Free Why not Wyoming? (Wyoming Wilds Series Book 1) by Anneliese Brand Page B

covered. She sighed. Right, because
all decisions were based on the almighty dollar.
    She slid a shiny Visa out from behind insurance cards and
tapped it uncertainly with her fingernail. Speaking of money, she needed to get
arrangements out of the way so she could start enjoying her vacation. As a rule,
she paid for everything with her debit card figuring that if she had to
transfer funds from savings it forced her to stop and think about the purchase.
A week at a hundred and forty-seven dollars a night was—Annie hesitated,
frowned, and rounded up, uh … roughly a thousand and fifty bucks. God, she
hated math. She shook her head to clear the annoying numbers. It was just best
to use the credit card and worry about paying it off when she got home. Unlike
the rest of the family, the almighty dollar gave her a headache.
    Downstairs proved to be no different. Why did money matters have
to be difficult?
    “Your room is paid in full for the next week.”
    At least this was a good problem as problems went. Annie craned
her neck, trying to look at the computer screen the girl was getting her
information from. If this was CJ’s doing, she couldn’t accept. The plastic card
tapped loudly against the counter as she slowly turned it in her fingers.
    “I think there’s been a mistake. As a member of the wedding
party, my room should have been paid for through last night by the bride and
groom or their parents. Whoever, and however, that was handled. Now, I need to
give you my personal credit card information for the next week,” she tried to
explain.
    “I do see that your room’s account was cleared this morning,
and then this reservation was made for the next seven days. Ellie, Mrs.
Barrett, entered the transaction and gave you a discounted rate. If you could
give me just a moment, I will be happy to check with her and clear this up for
you.”   
    “Is there a problem, Carley?”
    Annie was relieved to see Carley relax at her boss’s question
instead of tense. She didn’t want to cause the girl any problems but did want
this taken care of before CJ got back.
    “Miss Brand is going to be staying with us for another week but
when I went to enter her reservation, I found we already have one for her. The
last four of the credit card on file don’t match Miss Brand’s.”
    Ellie Barrett turned her smile on Annie. CJ had his mom’s
dimples.
    “Sorry for the confusion, hon. Your aunt took care of it before
she left. She wanted to thank you for everything you did for Crystal. I tried
to tell her that you were staying on as CJ’s guest, that there was no charge, but
she wouldn’t hear of it.”
    “I wouldn’t have either,” Annie said, smiling back at the woman.
“But thank you. That’s really sweet. You’ve done enough already with hosting the
wedding.”
    “We were honored Ty wanted to get married up here. Anything for
family and, like it or not, we’re family of sorts now so I slipped the friends
and family discount on there. You and your aunt will just have to live with it,”
Ellie said with an unrepentant wink.
    Annie shook her head at the sweet stubbornness. CJ’s mother was
one of those people that you just couldn’t argue with. There was nothing to do
but accept the generosity and hope to return it someday.
    “I appreciate that. Thank you again. I’m really excited about
staying and getting a chance to see more of Wyoming.”
    “CJ’s looking forward to showing it off. You couldn’t ask for a
better guide. If you need anything during your stay, just say the word, hon.”
    “I will. Thank you,” Annie reassured her with a little wave as
she turned to head back upstairs.  
    She loved the woman’s warmth and sass. It was so much
like—Annie hesitated mid-step, stumbling on the next tread. She gripped the
banister. Ellie reminded her of her mom. A fist wrapped around her heart,
giving it a painful squeeze. Forcing herself to put one foot in front of the
other, she climbed the handful of stairs to