Page 6 (1/2)

Zack sent her on her way and then, unable to resist, he willed himself to Kaitlyn’s place The house was dark, but that was no surprise It was late

Standing outside her bedroom , he listened to the slow, steady beat of her heart, the quiet even sound of her breathing Funny, he thought, how the sounds soothed him

Assured that she was home and safely asleep in her bed, he headed down thebreakfast, and then, at loose ends, wandered through the cabin trying to find so to do The laundry was done The dishes were done She had vacuued the dishes in the kitchen cupboards, rearranged the furniture in the living room, and then put it all back the way it had been before

Standing in thethat, since she lived alone and was naturally tidy, the place would never really get dirty

When she ran out of s to do, she sat on the sofa and filed her nails and tried to decide what she should do, now that she was out of college She didn’t needthe day A job, she thought That was the answer Of course, there wasn’t much call for an expert in comparative folklore these days Still, she was reasonably intelligent--there ht in mind, she decided to walk down to the casino She could buy a newspaper there and check out the want ads while she ate lunch at the restaurant

And if she was lucky, she ht run into Zack

It took only minutes to make her way down the hill to the casino restaurant After a short wait, she was seated at a small table near the backShe ordered a turkey club sandwich and a strawberry lemonade, then opened the paper she had picked up in the lobby and perused the help-wanted section She frowned as she looked at the available jobs Waitress Maid at one of the hotels Babysitter Clerk at the Pink Poodle Boutique Dog walker Checker at one of the local markets

She folded the paper with a huff of exasperation There was nothing wrong with any of those positions; they were all perfectly respectable It was just that she had been hoping, foolishly perhaps, that she would find soree Zack would probably laugh at that She recalled his response all too clearly when she had told him she had majored in comparative folklore, the amusement in his tone when he had drawled, How’s that workin’ out for ya?

Maybe she could write a book on ancient folklore In 1890, Sir Jae Fraser had done a colossal study of coinally published in two volued version had been published in 1922 Considered a classic, The Golden Bough had greatly influenced psychology and literature, presenting, in detail, the parallels between the rites, beliefs, and superstitions of early cultures and those of Christianity

She doubted she could pen such an i a little less intense, perhaps so to think about

After finishing her lunch, Kaitlyn wandered out into the casino It wasn’t nearly as crowded or as noisy at this tiht Most of the patrons were elderly A few people stood in front of the Wheel of Fortune, others were trying their luck at the dice table, or playing roulette Thethe slot machines

After a moment’s indecision, she took a seat at one of the quarter machines It was an old one, with a coin slot and a handle to pull After a few minutes of play, she found that she liked the old machine better than the new ones It was more fun to actually put the money into the machine and pull the handle, to hear the clink of quarters falling into the tray when she won It

She kept glancing over her shoulder, hoping to see Zack striding toward her, even though she kneould be better for both of them if their relationship ended now, before it went any further

After an hour, she was ahead by about twenty dollars Gathering her winnings into a handy plastic bucket, she carried it to the cashier and exchanged the coins for greenbacks

"Do co as she completed the transaction

"Thanks, I will," Kaitlyn said, stuffing the bills into her wallet "Um, do you know if Mr Ravenscroft is here today?"

"He doesn’t usually arrive until seven or eight," the woe, I’ll be sure that he gets it"

"No No, that’s all right Thank you"

Feeling more let-down than she should have, Kaitlyn left the casino She stood outside a moment, then returned to the casino and headed for the dress shop

Zack rose with the setting sun, his first thought for Kaitlyn Although they hadn’t ht, he headed for her cabin as soon as hesmoothly on the casino floor

To his surprise, she was standing on the porch looking sexy as hell in a pair of tight black leather pants, a h-heeled sandals Her hair tumbled over her shoulders like a fall of black silk

He whistled softly as he climbed the stairs "You look like a million bucks," he said with a wink "And I knohat that looks like"

She s at his nearness "I hope you’re out here waiting for hts "I knoe didn’t have any plans, but"

She placed two fingers over hisfor?"