“I have four younger siblings. Oakley is twenty-two, Linden is nineteen, Hollis is fifteen, and Rowan is ten, almost eleven. We all have a lot of fun together, too.”
“Wow. Everyone else I’ve met who comes from a big family seems not to want to repeat it.”
Magnolia keeps her attention on Max as he slowly makes his way toward us, pushing the cows in front of him.
“My parents were very involved. They didn’t subscribe to the parenting style of having older kids raise younger ones. Mom and Dad were rock stars, honestly. Looking back now as an adult, I see how much time and energy they put into making sure we had everything we needed. They always made each of us feel like the most loved kid in the world.”
“That’s really great.” And I mean it.
I’m an only child, so I don’t have anything to compare it to, but I grew up around several big families. Some of them seemed like Magnolia’s family. Loving, happy, boisterous, and fun.
But then there were others who straight-up neglectedtheir children, trying to make it a cute trend by saying they were raising “feral” children.
I’ve never thought about how many kids I want, but I know I want to be the best dad I can be. No feral children, just loved ones.
“Earth to Nash,” Magnolia says as she waves a hand in front of my face.
“Oh, sorry, lost in thought, I guess.”
The cattle walk into the corral without a fuss, and Max’s dogs come barreling toward us.
“Meet Jim and Larry.”
Magnolia laughs as she bends down to pat their heads. “Such people-y names.”
“They’re better employees than most people,” I admit as I scratch behind Jim’s ears, my fingers brushing against Magnolia’s in the process.
“Somebody smells a little skunky.” Magnolia sniffs.
“They’re great dogs, not clean dogs,” Max calls from where he’s dismounting from his horse.
“I’d never accuse them of being that,” Magnolia says as Larry jumps up, planting two dirty paws on her pale blue shirt.
“I have everything set up in the processing shed,” Max says.
“Magnolia, we’re going to be a while. You’re welcome to take my car into town,” I tell her.
“You still have work to do, don’t you?” She walks over to the corral and climbs onto the first rung.
I look at Max and drag a finger across my neck. Magnolia is tired. I’m not going to pressure her into working cattle with us all afternoon.
Max ignores my very clear gesture. “We need you. We can’t do this without three people.”
“That’s a lie,” I shoot back.
Magnolia climbs down from the cattle panel. “I’ll help. What should I do?”
“You can push up calves and put in the fly tags.”
“I’ll be the best employee you’ve ever had, just wait and see.” She grins.
Turns out, she’s right. For the rest of the day, she jumps into doing things she’s never done before. She cracks jokes, curses the gate that she pinched her hand in, and claims to be a natural-born cowgirl.
I think she’s one of a kind, and I’m falling head over heels for her.
CHAPTER 26
Magnolia
