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“I wasn’t aware.”
“They’ll give you a history lesson on Monday.” He urged Midnight ahead as if to indicate the topic was closed.
AJ did her best to keep up with Travis’s more spirited animal. “The ranch is about five hundred acres?” she asked as she caught up.
He nodded. “Yeah, most of that is grazing land.”
“How many head?”
“Fifteen. The goal is to triple that. We’re looking to be self-sustaining and hopefully take some product to market after they feed for a year. Grass-fed cattle are in demand right now.”
“Do you live on the ranch?” she asked.
“That depends on what’s going on. Nothing worse than getting home and having to turn around and come back to put out fires.” He looked at her and pushed his Stetson to the back of his head. “That’s where you come in.”
“I’m here to make your life easier,” she said.
“So they tell me.” Travis’s phone rang and he pulled it out. “Maxwell.” He released a sound of frustration as he listened and then slipped the cell into his shirt pocket. “I’ve got a missing ranch hand.”
“Missing?”
“Normally, this is Rusty’s day off, but he volunteered to lead an early morning trail ride. He’s a no-show.” With a disgusted shake of his head, Travis turned his horse around. “Putting out fires is getting mighty old.”
“Let me put out the fires.” The words rushed from her lips before she could stop them.
“Sounds like you think you can do that.”
“Yes, sir. I can.”
He narrowed his eyes.
“I mean, Travis.”
He paused as if considering her words. “All right, then, let’s go find Rusty.” His eyes met hers and he smiled.
One smile and her pulse started a gallop that she fought to control.
When Travis nudged Midnight into a canter and took off toward the stables, she sat in the saddle for a moment, staring at his retreating form.
For the first time someone was giving her a chance to prove she could do the job. And it didn’t hurt that he was smiling at the time.
AJ urged Ace forward, her spirit soaring as the wind whipped past. Travis Maxwell held her future in his hands. She’d have to be very careful he didn’t hold her heart, as well.
Chapter Two (#ue58ecb26-a199-55ff-ad07-375b9102dcf5)
Travis slammed through the bunkhouse and stood at the foot of Rusty’s bed. He jerked back slightly at the pungent odor that rose up to greet him. The place smelled like dirty socks and leftover pizza.
The linens had been pulled and sat in a pile on the floor. There was nothing to indicate whether or not Rusty had slept there last night or why he hadn’t bothered to show up for work today.
Dutch was gone for the weekend, so he’d get no help there. He pulled out his cell and once again punch-dialed Rusty’s number, with no results.
“Way to make me look good in front of my new assistant foreman, pal,” Travis muttered. He pushed through the back door and got back in the Ute.
“Do I smell funny?” he asked AJ.
“Excuse me?”
“That place looked and smelled worse than a locker room. Just want to make sure it didn’t follow me.”
She leaned close and gave a wary sniff. When she did, the scent of chocolate tickled his nose.
“You smell like chocolate.”
AJ’s eyes widened and she scooted away from him. “I thought this was about you,” she said.
“It is. That was just an observation.”
“You’re fine,” AJ murmured.
“Good.” He shoved the keys in the ignition, annoyed that his mouth had taken off before his good sense realized what he was doing.
“Cocoa butter,” AJ murmured.
Travis’s ears perked as he tried to catch her words. “What?”
“It’s cocoa butter. You know. Cream.” Though she turned away, he glimpsed the pink of embarrassment that touched her face.
“Ah, yeah. Right.” Travis put the Ute in gear while silently blaming Rusty for everything and anything, including the awkward exchange with his assistant foreman.
“I take it he wasn’t there?” AJ asked.
“No. Maybe we passed him. Let’s double back around and check the stables.”
Travis did a visual sweep of the stalls as AJ followed. A light was on in the office of the equestrian center manager. Though Travis rapped his knuckles on the glass, Tripp was not fazed. He took his good old time lifting his gaze from the laptop in front of him to acknowledge Travis’s presence before waving him into the office.
“Hey, Tripp, do you—”
“Nope.” Tripp returned his attention back on the screen.
“What do you mean ‘nope’? You don’t even know what the question is.”
“Rusty.”
Travis shook his head. “No pick-up from his cell. I’ve checked every hidey-hole on this ranch. If he’s not dead or near dead, he’s going to wish he was.”
Tripp shook his head. “You shouldn’t have hired him.”
“Talking to Lucy, huh?”
“Saw that one coming all by myself.”
“Great. By the way, this is the new assistant foreman.” He nodded in AJ’s direction. “AJ Rowe, meet Tripp Walker.”
Tripp slowly unfolded his lanky frame and got to his feet. The man stood at least six-five and carried a scar down the left side of his face.
“Pleased to meet you, ma’am,” Tripp said.
“I, uh, thank you,” AJ murmured.
“She’ll need a horse,” Travis said.
A slight nod was the only indication that the stable manager had heard the request. He looked to AJ. “Ace okay?”
“Yes. Absolutely.”
He nodded again.
“Thank you.”
“We’re going to head over to the girls’ ranch. Can you find someone to untack our horses?” Travis asked.
“Yep.”
“Thanks,” Travis said. He cocked his head and AJ followed him out of the stables.
“Quiet, isn’t he?”
“They call him the horse whisperer.”
“What happened to his...? The scar?”
“Doesn’t talk about that, or much of anything.”
As they headed back to the Ute, Lucy appeared from around the corner. He recognized the fire in his sister’s eyes and the determination in her stride.
This couldn’t be good.
“Good morning, AJ,” Lucy said with a smile that didn’t include him. “Great to have you with us.”
“Thanks, Lucy.”
“What are you doing here on a Saturday?” Travis asked.
“My kids have riding lessons.” Again she directed her conversation to AJ. Finally she turned to him. “We need to talk.”
“Whatever you have to say to me, you can say in front of my right-hand man—er, woman.”
“Fine. I just received a phone call from the esteemed police chief of Timber.”
“Aw, that’s nothing. In fact, it’s my fault. Sorry. I should have told you. I promised him a discount for renting the retreat center for the law enforcement ball this year.”
Lucy crossed her arms. “No, Travis. He was not calling about the ball. It was a courtesy call to inform me that one of our employees is sitting in his jail.”
“What?” Travis was all ears as he pulled the Ute keys from his pocket. “What did he do?”
“You know who I’m referring to?”
“I can make an educated guess since I can’t find Rusty. What’s the charge?”
“Disorderly conduct. Disturbing the peace.”
“I’ve known Rusty for years. Never saw him take a drink, ever.”
“Oh, he wasn’t drinking. He was, however, dumped by the love of his life. While I feel for the man, this is not the example of leadership and problem-solving skills we want our children to emulate. Plus, we have donors who will hear about his behavior. Rusty is putting everything we’ve worked hard for these last five years at risk.”
Travis took a deep breath at the I-told-you-so that laced his sister’s voice.
“Chief Daniels says he’s been singing mournful country-western songs since 5:00 a.m. The man is tone deaf and it’s driving everyone crazy. He’d like us to bail Rusty out immediately.”
“We’ve got this covered,” he assured Lucy. “As I have turned over fire extinguishing, along with the management of the ranch hands, to her, AJ will be letting Rusty go.”
He looked to his assistant foreman for confirmation.
AJ pasted a smile on her face and offered a firm nod of confirmation.
Lucy’s eyes rounded. “You’re good with that, AJ?”
“Absolutely. My job is to make Travis’s life easier.”
His sister’s expression remained doubtful as she looked from AJ to Travis.
“Lucy, we’ve got this. Trust me,” Travis interjected. He put his hands on his sister’s shoulders and turned her around. “Go.”
“All right, then.” Lucy hesitated. “I guess I’ll go watch my children ride horses.”
“You do that. We have everything under control.”
AJ fell into step with him as he moved in the direction of the Ute. “I’m firing Rusty?” she asked.
“Yep. Come on. We’ll take my truck.”
“Uh, Travis. What exactly did you mean by ‘management’? What will I be managing?”
“Everything that concerns the wranglers.”
“You’re okay with me hiring, too?”
He looked at her. “All part of the job, right?”
