"Good. Has the job been filled?"
"Not yet."
"Put a woman in it," I told her. "If there's someone already working for us who qualifies, that's even better, but let Human Resources handle it. Just send them a memo with my recommendation."
"Will do. And that's the end of my list. Everything else is running smoothly."
"Good," I said. "Just let me know about the internet. That's critical right now. I'm losing my mind trying to work on a hotspot."
She assured me she was on it, then I ended the call. That girl was going to be a lifesaver. She had all the business sense I could hope for, was easy to talk to, and it seemed she could be a hard-ass when she had to. It was entirely likely that I also enjoyed how she kept pushing me about my love life. She hadn't become cynical yet. To her, the entire world was still waiting to be conquered, and it reminded me of how that felt.
Now, I had to go to the local feed store. Luke had mentioned that we were out of baling twine, and didn't have enough for the next cut of hay. He also said that he didn't have the spare cash to buy it or he would've. Setting up an account where he could have things billed to Southwind would make this all a lot easier. That was my next task for the day.
I headed into the living room, trying to remember where Violet had left her keys when I realized I wasn't alone. Cy stood at the coffee maker, waiting for his espresso to brew. His hair was still wet, which meant he'd just gotten out of the shower. He also didn't look like he was dragging ass, so he'd clearly slept very well.
"Morning, sunshine," I teased.
He glanced back to flash me a smile. "Hey, good lookin'. Why are you up?"
"Working. Just got off the phone with my new COO, and now I'm headed to the feed store to set up an account. You see that your job request was approved?"
"Saw that," he agreed. "Last night - before all the fun in the pool - Luke said he'd price out a square baler for us."
"Don't put that through the board," I told him. "Can't be more than ten grand, right? I'll just buy it."
Nodding, he turned back to the cabinets and started rummaging. In a moment, he found a travel mug, poured his freshly brewed espresso into it, then went to add milk. I couldn't tell if my offer bothered him or not, so I just stood there, waiting for him to say something.
When he was done, he pressed the lid onto the mug, then finally said, "I really like him, Ash."
"I kinda do too."
He moved to place his travel mug on the bar and headed toward the back door. "Yeah, but I'm not sure where that puts things with us."
I watched while he found his shoes and pulled them on. "What are you doing?"
"Going with you. She never gets up before ten, and that twine Luke wanted isn't light."
"I can carry heavy things," I assured him.
He just smiled. "But you shouldn't have to. I also kinda enjoy the company." He grabbed his mug again, then paused. "So, really. Where does that put things with us?"
"You and Luke have no bearing on me and you," I assured him. "I may have pulled the shower ambush on him. I also got him to talk, and he's getting there."
Cy smiled. "So, you got the details, huh?"
"Enough to have an idea." I found Violet's keys then tilted my head toward the front door. "Coming? I like the company too."
And just like that, things were normal between us again. No, not perfect, but normal, and that was enough for now. Cy tried to find a radio station that played anything besides country. I batted his hands away and turned on the satellite radio. Then we were there. The feed store was little more than a warehouse with a loading dock sized for pickups, and the car looked so tiny when I pulled in beside the stairs.
Cy and I got out, eyeing the place like boys walking into their first porn store, then headed inside. A few high school boys wandered around in the same shirts. Behind the counter was an older woman, but when I headed toward her, the woman's face grew cold.
"Can I help you?" she asked.
"I need to set up an account and get something called baling twine," I told her.
"Have to order twine. Don't keep that in stock. You know what kind?"
The problem was that I didn't. Cy pushed his way beside me and leaned over the counter. "Sisal or that solar degradable stuff," he told her. "Gonna need four rolls of it."
