Free Wolf Creek Widow (Wolf Creek, Arkansas Book 4) by Penny Richards Page B

Elton was often gone, so it would have been just her, Teddy and Lucy. Once they’d had their supper, she would get them washed up and ready for bed. They would cuddle in Teddy’s little bed, and Meg would tell them a story, read them a fairy tale or nursery rhyme from the books that had been given to her by the ladies at church. Sometimes she sang songs like “Froggie Went a-Courtin’” or “The Fox.” Then they would say their prayers and she would tuck Teddy in and rock Lucy to sleep.
    When they were down for the night, she would be alone, just as she was now. The difference was that she’d always had things to do to fill the hours until her own bedtime. Mending. Ironing. Cleaning. But all that was done.
    She looked around the room again, thinking that it was too bad that she had nothing to read besides the children’s books. Even though she wasn’t the best reader, she’d always loved books and the stories captured within their pages. Unfortunately, she’d never had the time to pursue that love. She was always too busy trying to get by, and there was no pay for spending time in such a frivolous pursuit.
    Through Ace, Rachel had told her to use the next week or so as a time to pamper herself. Meg wasn’t sure what that meant, but it sounded as though she was supposed to spoil herself. How on earth was a grown woman supposed to do that? She recalled the times she did special little things for Teddy or with him, things that were not part of their everyday activities. Was that pampering?
    She thought of her bath earlier in the day. Nita had insisted that Meg take her time. Even in the cramped washtub, it had been nice to sit in the water until it grew cool with no one calling for her and no one waiting for her to do something for them. It had been special to lather her hair with the small remaining piece of sweet-smelling soap Elton had bought her once when he was trying to worm his way back into her good graces. As Nita poured warm rinse water over her hair, Meg
had
felt special...spoiled, even. If that was pampering, it was nice.
    On impulse, she stirred up the fire and put the kettle back on. Taking down one of the blue speckled cups and the plain brown teapot her aunt had given her, she measured out a couple of spoonfuls of the tea that Gabe and Rachel had left for her.
    It occurred to her that she could make some cold tea for Nita and Ace the next day. The water from the deep well was good and cold, and the sugary sweetness would make a nice treat for them all.
    While the kettle boiled, she pulled the long swath of her hair over her shoulder and buried her face in it. Thank goodness it still smelled sweet and clean, she thought as she began to braid it. She could thank Ace for reminding her that the smoke would mask the smell of her clean hair.
    Abruptly, she paused in the midst of her nightly ritual. What kind of man thought about keeping a woman’s hair smelling clean? It was certainly not the kind of thing that would ever enter Elton’s mind.
    Ace Allen was nothing like any man she’d ever known. How had he even known her hair was clean? How had he become so sensitive to the things that were important to a woman? It certainly wasn’t the sort of thing you learned in prison. Had Nita somehow made him aware? Meg doubted she’d ever know, but just recognizing that one small thing about him changed her perception of him the tiniest bit.
    After braiding her hair, she changed into her gown and grabbed a light shawl. When her tea had steeped, she poured herself a cup and added a generous amount of honey. Then, fetching Teddy’s book of fairy tales, Meg padded barefoot onto the porch, settled into the old rocking chair and set the spatterware mug on the wooden box she used as a table.
    Even though the evening was still warm, October would soon arrive. To someone who watched the changing of the seasons as closely as she did, it was easy to see that the shadows were changing position as the year wound