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minutes before six, she left the room and locked the door behind her. Then she headed down the stairs.

 
    Chapter 4
    Renee reached the bottom stair then walked up to the woman behind the reception desk. Her name was Angie and she owned the B & B.
    “Heading down to the steakhouse?” Angie asked.
    Renee tilted her head to the side. “I’d been thinking about going out for Mexican food, but a steak sounds good.”
    “There’s not a better place in town for a good dinner than the steakhouse up the street,” Angie said.
    “All right.” Renee smiled. “I think you’ve won me over. Where is it?”
    Angie gave Renee directions and she was pleased that it was within walking distance. Not that it was a terribly big surprise since it was a small town.
    “You have a great night, Miss Winfield.” Angie gave a little wave as Renee left the desk.
    Renee waved back at the woman then walked out the door.
    Just as Angie had said, the walk to the restaurant wasn’t far at all. Renee walked toward the entrance and she felt the warmth of the desert air over her bare shoulders. The sun was still shining but soon enough it would settle in the west and the desert heat would lessen.
    Inside, the restaurant was cool and dim. The hostess greeted her before picking up a menu and leading her to a small table in one corner. The hostess laid a menu on the table in front of Renee and she added that her waitress would be Wendy. Renee put her purse on one of the extra chairs.
    “I didn’t expect to see you here,” came the low timbre of Dan’s voice.
    She glanced up and warmth heated her through as she met his gaze. “At the last minute I decided that I wasn’t up for Mexican or Italian food.”
    “It’s a shame for you to be here alone,” Dan said. “May I take a seat?”
    Renee’s stomach flipped. What could a little conversation hurt?
    She nodded and he sat in the chair across from her then set his Stetson on the seat beside her purse.
    “I shouldn’t stay long,” Renee said when the hostess left. “I think I’ll just go for a drink and an appetizer.”
    “Sounds like a good idea.” Dan gave a nod. “Would it be all right to have a drink with me?”
    She pushed hair behind her ear. “That should be okay.”
    A waitress stopped at their table and Renee saw that her nametag said Wendy . She was probably in her late fifties or early sixties with silver hair and smile lines at the corners of her eyes.
    “Hi, Sheriff,” Wendy said before turning to Renee. “I’m Wendy, your waitress tonight.”
    Dan smiled at the waitress. “I’m not sure you met Renee when she was just a young girl. She lived with the Camerons for a while.”
    Wendy tilted her head to the side. “I think I might have babysat you.”
    Renee thought about it then nodded as she remembered a young blonde woman who had watched her and the Cameron boys a few times. Her name had been Wendy. “I think you did.”
    “Welcome back, honey,” Wendy said. “What would you like to drink?”
    Renee glanced at the drink menu that was splayed open on the table. “A margarita would be wonderful.”
    “The usual?” Wendy asked Dan.
    “Yep,” Dan rested his menu on the table.
    Wendy winked at Dan. “Dos Equis it is.”
    The waitress left to get their drinks and Renee put her hands on top of her menu and looked at Dan. She had a hard time thinking of something to say, unlike last night when they’d all talked up a storm.
    She met his gaze and she wanted to melt. He looked so damned good in a blue western dress shirt and dark blue wranglers. He was a big man and she was almost petite in comparison. The way he looked at her had her imagining what it would feel like being in his arms. She knew she would feel cherished and protected.
    Mentally, she shook her head. She couldn’t let herself be thinking this way. As a matter of fact, she shouldn’t even be sitting with the man.
    She held back a sigh. It really shouldn’t matter if she spent a little time with a