Chapter Ten
Meredith successfully avoided Wade 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.
Meredith wanted to click away, to deny the pain of this image.
She didn’t, because she had to read the caption first. She needed to know who was looking for her, and if the police were involved.
She squinted at the short block of text under the image.
She zoomed in and attempted to sound out every word.
Meredith Rose, from Plainview, Kansas, has been … missing by a family … Her last known … was in Memphis, Tennessee. She is thought to have joined a … group in the Ozarks which recently…
“Mary?”
Meredith slammed the laptop shut and sprang up from the chair. She’d been so intent on deciphering the article that she hadn’t heard Wynona approach. The woman was standing in the open doorway with a coffee mug.
“What’s wrong?” Wynona asked.
“Nothing.”
“You look like a goose walked over your grave.”
Meredith ran a shaky hand through her hair. She couldn’t think of an excuse for her jumpiness, so she stayed silent.
Wynona clearly had other things on her mind, because she didn’t pry. She swept inside the room, set her coffee mug on the desk, and drew a cell phone from her back pocket. “Wade sent me a text earlier.”
Meredith sank into the chair again. Her knees felt weak. “Oh?”
She referred to the screen. “It says, ‘Please have Mary make room for me in the barn. I can sleep there and stay out of your way.’”
Meredith, whose heart was still pounding from the close call, didn’t respond.
“Is that passive-aggressive?” Wynona asked. “Is he trying to guilt-trip me because I asked him to move?”
“You asked him to move?”
“Well, he can’t sleep in the living room. It’s indecent.”
Meredith made a noncommittal sound. Wade wasn’t parading around naked, and she didn’t have delicate sensibilities, but his presence had definitely caused a disturbance. Putting him farther away from the house couldn’t hurt. Out of sight, out of mind.
“I told him he was making you uncomfortable.”
Her mouth dropped open. “Why would you say that?”
“Isn’t it true?”
Meredith moistened her lips, uncertain. She didn’t think it was fair to blame Wade for the chemistry between them. He’d kissed her, sure—but she’d kissed him back. “It’s more of a mutual discomfort.”
Wynona studied her in quiet contemplation. “Hmm.”
“I can handle him,” Meredith said. “I don’t need your help.”
“Just be careful.”
“Why? Is he a womanizer?”
“I’m not sure,” she said, tapping her chin with a fingertip.
“I think he plays the field, and he’s always been too handsome for his own good.
I imagine women have come easily to him, like everything else.
Billy used to complain that he couldn’t bring a girlfriend over when Wade was home because they all preferred him. ”
“He wants to be a better son to you,” Meredith said.
Wynona let out a sarcastic laugh. “Is that what he said?”
“Not in so many words, no.”
“He doesn’t care about our relationship. He just wants to say he made an effort before he gives up on me.”
“Maybe you’re judging him too harshly.”
Wynona gave her a sharp look. “Don’t you have work to do?”
“Yes, ma’am,” Meredith said in a cheeky tone.
There was an index card on the corner of the desk with soap orders for the week. She grabbed it on her way out. She needed to make a fresh batch of “Rambling Rose” and move some things around in the barn.
As soon as she stepped inside, the pleasant aroma of soap ingredients greeted her.
Several months ago, Meredith had cleared most of the junk from the barn to make space for her workshop.
She continued the task of organizing and consolidating supplies.
Wynona’s boxes of antiques were transferred to the basement.
Meredith carefully avoided the broken step, making a note to repair it.
She moved some equipment into the tool shed.
While she was there, she remembered a few items she’d stashed inside.
There was a microwave and a minifridge, remnants of a former inhabitant.
She carried both to the barn, along with a metal garden chair, two wooden pallets to serve as a bed platform, and a small dresser for his clothes.
She scrubbed every item to a shine, swept the floor clean, and stood back to survey her work.
It wasn’t a five-star hotel, but it would suffice. He could be comfortable here.
Before she left, she spotted a single square of soap on the worktable. It was Rambling Rose, the kind she used.
It smells like you.
She approached the table and swept her thumb over the bar’s smooth surface.
Had he planned to use a soapy hand to touch himself last night?
She could imagine that all too easily. She’d done it herself, plenty of times.
Instead of tossing the soap into a nearby bin, she placed it in the top drawer of the dresser, like a gift. Or an invitation.
Cheeks flaming, she shoved open the door of the barn and almost ran into Wynona. Meredith tried to close the door behind her, but Wynona pushed through. She studied the space with a keen eye.
“Isn’t this cozy,” she said, sounding irritated. “He’ll never leave.”
“You wanted him off the couch.”
“I need a ride to town,” Wynona declared. “I’m going out.”
“Why don’t we stay in and watch a movie?”
Wynona was already dressed for a night on the town. She wore a denim skirt with cowboy boots and a lacy white top. “It’s Billy’s birthday.”
Meredith’s heart broke for Wynona. “Okay. I’ll come with you.”
“As long as you don’t wear that.” Wynona gestured to Meredith’s dusty clothes. “You can borrow a dress from me.”