Why not Wyoming? (Wyoming Wilds Series Book 1) (13 page)

“And yet here you are,” Annie said before she could stop
herself.

CJ frowned at her quizzically.

“Luckily for me, working at the TV station meant it wasn’t too
difficult to get in. Are things frosty with the rest of the family again? It’s
not like our aunt to miss something like this, and Crystal is usually your
taller, prettier shadow.”

Annie ignored the jab, but CJ sat up straighter.

“Crystal is on her honeymoon, but then you knew that.”

“We’re not going to get into this again, are we? I wasn’t considered
important enough to be a member of the wedding party. Why should I change my
plans to attend her hoedown?”

“The wedding was in a stunning ski lodge, Angie. Not a barn.”

“And you’re always going to stand up for her.”

“Yeah, probably. Now, is there something you actually want or
are you just here to discuss our family dysfunction?”

“Since I seem to have fallen off your Christmas list, I thought
I’d pick up a book and get it signed. It could be worth something someday.”

Biting her tongue, Annie took the book from her cousin’s hands
and signed it.

“Always a pleasure, Angie.”

“Normally I’d have been a little hurt that I didn’t know you
were seeing someone, but then the whispers are that no one knew about him.
What’s wrong little cousin, are you slumming?”

The touch on her thigh turned into a restraint as she tried to
bolt to her feet. A feral growl rumbled in her chest as Angie flounced off with
a satisfied smirk.

“Wow,” CJ said, looking stunned.

“UnF’ing believable,” Annie mumbled, keeping things PG as
someone else edged up to the table with a tentative smile. 

Rage pounding in her ears, she missed the initial greeting but
managed to smile enough that the poor woman continued.

“So I was wondering if you could share how you craft your
characters without using real people. My sister-in-law was less than flattered
to discover herself in my manuscript.”

“Family can be difficult like that,” Annie muttered and then
took a deep breath, trying to clear her head. “To a degree, I think it’s
impossible for real life not to seep into your writing, but we don’t want to be
sued. Sometimes you have to do more than change the name to protect the not so innocent.
Um … one trick is to make your character a combination of people. When I see
people on the street, at the store, at airports, I’m always wondering what
their story is. My brain starts making one up from the clues that I can see. At
the same time, it’s picking out words to describe them, looking for things that
make them different. I file these, profiles I guess you’d call them, away for
later. When later comes, and the junkie whore character that gets eaten by a
bear shares too much resemblance to my cousin, I blend other details like the
facial piercings on the girl at the drive-thru window.”

CJ snorted and reached for his drink.

“So you really meant it when you said anyone you see could end
up in your books.”

Annie nodded. “Or at least influencing someone in my books.”  

“Thank you so much. I’m going to try that. Do you write the
profiles down or are they just in your head?”

“If someone really strikes me, or if I have snapped a picture
of them, I might make some notes.”

“You take pictures?”

“Not often. That can be a touchy situation. But I was taking
pictures of a lighthouse, and there was an older gentleman sitting on the
rocks. There was something about him. So when I printed the pictures out for my
bulletin board, I printed one of him and tucked it in a notebook with some
scribbles.” She shrugged self-consciously. “These are just things that work for
me.”

“No. I understand. I appreciate you sharing with a beginner
like me. Thank you again.”

Watching the budding writer retreat, Annie sighed and picked up
her fork. A hand landed on her shoulder and she tensed.

“You are really good for her. I’ve never seen her talk so much.
We’ve definitely got to keep you around,” Cami said.

Annie tossed the publicist a look. She was leaning between them
with her other hand on CJ’s shoulder. The next four words were aimed at her.

“Don’t screw this up.”

Funny, she’d been saying the same thing to herself for a week.

“I’m trying. My family isn’t helping.”

“She works for the TV station. It wouldn’t have looked good to
deny her access. At least she didn’t ask for an interview.”

“Hell no,” Annie gritted out. “And if you need a reason, she’s
the weekend weather girl.”

The publicist patted her shoulder. “I think it’s getting close
to someone’s bedtime.”

Annie turned to glare. Cami threw up her hands.

“I’m teasing. Things are winding down. Just hang in here with
me a little while longer. Neal did want to have a word with you before you
bolt. So why don’t you get that out of the way?”

Annie stood, searching out the publishing house bigwig in the
remaining crowd. What was he doing here? They’d exchanged greetings earlier and
she’d smiled through his rah-rah small talk. What could this be about? She
twisted her napkin and looked around for her agent. If it was serious business,
she’d handle it.

“Stop looking like I’m sending you to your death,” Cami chastised,
snatching the napkin away. “The suits are all happy with you. The presale
numbers are fabulous, and if the release goes half as great as I think it will,
you’re going to be earned out in no time.”

“If they’re so sure, what is he doing here?”

“Why should I be the only one that has to venture into the
wilds of Michigan? Until we get you moved to civilization, here we are.”

Shaking her head at her crazy publicist, Annie couldn’t help
wondering what Cami would think of Wyoming. She could picture her wandering
around holding up her ever-present phone looking for a signal. She would
definitely hate it. Annie smirked and opened her mouth to offer CJ another
apology. They hadn’t managed an uninterrupted minute since the elevator. Cami looped
her arm through CJ’s.

“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of your arm candy for a while. Go
talk to Neal and say nice things about me.”

The look on CJ’s face was priceless as Cami led him off. Annie
wondered if it was the arm candy comment or the publicist’s brass that
bewildered him. Cami was an acquired taste, but she was damn good at her job. Working
her way toward the windows where she’d last seen Neal, she took a couple of
deep breaths to settle her nerves.

“There’s the lady of the night,” the executive said raising his
glass.

“Neal!” his companion gasped.  

“Careful what you call me, sir. I don’t write that kind of
books.”

“What?” he asked, looking between Annie and the laughing
brunette standing on his other side.

Trying not to laugh in the face of the man who could crush her
dreams, Annie covered her mouth and gave the sophisticated brunette a pleading
look.

“You just called her a prostitute, darling.”

Neal’s eyes widened in horror, his head already shaking a
denial.

“I’m terribly sorry. Annie. Shit. I just meant that you were … that
this evening was in celebration of your talents. Your literary talents.”

Shaking her head in desperation, Annie clamped her hand tighter
over her mouth and grabbed the back of a chair with the other one in a bid to
stay upright. The other woman leaned on Neal for support.

“Darling, please stop talking,” she gasped. “You’re making it
worse.”

He downed the rest of his drink in a single gulp and looked
around for more. When she could breathe again and was sure her bladder was
going to hold, Annie wiped her eyes and straightened her jacket.

“I’m sorry, Neal. It has been a long day. Can we chalk that up
to jet lag?”

“I heard you got caught up in that blizzard out west and just
made it home today. But I’m the one that needs to apologize for that
unfortunate turn of phrase.”

“Apology accepted,” Annie said, smiling at the snicker from
Neal’s female companion.

He shot her a look but wrapped his arm around her.

“This is my wife, Valarie.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“The pleasure is mine. I’m a big fan of your literary talents,”
Valerie said giving her husband a sidelong look.

“I’m never going to live this down,” Neal groaned.

“Cami said that you needed to talk to me,” Annie said, trying
to cut the poor man a break. Besides, it was better to get things out of the
way while he was still feeling guilty.

“Don’t look so nervous. It’s not business. Valarie wanted to
meet you. See what I get for trying to be a good husband?”

Annie smiled in relief.

“I honestly do love your writing. I just re-read them all. I
was laid-up for a couple of weeks after a nasty fall, and Neal brought home
your entire list with the updated covers. Beautiful, by the way. He said it was
something to keep me occupied, but I think it was subtle sucking up,” Valerie
said.

“I should’ve salted the porch when I left for work,” Neal
confessed.

“Ouch,” Annie said with a wince.

“Anyway, I really was hoping you’d sign my copy of
Mackinac
Monday
so I can add it to my collection. I don’t want to keep you from your
boyfriend. Cami told me that he flew in just for this. What a sweetheart. He
looks like a big teddy bear,” Valerie said handing over the book and leaning
in. “I have to ask, is he the inspiration for those scintillating sex scenes
you write? Is he your muse?”

Annie choked, remembering their flirtatious conversation in the
hall at the lodge. Her eyes sought CJ’s across the room. He was staring right
at her, and that grin was all for her. Valerie didn’t know they were new. What
the hell. “CJ’s always up for research. I couldn’t ask for a sexier muse.”  

Clutching her vase of calla lilies, Annie nudged under the
arm holding the pizza box and snuggled against his side with a shiver. He
dropped a kiss on top of her head. Her place was only a mile or so from the
hotel and just across the Grand River. It was even fancier than he’d expected.
The numbers continued to climb as they ascended into the tower of steel and
glass. The subtle jabs at the party were starting to make more sense.

The apartment they stepped into was about as far from his cabin
as you could get and still be on Earth. Black, white and shades of gray met his
gaze. Annie flipped on the recessed lights. It didn’t get any better. It
felt…almost sterile. Sure there wasn’t a lot of decorative stuff sitting around
his place, but women usually had stuff. He set the pizza and the gift bag from the
party on the sleek island top and traced a finger over a dark vein in the pale
stone as he looked around. Splashes of deep purple struggled to give the place
warmth. A purple and chrome toaster, one of those single cup coffee makers,
eggplant colored stoneware on open kitchen shelves, pillows and a throw blanket
draped over the back of the couch did their best, but nothing about the place
meshed with his vision of Annie.

“Let me take that. I’ll put it in the bedroom,” she said,
sliding his carry-on off his shoulder.

She walked through the living room and disappeared down a hall.
He stepped closer to the floor to ceiling windows. Annie was right, the river
view was pretty. There were some trees and a walking path along the bank, a
welcome reminder of Mother Nature in the big city. He itched to step out on the
tiny eight-by-eight balcony for a breath of fresh air but wasn’t sure if the
door had an alarm. A snow covered table and a couple of comfortable looking
chairs filled the space. He wondered if Annie ever sat out there or
entertained.

The sound of her voice drifted down the hall, but he couldn’t
make out the words. He glanced at pictures and through open doors as he
followed the sound. There was a bathroom in classic black and white. Even the pictures
were black and white as he continued down the hall. A dramatic shot of Crystal.
The serious likeness Annie used on her book cover. A laughing bearded man and a
younger version of Annie, her happiness leaping from the photo to grab CJ’s
attention and heart. Trees surrounded them, giving no hint of where the picture
may have been taken, but this had to be her dad. A couple of closed doors, and
then a picture of Annie and a woman that could only be her mother. It was easy
to see what Annie was going to look like in ten or fifteen years. Arms thrown
around each other’s waist, they stood among jagged rocks and tufts of tall
grass with nothing but water behind them. Annie’s smile was wide and genuine,
not trying to hide her fangs. She was beautiful.

The last door revealed Annie’s boudoir. Another wall of windows
dominated the room making it appear endless. Right now, it was an endless
disaster. It looked like her closet had exploded. Clothes and hangers littered
the floor and dripped off the wrought iron bed that also held his bag and her
open suitcase. Purple and white gauzy material crisscrossed the top of the bed,
creating a latticed canopy before spiraling down the four posts.  More
muttering came from an open door to his right. Annie emerged with an armload of
clothes that she flung at the bed. Half of it landed back on the floor. She
threw her arms up and the words were clear this time.

“Why tonight?”

“Need some help?”

She whirled, nearly tripping over a plastic hanger that had
wrapped around her bare foot. Now dressed in fuzzy lilac pajama bottoms and a
soft long-sleeve t-shirt, this looked like his Annie. Her face flushed a lovely
shade to match the décor.

“You weren’t supposed to see this.”

“You already told me all your grown-up clothes were on the
closet floor.”

“Hearing it and seeing it are two different things,” she said,
leaning over to free her foot.

He picked up a hanger. A slinky black dress dangled from one
strap.

“You don’t have to help.”

“You didn’t have to help with the stalls.”

“Manure is better than this,” she grumbled.

CJ chuckled.

“Besides, I love horses.”

He stepped closer and leaned down to kiss her nape.

“And I love you.”

Her shoulders hunched slightly at the unexpected touch, but a
smile instantly lit her face.

“Chaos and all?” she asked, tilting her head so he could kiss
the side of her neck.

“Mmmm hmm,” he hummed. “At least this room feels like the Annie
I know.”

“My bedroom and the office are the only two rooms I didn’t let
my aunt touch.”

She shivered and leaned back into his chest as he found that
spot behind her ear. He took a deep breath, inhaling her musk body spray. If he
let this go much further the clothes on the bed were going to get really
wrinkled. He nuzzled her ear.

“The sooner we clear the bed off the sooner we can finish
this.”

His words prompted a race to put the room and closet to rights.
Unfortunately, a different hunger won out when they were done. Annie shoved
half a piece of pizza into her mouth and moaned happily.

“Sorry,” she mumbled. “A couple bites of cheesecake and a
crappy piece of fudge weren’t cutting it anymore.”

“You didn’t like the fudge?”

“Oh, the Mackinac fudge is delicious. Just my luck, the one piece
I managed to grab in that madness was some sort of dark chocolate.”

“Not your favorite I take it.”

“It is some sort of blasphemy to spit chocolate out in a
napkin.”

“Mental note made, no dark chocolate,” he said, nodding sagely.

Annie grinned around a mouthful and nodded. “Thank you.”

“You said your aunt decorated your apartment. Would that be
Crystal’s mom?”

“Yeah. Aunt Viv’s an interior designer.” She looked around the
open kitchen and living area. “Apparently bohemian chic isn’t appropriate after
a certain age. So a couple of years ago, she redecorated as a
birthday/Christmas gift. My input was to choose the accent purple.”

Shoving the crust in his mouth and grabbing another piece, CJ
mulled that over. It was a nice gift, but presumptuous and pushy. He shrugged.
That fit with what he’d seen of her family so far.

“So where does this Angie that crashed the party fit into the
family tree?”

“She’s one of the nuts.”

He choked and took a quick drink of his pop. Annie’s grin was
unrepentant.

“I kind of gathered you two weren’t close,” he said dryly.

“You could say that. She’s always been a snooty little bitch
that has to knock other people down to make herself feel better,” she said,
real dislike replacing the teasing. She shook her head. “I know, don’t hold
back. Tell you how I really feel. Um…as far as where she fits in, my dad had
two sisters, Crystal’s mom, Viv, and Angie’s mom, Marilyn. Everyone lives in
the Grand Rapids area.”

“It’s good to have family close by.”

“Sometimes it’s good to have family close by,” Annie corrected.
“When they resent you for something you’d give back in a heartbeat, it’s not so
great.”

Raw pain twisted her features. There weren’t a lot of things
that could cause that visceral of a reaction.

“Blood money,” he muttered mostly under his breath, but she
heard him and nodded.

He didn’t think she was going to say anything more as she
licked pizza sauce off her thumb and looked around for a napkin. Disaster
averted, she sighed.

“My parents’ deaths created some bitterness in the family.
Feelings got hurt. Aunt Marilyn is the oldest. She was offended that Mom and
Dad made Aunt Viv’s husband the executor of their will. My uncle is smart and
level headed. He gets overshadowed sometimes with Viv and Crystal, but he’s a
good guy. Anyway, that was the first slight. The second was naming him and Viv
guardians. It didn’t come to that because I was eighteen, but it was enough that
they were my parents’ choice. Then, my parents weren’t wealthy, but between the
house and stuff, life insurance, and a settlement with the trucking company,
Marilyn thought the family should get something. That bred resentment toward me,
and my uncle, who was just following the terms of the will. At the same time,
they were fighting over which family I was moving in with.”

“No wonder you were feeling overwhelmed and chose to get your
own place,” he said, remembering her confession at the lodge.

“It was a lot to deal with,” she said, picking at the napkin.
“Any real animosity with Angie started then as well. She actually called me lucky.
Like losing both parents at eighteen is hitting the jackpot.”     

CJ shook his head, trying to figure the family out. “Were you
close as kids?”

“Not really. While my grandparents were alive, the family tried
to play at being close. You know, we were there every holiday and got together
in the summer for cookouts. Since we were the only three girls, we ended up
lumped together. Crystal and Angie had more in common. They both competed in
the pageants from the time they were babies. As you’ve seen, they’re both
gorgeous. So, that was a big rivalry, both between them and their moms.”

“They’re not that great.”

“Yeah, because girls that aren’t that great become Miss USA,”
she replied with an eye roll, but leaned over to give him a quick kiss to show
she appreciated the compliment.

“So, what? You had to decide who was the fairest of them all
and Angie drew the short straw?”

Annie laughed. “That wasn’t up to me. Crys obviously did better
at the pageants, winning Miss Michigan and then Miss USA. That pissed off Angie
and Aunt Marilyn who has bragged from day one that Angie’s features are more
symmetrical than Crystal’s. Hell if I know what that means, but I will say
Crystal’s personality is a hundred times better. Angie is just mean.”

“And that’s why she showed up at the party tonight? Just to get
under your skin?”

“Pretty much. If I’d invited her, she’d have dissed me by
saying she had better things to do.”

He rubbed the back of his neck. People like that made no sense.

“Is my family dysfunction giving you a headache?” she asked.

“Not at all. Just thinking it’s her loss.”

“Thanks. And thank you for everything tonight. I still can’t
believe you flew all the way here just to hold my hand.” 

He caught her hand and drew her into his lap.

“I’m glad I did. I loved listening to you talk about what you
do. Your love of writing shone through and you forgot you were in a crowd.”

“Cami said you’re good for me.”

“No one, not even you, gives you enough credit.”

She kept her head down, playing with the buttons on his dress
shirt. How could she not see how great she was? He smiled as she smothered a
yawn against his shoulder.

“Come on, beautiful. Let’s get some sleep.”

Annie yawned again and groaned as she slid off his lap.

“I can’t believe I’m this tired,” she said, picking up the
empty pizza box.

“Stress will do that, and I don’t think either one of us slept
well last night.”

Hitting the stiff cardboard on the edge of the island, she
folded the pizza box and stuffed it in the trash.

“I didn’t want to close my eyes and wake up to have it be
over.”

The fear was something he’d shared lying in the dark. CJ pulled
her back into his arms.

“It’s not over. We got this,” he said kissing her forehead.

She looked up at him, uncertainty and hope swimming in the
amber gaze. Tucking her head under his chin, he looked around for the light
switch.

“One day at a time, beautiful. One day at a time.”

Sunlight streamed through the wall of windows, dragging Annie
from sleep. Squinting against the assault, she grabbed for the comforter and
rolled. Her nose smacked something solid. She blinked at the male bicep in
front of her. Pressing her lips to the warm skin, she smiled. He was really
here.

Blinking the sleep clear, she studied CJ’s broad face in the
morning light. He looked relaxed, his forehead free of lines. His dark lashes
fanned against the top of his full cheeks in sleep. She’d never noticed how
long they were. Her man had beautiful eyes. The faint woodsy scent of the beard
oil they’d found him teased her nostrils. The plush swell of his bottom lip
called, making her long to kiss him. She smiled against his arm again and he
stirred. Blue eyes opened and his lips curved in a lazy smile.

“There’s my famous author,” he said, his mellow baritone deeper
with morning rust.

She felt a light blush but smiled remembering the same words
the night before.

“Hardly, but I have to admit last night made me feel special.”

“That party was pretty fancy.”

“I wasn’t thinking of the party, but that was nice too,” she
said, waggling her eyebrows.

CJ’s arms wound around her, dragging her up on his chest.