“It’s summer, you know. The kids are going to need an outlet.”
I knew this, but I didn’t want to expand on it because that fell on me. Figure out and coordinate things to help and entertain them.
“Did you see you have a new teenager coming in?” he asked.
“Yeah, a Tiffany. Very new around these parts. Have you seen them?”
“Sure did. Single mother was here a few days back. Never been to a ranch or around a horse before, actually. They weren’t scared, but more like in awe.”
“Oh great, a couple of city folk in our area who don’t get our ways and question everything? Why in the world would they pick a spot like this?”
“Couldn’t tell you,” the cowboy said, and I looked over at him, shaking my head at the thought.
It wasn’t really a problem because I got all kinds of families all the time, but those that came to towns like this from some big cities made life far more difficult than it needed to be.
“But there was a look in the woman's eye. She looked as helpless as an old weary cowboy. Like life had already done her in. And she seemed far too young for that. So maybe don't be so harsh on her.”
I wanted to argue, wanted to fight him, wanted to say that my experiences would tell me something else, but I didn't. Something kept my mouth shut.
Maybe it was the fact that Dakota knew about cowboys and their stories on their faces far better than I did.
Maybe it was the fact that he was even out here talking to me about this. Not that he and I didn't talk, but advice about each other's job was a subject we stayed cleared of.
“Noted,” I told him, glancing at him once before taking solace in the night sky once more.
I would give this lady and her daughter the benefit, but I didn't have to like them.
The following morning, I stepped into my office, flipped on the light, and plopped into my chair. I sighed as I looked over the day’s events, not ready for it.
For whatever reason, that woman kept floating through my mind.
I grabbed her paperwork, reading over the information she filled out.
She was a divorced woman looking for a fresh start and wanted her daughter to try new things. Well, city folk always thought horses and ranches were easy work. They never quite gathered how busy and hard it really was.
Guess she could be in for a rude awakening. And her precious daughter.
I sat the folder down and then kicked up my computer, lining up some things for over the summer, along with some workshops, dances, and just other events.
Most everyone I worked with knew what I wanted and could easily help me out. After all, I’ve been doing this for long enough, even for as young as I was.
“Let’s get the day done,” I muttered, checking the time as I headed out of the office. Kids were supposed to start arriving for some fun time at the stables and I needed to make sure things were ready to roll with everyone.
And as I walked out, I couldn’t help but pause, because before me stood a gleaming red truck that stuck out like a sore thumb in these parts.
I watched as a woman climbed out of the driver seat, a faint smile on her lips as she looked around. Taking a deep breath, she turned around, walking over to the passenger side and helped out a teenage daughter. At least I’m assuming she was her daughter.
And given the clean truck, I was going to say this was my city slickers.
I clenched my jaw, already not liking her on the spot.
“Hi,” the woman called out, walking my way with her hand on the the girl’s arm. “I’m Katie. You must be Zeb. I heard such great things about how you’re amazing with kids. This is Tiffany’s first official day here, so I wanted to drop her off and make sure she got on okay.”
“She ain’t no baby,” I told her, my tone gruff. The woman’s smile wavered at the sound before she still plowed on.
“No, she’s not. She doesn’t need me to hover, and I’m not. But since we’re new to town, I wanted to make sure she’s okay. Parents do that, right?”
“Don’t get city slickers here.”
