Wynn grimaced but didn’t remove herself from the position. Focusing on the soft melodic tune playing from the radio, she imagined herself on an island, surrounded by clear, blue water. The warm breeze wafting over her skin. The sun’s heated fingers caressing her skin. A scent of leather and man. An image of Zander took shape. Three years ago, she would have been caught up in his beautiful, come-hither blue eyes, a smile bracketed with the deepest dimples and charm that could probably make her laugh even when she was sad. Now she was a woman who’d been scorned.

Feeling her inner thighs tremble, she shifted on the blanket and inhaled for five and released for five, yet the relief didn’t make it to her center.

Groaning, she pushed her neighbor out of her mind.

Bark. Bark.

Holly Hell.

She wondered why Susie-Q was barking. Did Zander let her out?

Was he even home? It seemed he came and went like the wind.

Who took care of the dog while he worked?

Why did her back ache? Why did her foot itch?

She sneezed.

Wonder how much a mattress would cost? She really missed the luxurious bed at home. Scratch that. New York was no longer her home. Maybe one day she could have a nice mattress again. It didn’t matter. She didn’t have the money now.

Grrr.

Her inner peace was playing hide-and-seek this morning.

Sitting up, she twisted at the waist…1-2-3-4…

Bark. Bark.

Her patience dwindled.

5-6-7-8…

Shit!

Yoga was supposed to be calming. Standing, she stabbed the power button on the radio and stepped over to the window that faced Zander’s house. His place was the only nearby neighbor. Did he work on Saturday? What did he do for a living? She’d noticed that he had a man working with the horses yesterday.

Pulling back the thin curtain, she peered out, scanning the house, porch, then the front and back yard, finding nothing out of the ordinary. She could see the horses gathering close to the red barn. About to drop the drape back into place, movement caught her attention. Susie-Q bounced into the yard, taking off across the snow after a ball. Wynn smiled and then it struck her…who threw the ball? And then she saw him. The muse of her recent fantasies. Zander Cade. She was busily taking in how nice his jeans fit, crawling her gaze upward over the glint of the belt buckle to broad chest that the checked button down barely covered to clean-shaven jaw and eyes that were looking right at her. Shit! Stepping back so fast, she almost tripped in her haste.

She brought her hands to her mouth, her heart thudding hard against her ribs as she speculated if he saw her. Naked. Staring. Shit! Shit!

---