Page 53 of Roping Her In

Because she did.

Finally, Jake looked at her and raised his eyebrows. “Should we get going, sweetheart?”

“Yep,” she said.

“We still have three ranches or farms to get to,” Jake said by way of explanation, and they said their goodbyes.

In the truck, Hailey gazed out the window as Jake navigated them to their next stop—Coyote Pass and Alex’s cattle operation—pure happiness weaving through her in a way she’d never imagined could be possible for her.

“You don’t mind that I’ve told them about us, do you?”

She looked over to him. “Not at all.” Something flitted through her mind. “Did you ever hear back from Colt about the bistro?”

Jake startled, and he nodded to his phone. “Yeah, as a matter of fact, I did. I just forgot.” He looked at her and then out the windshield again. “He said he could get us a reservation for…sometime, but then he asked if we’d like to double with him and Elaine. I can’t remember why I didn’t talk to you about it.”

“Probably a birthing complication,” Hailey said as she picked up his phone. “Or wait—maybe the huge ice storm that stranded us in the administration trailer.”

Jake chuckled, gave her his PIN to get into his phone, and said, “Tell him we can double, if that’s okay with you.”

“It’s fine with me,” she said.

“And look at the date and see if it works for both of us.”

Hailey did that, thrilled when it did, and texted Colt back as if she were Jake to set up the double date. She sighed as she put his phone back in the cupholder, and then she picked up hers. “I suppose I should tell my friends about us too.”

“If you’d like,” Jake said. “I don’t think it’s a secret.”

“Especially not now that Ty told all the cowboys.” Hailey smiled at him and then focused on her device. She should probably start with her momma, and she started typing out the message.

Momma, I started dating Jake Ahlstrom, and I’m hoping if things continue to go well, I can bring him to the branding extravaganza at Shiloh Ridge. What do you think?

Hailey knew her mother would have plenty of thoughts, and now all she could do was pray she’d be able to assuage her mother’s concerns about Hailey dating her boss.

21

“You’ll be okay here while I run over to JJ’s?” Jake looked over to Hailey as she unbuckled her seatbelt.

She swung her attention back to him. “Yeah, I’ll be fine,” she said. A smile curved her pretty mouth. “In fact, you’ll probably find me in their heated house, holding their baby, by the time you get back.”

Jake grinned at her. “I hope so. Mitch didn’t say there was anything wrong with the dogs. He just wanted me to check them out.”

Hailey sobered and looked down at her own phone. “Wait, I thought he said that one of them was having a hard time jumping up on things. She wouldn’t get up on the bed? Wouldn’t jump up onto the deck—that kind of stuff.”

“Oh, right,” Jake said. “Just get all her vitals, would you? And I’ll give her an exam when I get there.”

“Knowing Mitch, he’s moved all the dogs in the house.”

Jake chuckled. “Knowing Mitch,” he repeated.

Hailey dropped out of the cab of the truck, slammed the door, and moved to the back to get her medical kit. She wouldn’t diagnose anything for Mitch, but she could take the dog’s temperature, get her weight, and go over what she’d been eating and where she’d been living before Jake got there.

If he ran a veterinary practice, his whole day would look like such a thing. Vet techs and secretaries handling everything, and he’d come in after reviewing the notes and do the doctorly things. He’d never aspired to have his own practice and had always wanted to work on a ranch.

As he swung around Mitch’s circle drive, a beautiful feeling of gratitude filled him from top to bottom. “Thank you, Dear Lord,” he said. “For always guiding my footsteps and opening doors to the exact path I need to be on.”

He quieted after that, though the east entrance to JJ’s ranch sat only ten minutes from Mitch’s Deaf Academy. JJ had Gypsy Vanner horses, though he’d arranged to have Beverly Russell come look at those, and quite the herd of longhorns, and of course, all the usual ranch animals: beef cattle, horses, chickens, and even bees and a couple of dairy cows.

Jake had specialized in large animal care, specifically for farms and ranches, but he knew the ins and outs of chickens, turkeys, goats, sheep, and other small animals that someone might keep in the Texas Panhandle.