Kara Lennox - One Stubborn Texan

Much as Sydney would love to indulge in a whole day of pampering after her backwoods adventure, she didn’t have that much time. “Not today,” she said to the affable Winnie.

“Not even a facial? I’ve got this new cucumber mask that I guarantee will leave your face feeling like a baby’s bottom.”

“Is that what you use?” Sydney asked as she unlaced her hiking boots. They didn’t look new anymore. She’d broken them in but good. “I couldn’t help noticing how pretty your skin looks.”

“Well, thank you, hon!” Winnie smiled ear-to-ear, revealing perfectly straight, blindingly white teeth. “I’ve always used a lot of sunscreen, that’s the key.” She disappeared into a back room, and a short time later reappeared with a footbath full of warm water. She plugged it in as Sydney rolled up her jeans and eased her poor, abused feet into paradise.

“My word,” Winnie said, “what did you do to your foot?”

“I sprained my ankle,” she said. “A hiking mishap.”

“Don’t tell me my idiot son took you out into the woods and tried to get you to hug trees.”

Uh-oh. Apparently Winnie had her ear to the ground, because she knew Sydney and Russ had been together. Sydney had better tread carefully. “Well, sort of.”

“I swear, that boy doesn’t have a clue how to impress a woman. Couldn’t he see the moment you stepped out of that car wearing those pretty clothes that you weren’t an outdoorsy type?”

“Oh, but I’m not…that is, we weren’t…” Oh, hell. How was she going to explain this? She couldn’t breathe a word about her true purpose or she would break her promise to Russ, not to mention possibly ruin someone’s life.

Then a thought occurred to her. If Winnie thought Sydney and her son were involved romantically, there would be no need to explain her presence in Linhart. And it wouldn’t be a lie at this point. She and Russ were, after all, going out on a real date tonight, even if it would be their last hurrah.

“You don’t have to pretend with me,” Winnie said in a confidential whisper. “I’m not one of those mothers who thinks no woman is good enough for her son. Truth is, I’d like for Russ to settle down and give me a couple of grandbabies.”

“It’s not that serious!” Sydney blurted out. “I mean, we just met…we’ve only started…” Her face went hot. This was getting worse and worse. No matter what she said, it seemed to give the wrong impression. Winnie had to know she and Russ had spent a couple of nights together.

Winnie laughed. “Settle down, hon. I won’t push, I promise. So other than ruining your ankle, did you enjoy the camping? Frankly I have no use for freezing in a tent and tinkling in the woods, but some people really seem to like it.”

“It wasn’t terrible,” Sydney answered, realizing it was true. “You’re right, I’m not really the outdoorsy type. But Russ made it fun. Besides, there was a cabin, not a tent. And a bathroom, once I found it. He’s a good guy, your son.”

“Oh, don’t I know it,” Winnie said. “We went through some hard times, him and me, back when I was young and stupid. He took care of me more than I did him. From the time he was a little bitty thing he was watching out for me-almost like he knew he was destined to be the strong one of the two of us.”

“He obviously loves you a lot,” Sydney said.

Winnie sniffed and Sydney wondered if she was crying. Maybe she was one of those women who cried at anything. But then she seemed to shake herself out of it. “What color did you want today, sweetie?”

Sydney chose a deep, dark red nail polish, which suited her mood. Then she lay back and let Winnie give her the facial and rub her feet. It had been so long since she’d pampered herself, or spent an afternoon gossiping with a female friend. She missed her mother and the long conversations they used to have, particularly during that last year, when she was ill.

By the end of the afternoon Sydney had the most beautiful hands and feet in the world-and a new friend. Winnie was nothing short of delightful, funny and painfully honest about herself. But Sydney sensed a vulnerability about her, a certain naïveté. She could just imagine how a fast-paced, me-first city like Las Vegas could chew Winnie up and spit her out.

By the time Sydney was done at the beauty shop, it was getting late. She hadn’t brought any clothes with her that were suitable for a fancy restaurant, so she darted next door to Rose’s Dress Shop. The clothes in the window looked very stylish and high quality to Sydney, so it was worth a shot.

With the help of the elderly proprietor, who had a keen eye and knew what would look good on Sydney’s petite, slender frame, she picked out a slinky cocktail dress the color of a caramel apple. She had a pair of low-heeled pumps that would match perfectly and wouldn’t put too much stress on her ankle. Despite the disaster of Baines & Baines’s financial situation, her personal finances were still in decent shape-although nowhere near enough to pay off her father’s debts-and she could certainly afford a dress.

It was dark and most of the businesses on Main Street were closing up by the time Sydney hurried across the street to meet Russ at the general store. She couldn’t wait to see him again. And she was practically coming out of her skin as she considered spending another night with him. How in the world was she going to simply get in her car and drive to the airport tomorrow morning, never to see him again?

WINNIE WAS CLOSING THE BLINDS at the Cut ’n’ Curl when she saw Sydney crossing the street with a large shopping bag from Rose’s Dress Shop. Betty came over and joined her.

“What’s she up to?”

“Just went shopping, apparently. She’s putting her clothes and things into the trunk of her car. I wonder if she’s leaving.”

“She seemed nice. I was busy with Irma’s highlights so I couldn’t really eavesdrop, but it seemed like you two were having fun.”

“She is nice,” Winnie confirmed, which had surprised her. Usually it took some time to win over one of Russ’s girlfriends. At first they were always reserved, ready to compete for Russ’s affections. As if he didn’t have enough to go around. She knew that secretly they thought her big hair was tacky and that she ought to dress more conservatively.

But she was who she was and she’d sensed total acceptance from Sydney. Or maybe that was just wishful thinking. If Russ did ever settle down, Winnie hoped she and her daughter-in-law could be friends.

“Nope, she’s not leaving,” Betty said. “She’s going back into the general store. Did she tell you anything more about why she’s here?”

“She and Russ are involved, apparently, despite what Russ said. He took her on some wilderness adventure and she didn’t run away screaming, so that’s a good sign.”

“I thought Bert told you she was here on business.”

“He did. But he was being cagey about it. Come to think of it, Sydney was a little bit vague, too, about how she and Russ met. I mean, she’s from New York.”

“Yeah, well, I didn’t have time to tell you before, but I talked to my son about this heir-finder business. Heir finders don’t merely reunite loved ones. They find people who are due an inheritance but don’t realize it and help them recover the funds-for a cut, of course.”

“Oh. Ohhhh. That makes more sense. I should have asked her more about her work.” Winnie’s heart hammered inside her chest. Had someone left Russ some money?

She knew of only one person connected to Russ who’d died with any money to speak of. When news of Sammy’s death had reached her a few years ago, Winnie hadn’t spent much time mourning the bastard. She had sent some flowers and a generic note of sympathy for Paula, because they’d once been friends even if the witch had stolen her husband, but then she’d promptly forgotten about it.

Could Sammy have left Russ some money? It seemed unlikely. He’d never once treated Russ as anything but an inconvenience and an embarrassment. And wouldn’t Paula have gotten in touch to let her know? Granted, they hadn’t parted on the best of terms, but still.

“Betty, you’re better at computers than I am. Would you help me look up some stuff?”

Fifteen minutes later, crowded into her tiny office, Winnie and Betty stared at the computer screen in shock.

“Ten million dollars. Sammy left Russ ten million dollars. My God. I’m going to be rich!”

“Uh, Winnie, honey, before you get carried away, the money is Russ’s, not yours.”

“He’s my son, my only child,” Winnie argued. “Of course he’ll share with me.” She closed her eyes, thinking of what all she could do with that kind of money. She’d buy the mink coat she’d always wanted, to replace the one she’d sold. And a brand-new Cadillac, the expensive kind, too, not a cheap one. Maybe a vacation to Paris. “I could have my own apartment in Paris!”

“Winnie, you’re getting ahead of yourself.”

“I have to call Eleanor. She’s always rubbed it in that she doesn’t have to work because her husband’s so stinking rich. This’ll shut her up. And Lisa Gerber, too. She practically laughed at me when I wanted to run for garden-club treasurer. Well, we’ll see about that.”

Sydney drove her own car to Russ’s house, following his Bronco. The road leading up to it was almost as bad as the one they’d taken into the woods before their hike, but that didn’t surprise her. She couldn’t see him living in some suburban subdivision. They were near a lake, she knew that, because she’d caught glimpses of the setting sun glistening on rippling water whenever there was a break in the trees.

But nothing prepared her for his house. It was fantastic-a redwood cabin on steroids. His property was right on the water, and she could just make out a private dock and a boathouse maybe a hundred steps from his front door. He opened the two-car garage and then pulled to the side, motioning with one hand that she should park the BMW there.