Jesus, are they not even expecting a new hire? Pa told me he had all this handled.
“This the Montgomery ranch?” I ask uneasily, worried I have the wrong address even though the GPS pretty much confirmed I don’t. “I’m supposed to be coming on as a temp ranch hand for the drive.”
“Sure is,” the guy says. “We were expecting you tomorrow. I’m Bo.”
I reach out and shake the hand he offers me, two firm pumps before he takes his hand back.
“Ben—” I cut myself off before I can finish introducing myself. I doubt David would recognize me just based on my first name, but it’s better to be safe than sorry. Ben it is instead of Bennet while I’m here. I bite back my instinctive distaste for the nickname and barrel on, hoping Bo doesn’t catch my stumble. “I’m Ben. Got an early start.”
Bo nods and wipes the sweat from his brow. “Hang tight, I’ll go grab my dad and he’ll get you all sorted.”
His dad, huh? So Bo is the son of the infamous David, then. I expected him to be more of a stuck up asshole, like all the stories I’ve heard of his old man. I’m not here to make friends, but Bo seems like the kind of guy I could get along with.
That’ll make my time here a little more bearable.
I throw my truck in park before shoving the fast food wrappers currently littering my passenger seat onto the floorboard. Sure, working on ranches is a pretty relaxed gig in the sense of professionalism, but I’d like my temporary boss not to think I’m a huge slob. I take in the ranch's layout while I wait for Bo to return.
It’s a big place, but tidy. The barn is in good shape, and the cattle near enough to see are all wandering about happily. Chickens chatter from somewhere just out of sight, and the sound makes me smile softly. There’s still a chicken coop behind our house back in Lubbock because I begged for one until I was red in the face when I was a kid. They’re some of my favorite animals.
It doesn’t take long for Bo to come back out of the house, making his way down the warmly decorated wrap-around porch with an older man in tow.
That must be David.
He looks just as grouchy as I pictured him, barrel-chested and broad in the shoulders, a bushy mustache bristling on his upper lip. His face is red, and it looks like Bo is trying to calm him down about something.
When he gets close enough to meet my eyes, I’m surprised to find myself a little intimidated.
I’ve got both heightandmuscle on the man, but he’s got a commanding presence. I hop out of my truck in order to meet him halfway, never dropping my eyes from his. When he reaches me, he holds out his hand without a word, looking me over like I’m cattle. I guess we’ll find out if he’s got a discerning eye or not.
“David,” he says as I take his hand.
He grips just shy of too hard, but I match it easily. The calluses on his hands match the ones on mine, and hisestimation of me seems to raise a notch when I don’t flinch at the strength in his grip.
“Ben,” I say. “Good to meet you, sir.”
David hums like he hasn’t made up his mind whether it’s nice to meet me or not. He glances behind me at my truck and the little bullet trailer hitched to it.
“Usually get Carlos helping out around this time of year,” he says, narrowing his eyes at me. “He retire or something?”
I chuckle, shaking my head. Carlos isn’t anywhere near retiring age, and he’s much more likely to work right until the day he dies. “No, sir, his wife’s having their baby any day now. I’m a family friend of his, offered to take over his usual traveling gigs so he could stay home and take paternity leave.”
David’s glare softens a fraction at that, and he nods in acceptance before turning his full attention back to looking me over. I idly wonder if he inspects his cattle this thoroughly.
“You worked on a ranch before, boy?” he asks.
I bite my instinctual response about growing up on one. “Yes, sir. Back home in Texas. Helped out with more cattle drives than I can count down there.”
“Got family up here?”
“No, sir,” I say easily, refusing to show any discomfort at his questioning. “Just looking to get away from the heat for a bit. Figured I’ve never seen Montana, thought it might be a nice change of scenery. And I didn’t want Carlos to worry about leaving anyone shorthanded.”
The heatisless sweltering this far north, but that’s never bothered me. I agreed to this for two reasons. One, my dad asked me, and I won’t say no to family. The second reason is far more selfish—my ex moved back home after flunking out of college, and I really don’t want to run into her right now. Pa’s suggestion of helping out with this was a godsend, even if the drive was horrible.
“Dad, you’re being kind of intense,” Bo says teasingly, nudging his dad’s arm with his elbow.
David blinks, all the posturing draining away as he laughs at himself.
“Sorry, kid,” he says. “Good to have you on board. I’ll have Bo here get you set up with your trailer, and then I’ll show you around.”
