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her feelings when she wanted to. Damn. Why did it have to be this way? She kicked a pebble that zinged and ricocheted under the boardwalk.
    Glory Town was a special place. She had felt it the moment she stepped foot on the grounds. Even though she had made only small, insignificant contributions, the changes were evident. There had been a nonchalance on the part of the reenactors when she arrived. Everyone, including the shopkeepers, seemed bored and lulled by the monotony. Maybe some of her exuberance was rubbing off.

    Alone in her hotel room at ten o’clock, she was perturbed when someone rapped on the door. Putting aside her list of priorities for spending the money, she pulled the door open.
    She felt the slightest bit of unease but she chalked it up to the simple fact that she and Nick had never been alone so late at night. He had a way of looking at her sometimes…

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    55

    Joey Light
    Nick appeared sleepy. His eyes were deeply shadowed and he seemed a bit unsteady. Victoria didn’t detect the odor of liquor, so she tried to relax as they faced each other in the doorway.
    “Evenin’, Vic.” He lifted his hat from his head and set it down again.
    “Hi. What can I do for you?”
    “I was wonderin’ if you’d join me downstairs for a drink.”
    “This late?” She glanced at the clock on her bureau. “I’m working on a repair list. How about some other time?”
    He leaned on the doorjamb and politely removed his hat from his head this time. Changing his tone, he offered, “You work too hard. I wanted to talk to you about the repairs in fact.”
    “I see. What about them?”
    “Can’t we talk about it in the dining room?”
    So it was his way of getting what he wanted. She needed some volunteers to do the hard labor and now was as good a time as ever to recruit. They went downstairs.
    A few straggling tourists kept the staff busy. They found a table off to itself and Nick asked to see the list. “You have a lot of stuff written down here.”
    “Lots to do. This place has to shine.”
    “I don’t know. Fancier it gets, the less it looks like what it is. The folks expect peeled paint and warped boards, don’t you think?”
    “To a point.” She sipped the coffee she had insisted on, passing on the liquor Nick offered, and nibbled on the sandwich he had ordered for her without asking.
    “That fancy dude Cooper thinks he’s something, doesn’t he?”
    Alerted by Nick’s tone of voice, Victoria took a good look at Nick.
    “He’s…confident. But I think he’ll help shape this place up.”
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    High-Riding Heroes
    “I like this place just the way it is. Especially now that you’re here.” His slow, lazy grin unnerved her just a little. He seemed just a tad too familiar. A tiny shiver ran between her shoulder blades, but she instantly dismissed it as her being too tired to have this conversation.
    “Thank you.”
    He leaned forward, closer to her. “I’ll help with anything you need done. Just ask.”
    Wes Cooper came through the door looking tired and hurried.
    He spotted Victoria and Nick at the corner table. Nodding a curt greeting, he walked toward the stairs.
    Victoria picked up on Nick’s contrived exuberance when he motioned toward Wes. “Wes, old man. Join us.”
    Pausing with one booted foot on the stair, Wes lifted his hand in the air. “No thanks. I’m going to turn in early tonight.”
    Nick would have none of it. Playing the big shot, as it was obvious to everyone, he made a big to-do of convincing Wes to share a drink with them before they all turned in.
    Wes cast Victoria a calm glance before accepting the offer. “Did you schedule the men to meet me on the hillside at nine?” Wes asked Nick as he sat opposite him.
    Nick sat back from the table. “Nine? You said ten. I told the men ten.”
    “Ten’s too late, Nick. I told you precisely nine so we could be finished early enough to get some roping practice in.” And he