“I’m here. Just wandering.”
She hooked her thumb over her shoulder. “There’s nothing in there I can use. I’ll have to have him pull me back on the ATV. Hopefully, that will appease him long enough for me to get Lady settled in.”
“There’s a couple stacks of lumber behind the barn. Would that work?”
“What?”
She strode past him, the scent of ginger spice catching him off guard. He didn’t take her for the baking type. More intrigued, he crossed his arms and waited for her to return.
“You’ve got to be kidding!” Her exclamation was loud enough that even Lady perked up her ears. It didn’t take long for Riley to reappear. “That lumber was delivered a couple weeks back for Cole’s new deck. He was in a damn hurry for me to get Cyclone to drag it down here.”
He didn’t say anything. He just waited to see what she’d do next.
A slow smile spread across her face, transforming it into something much softer and approachable, despite the sly grin. “Guess Cyclone will just have to bring it back.”
Her statement brought his brain back on track. “Whoa, do you think Cole will appreciate that?” The man was her boss, after all. His, too, technically.
She shrugged. “Not my problem. If he’d taken Cyclone out to the mine this morning or at least called someone else to, I wouldn’t be in this position. I still have a fence rail to fix in addition to everything else on my list. That means if Cyclone wants to lug lumber back to the main house, then that’s what I have to do. I don’t have all day to cater to his whims.”
Without asking for help, she unhitched the harness from the ATV and guided Cyclone to the back of the barn.
He didn’t move, not sure how well that was going to go over with Cole. Cole was an old friend. They’d both earned their associates in Fire Science at the community college before landing jobs in different parts of the state. Cole had always been half cowboy and half firefighter. That’s why they’d rubbed along well.
As if she’d forgotten he was there, Riley led Cyclone past the barn and onto the dirt road back to the main house, the lumber still strapped together as it had arrived. Yes, she was definitely different. He walked over to where Lady eyed Cyclone, obviously not happy that he had a head start on her.
He patted the mare’s side. “Don’t worry, we’ll catch up to them.” Untying the bridle, he climbed on the fence railing and straddled the mare. He hated to ride her without a saddle, but it was a short distance, and she was obviously not concerned. “Okay, let’s go.”
No sooner had he said the words than Lady broke into a gallop. Squeezing his knees, he got her to slow before coming up on Riley.
She looked up as he and Lady came abreast of her. “You can let her run. When you get there, put her in the north corral. I have to prepare a stall for her. Cole forgot to let me know she was coming.”
Her tone brooked no argument. Whether it was her attitude or her criticism of Cole, he wasn’t sure, but irritation ran up his spine. He was all for being polite; however, he didn’t take this job to be ordered about as if he were a greenhorn. Without a word, he let Lady have her head.
By the time he slowed her down, he was ready to leave. His job was to pick up the horses and drop them off, complete with story and paperwork.
Paperwork. He’d left that in the truck. He’d grab it once he moved Lady into the corral. Both corrals were empty, which meant the horses must still be in the barn. He jumped down from Lady’s back and opened the gate. Taking the bridle off, he let her inside and closed her in. As she pranced around in a circle taking her victory lap, he headed for the barn, intending to hang up the bridle then return to his truck.
“Hey, boy.” He nodded to a black quarter horse who eyed him from an open stall with a roof attached to the barn. As he took his first step inside, a nicker from within had him stopping, Riley’s story about Angel reminding him this wasn’t a typical stable. This was a horse rescue ranch, which meant he had no idea what phobias or issues the horses stabled there might have.
Looking over his shoulder, he found the black watching him. He’d bet money that horse was housed outside for a reason. Retreating from the barn, he strode to the north corral and laid the bridle over the fence.
He could hear Riley talking to Cyclone as the big horse pulled the stack of lumber. Quickly, he strode to the truck and opened the passenger door. Heat from sitting in the sun washed over him from inside. He’d forgotten to leave the windows down when he saw Riley climbing the fence to jump on Cyclone. Bad move in the Sonoran Desert in the middle of summer. Grabbing the folder, he left the door open and met Riley as she and the horse pulled into the parking area from around the side of the house.
She brought Cyclone to a halt. “Sorry about that.” She gestured with her head toward the dirt road she’d just walked up. “I’m not used to having anyone around here, except Annette, and she doesn’t come out in the heat anymore. I appreciate you helping with the big guy.” She patted the horse, who had to be at least sixteen hands high.
In the face of her apology, his irritation lessened. “You’re welcome.” He held out the folder. “Here’s the paperwork.”
She crinkled her nose, making her appear very young. “Hold that thought, will you? I just want to get Cy unhooked and fed. I’ll have to do another haul with him today, but I think he’ll behave for at least an hour.”
He didn’t actually have anywhere he needed to be, so he nodded.
Next time he saw Cole, he would definitely ask him about his ranch hand. Did he know she criticized him? Cole had a lot on his plate being Captain in the Canterbury Fire Department and running a horse rescue. He certainly didn’t need an employee griping about him.
Then again, she had a point. She did seem to be the lone worker. Not comfortable with getting in the middle of something he knew nothing about, he wandered toward the barn and leaned against it as Riley efficiently unhooked Cyclone and walked past him, bringing the horse into his stall and feeding him.
When she was done, she brushed her hands on her jeans and approached. “Is there anymore to the story of Lady other than she’s a little older and obviously competitive?”
He glanced over his shoulder. Lady had stopped her victory lap and stood watching them. More than likely, she was waiting for Cyclone to emerge again. He faced Riley. “The competitiveness was not in the paperwork. Just that she and two geldings were being transferred to Last Chance. All three are older and are meant to live out the rest of their lives here.”
