Ivy sank down in her booster seat, trying to make herself invisible. Tory had survived the fights, arguments, and finally the brutal beating Damon had given her that had put her in the hospital. Though he had never hurt Ivy, the little girl had seen the results of his mistreatment, leaving her with an unnatural fear of men.
Tory glanced at the big, thick-chested male striding toward her, shrugging into a blue denim shirt. Ivy would be terrified of him. If there was any other way, she would climb back in the car and just drive off.
There wasn’t. Tory started walking, meeting the man halfway. She glanced around but didn’t see a soul besides the big man in front of her. Her uneasiness returned.
“May I help you?” he asked, and she thought that at least he was polite.
“My name is Tory Ford. I’m looking for Joshua Cain. Is that you?” He had blue eyes and a cleft in his chin. From a purely physical standpoint, the man was flat-out hot.
“I’m Josh Cain. What can I do for you?”
“I saw your ad in the Iron SpringsGazette. You’re looking for a stable hand. I’m here to apply for the job.”
He just shook his head. “I’m afraid it’s a man’s job, Ms. Ford. Mucking out stalls and cleaning tack, feeding the livestock. It isn’t something you’d want to do.”
“Work isn’t supposed to be fun, Mr. Cain. That’s why they call it work. I can muck out stalls, clean tack, and feed stock as well as anyone else.”
“Sorry. I’m looking for a man. I appreciate you’re coming out, but—”
“There are laws, Mr. Cain. Equal rights for women. Have you never heard of that? Lawsuits against discrimination?”
His jaw hardened. His eyebrows came down in a frown. “Are you kidding me? You’re going to sue me because I won’t hire you to shovel horseshit out of the barn?”
She could feel the heat creeping into her cheeks. With her fair skin, there was no way to hide her embarrassment.
She looked him straight in the face. “I need this job, Mr. Cain. I need the house that comes with it.” She forced herself to smile. “Why don’t we compromise? You give me three days to prove I’m up to the job. If I’m not, I won’t give you any more trouble. Three days. If you don’t think I can handle the work, I’ll leave. I won’t argue, I’ll just go.”
A muscle jerked in his cheek. He didn’t like being pressured. He looked at her hard, and then those condemning blue eyes traveled over her shoulder to something behind her.
“Who isthat?”
She didn’t have to turn to know Ivy had climbed out of the car. Like Tory, she was small for her age, but her hair was blond instead of red, and her eyes were blue instead of green.
“That’s my daughter. She’s only four.” Desperate now, she could feel her heart throbbing softly inside her ribs. “We need a place, Mr. Cain. I’ll work hard. I’ll do whatever you need done. Just give me a chance.”
He swore the F-word under his breath, not loud enough for Ivy to hear. Damon wouldn’t have cared. She clung to the hope that fostered.
“What do you plan to do with your daughter while you’re working? You can’t leave her in the house alone.”
Tory glanced around wildly. She had known this would be a problem. Before, she’d had money enough to hire a sitter or there was day care for employees’ kids.
She looked at the fenced yard off to the side in front of the trailer. The grass was sparse and in need of a trim. Maybe he’d had a dog or something, but it was clean and empty now. The weather was still good and there was a little gazebo with a table and benches in the middle. She’d be able to keep an eye on Ivy while she was working.
“She could play in the yard. She likes to color and she already reads kids’ books. She wouldn’t be any trouble. If this works out, I’ll have money to pay for a sitter.”
Cain looked at Ivy, paced away then back. “Dammit.”
“It’s just three days. If I do a good job, you won’t have to search for someone else.”
He ran a hand over his short brown hair. “Did you sleep in your car last night?”
She refused to answer. She didn’t want charity from Cain or anyone else.
“Fine,” he said. “You’ve got three days. But I’m not cutting you any slack. You do a man’s job for a man’s pay. If you can’t hack it, you’re out of here.”
And from the look on his face, he was clearly hoping she would fail. Hell, maybe she would.
She managed a fake smile. “Okay, it’s a deal.” She stuck out her hand to seal the bargain, for a moment didn’t think he was going to shake. Then he sighed and took hold of her hand, not too hard, just firm enough to let her know he was in charge.
