by Alice Ward
“Do you have any idea what Cole wants to talk to us about?” Matt asked as he drove up the long, winding driveway to the main house.
“No idea,” I confessed. “But it has to be about the thoroughbreds. Why else would he want to talk to both of us?”
“I guess we’re about to find out.” Matt nodded towards the front door. I followed his gaze and saw my father standing on the porch.
Daddy was pushing sixty, but youthful energy radiated from his clear blue eyes. His blonde hair was touched with grey around the temples and, like Dallas, his skin was leathery from decades in the sun and wind. But he was still handsome, by anyone’s standards. As Matt and I climbed out of the ATV, Daddy walked down the porch steps to greet us.
“Any new calves this morning, sweetheart?” he asked as he wrapped me in a tight hug.
“Six… I’m pretty sure two of them are twins. I thought you’d have found them for yourself by now,” I commented as we made our way up the steps.
“I’m going to ride out to the pasture after lunch. It will give me a good excuse not to lie down and take a nap,” he joked. “Matt, how’s life treating you?”
“I can’t complain, Cole. Thank you.”
“That’s great… just great,” Daddy said as we stepped into the house. We walked straight to the kitchen and Matt and I took seats at the table while Daddy went to the oven.
New people are always surprised to see our house. Our success and wealth are common knowledge in our small town, and most people expect to see a sprawling mansion with polished floors and expensive furnishings. Instead, they find our modest three bedroom, two bathroom home. Honestly, some of the staff cabins aren’t much smaller than the main house. Daddy was never one to be extravagant for the sake of extravagance. He built a practical home and invested most of his money in the barns and livestock.
“I hope you’re hungry,” Daddy called out as he pulled out a baking sheet stacked with fresh fried chicken. “Mary really outdid herself. She came in at nine and only left about half an hour ago.”
“I didn’t realize we were having Mary’s fried chicken. This is a real treat,” Matt said as Daddy set the tray on the countertop. “What can I help you with, Cole?”
“If you want, grab the potato salad and slaw out of the fridge. There’s a fresh pitcher of herbal tea in there too, if you’re thirsty,” Daddy replied.
Cole jumped up to fetch our sides and I followed close behind him. I poured three glasses of iced tea while Matt and Daddy made our plates. We returned to the table and ate in silence until half of the food was gone.
“This is amazing,” Cole said, wiping salty grease from his chin. “Thanks for inviting me to eat with you, Cole.”
“You know you’re welcome here any time,” Daddy reminded him. He took a long sip of his tea and returned his glass to the table. “But I have to confess, I have ulterior motives this afternoon.”
Here we go… I bet he’s going to try to get out of going to the Derby this year. Or maybe he wants to put more focus on the working stock. God, I hope he doesn’t want me to sell any of the racehorses.
“There’s something I’d like to talk to you both about,” Daddy continued. He turned to Matt. “My daughter insists that you don’t need any help with the thoroughbreds, but you two have twice as many horses as you did a year ago.”
Here it comes… he thinks we need to scale down.
“We do have a lot of work on our hands,” Matt agreed. “But we’re managing all right.”
Daddy nodded. “Yes, I’ve been paying attention and I know that you’re both doing an exceptional job. But it’s spring, and things are going to start getting pretty chaotic around here. I’m expecting nearly as many spring foals as spring calves. I know that you both want to go to Churchill in a few months, but I won’t be able to spare any of my guys to cover your work while you’re gone. And after the Derby, there will be Preakness, Belmont, summer vacation. And wouldn’t you like to have a day off together every now and then?”
I still didn’t understand where he was going. “Daddy, it’s not that big of a deal. I don’t have to go to the Derby…”
“Nonsense,” he interrupted. “You have two horses in the race, you have to go to the Derby.”
“I’m only five percent owner on each of them,” I reminded him. I didn’t have the time or resources to train and race my own horses, but I was smart enough to retain a small percentage of ownership in them.
“You’re going to the race,” Daddy insisted. “We just need to hire someone to help in the thoroughbred barn, that’s all. I know you’ve been resistant to the idea, Willow, but it’s time to stop being so damn stubborn about it. Matt, I’m assuming you’re not opposed to a little extra time off? Your salary will remain the same, of course.”
Matt shifted nervously in his seat and stared down at his near empty plate. Matt knew how I felt about taking on new workers in my barn and I appreciated him keeping his mouth shut.
That’s why he invited Matt. He knew he’d never talk me in to this on his own.
“Daddy, you know how I feel about having strangers in my barn.”
“Pumpkin, you’re being unreasonable. I know that working with the thoroughbreds helps you feel closer to Mom. And I’m not trying to take that away from you. But it’s not like this would be the first time we’ve hired help with the racehorses. You remember Carl, he ran the whole program while you were growing up. And Harry was a great help to Matt while you were away at college.”
“But I’m not away anymore and I’m not a little girl.” I paused and lowered my voice. “I can handle the work, Daddy. The racehorses are my job, my responsibility.” I almost added that they were my birthright, but I didn’t want to sound like a spoiled brat.
“I know they’re your job, sweetheart, and that you take the responsibility very seriously. But you need help and that’s final. I’m not suggesting that you hire someone, I’m insisting on it.”
I narrowed my eyes and scowled. I wanted to argue, but Daddy very rarely put his foot down. I knew that if he insisted I hire someone, I’d have to do it.
“Fine,” I finally agreed, pretending I had a choice. “Dallas told me he’s talking to people today. I’ll go down to the stables and sit in on the interviews. But I’m not going to hire just anyone. They have to be qualified and have lots of experience with breeding.”
“I’ve already hired someone for you,” Daddy told us and leaned back in his chair.
I was caught off guard by the announcement. My mouth opened and closed a few times before I could speak. “You have… who?”
“Renee Parker. I’m sure you remember her. I think you guys went to high school with her son.”
Matt sat up straight in his seat, instantly alert and downright giddy. James Parker had been the hottest guy in at our high school. Matt and I had both had desperate crushes on James, but neither of us had ever mustered enough courage to actually speak to him.
“I remember Renee,” Matt replied quickly. “She volunteered at school stuff. She was always one of the nicest moms.”
I scowled at Matt before turned back to my father. “Yes she’s incredibly sweet, but what does she know about horses? Doesn’t she work at Dr. Wilson’s office?” My voice was near growling and I didn’t bother hiding my impatience.
“Yes, she’s been a nurse for quite some time, I believe,” Daddy agreed. “But she grew up on a place similar to this, in Kentucky. Her father bred racehorses… so did her grandfather and great-grandfather. Dr. Wilson is retiring and Renee’s decided to leave with him. You know the Parker’s only live a few miles from here. Renee is tired of driving in to town every day to work. I think it’ll be a perfect arrangement for all of us.”
Matt grinned and I knew he was fantasizing about James visiting his mother here at the ranch. “I think it sounds wonderful, Cole. You were right, Willow and I could use some help.”
I shot him a look that said “traitor”, but he didn’t miss a beat.
“Just think about it, Willow,” Matt continued. “With any luck, Mondo or Denver’s Pride will place at the Derby. Hell, they may both place. And the better they do at the Triple Crown Races, the busier we’re going to be. We’ll need someone to focus on the dirty work while we negotiate six and seven figure contracts.” He gave me a wide, confident smile and I knew he truly believed our program was about to get attention.
“Okay,” I agreed with a sigh. I turned to Daddy. “I wish you’d talked to me about this before you hired her, but I won’t argue about it.”
“Fantastic!” Daddy stood up and collected our empty plates. He continued talking as he made his way to the sink. “I would have talked to you first, pumpkin, but it all happened kind of suddenly. I ran in to Renee at the market yesterday. We struck up a conversation and she mentioned that she was looking for work. I knew she had experience, so I offered her the job before anyone else had a chance to hire her. She starts tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow’s Matt’s day off…” I mumbled. It was my turn to stare blankly at the table. I knew that Daddy and Matt were being reasonable and that an extra set of hands would be an asset. But I wasn’t looking forward to having an outsider in my barn and I wished I had more time to prepare myself.
“I can come in tomorrow, no problem,” Matt quickly replied. “I’d love to, actually. You can train Renee and I’ll pick up the slack.” He took a long drink of his tea and ignored my scowl.
“Perfect,” Daddy agreed. “Matt, you can take an extra day off once Renee’s completely trained. Willow, I told Renee to be here at the house by eight a.m.”
“Okay…” I agreed grudgingly. “I’ll be ready for her.”
“Great,” Daddy said, beaming at me. “I really appreciate the way you’re handling this, pumpkin. And just wait and see, in a few weeks you’ll wonder how you ever lived without her.”
I sincerely doubt that.
I pushed my chair away from the table and stood. “We should be getting back to the barn. We still have to exercise the stallions and the Fosters are bringing their mare out this evening. I need to make sure that the paddock is ready.”
“And I need to check the cattle and ride out to the Mustang pasture,” Daddy added after rinsing the plates.
“Thanks again for lunch,” Matt said as we made our way outside.
“Thanks for helping Willow see reason,” Daddy joked.
“Can we give you a ride to the stables?” I asked as Matt climbed into the driver’s seat.
“Thanks, but I left Rosco down at the stock barn last night. I’ll drive through the cattle pasture and then go saddle him up. It would be helpful if you could drive the truck back this afternoon.”
“I’ll drop Willow off at the stock barn when I leave for the day,” Matt offered.
“I’ll leave the truck at the stables,” I added.
“I don’t know what I’d do without the two of you,” Daddy replied with a grin. “Have a good night, Matt. Willow, I’ll see you at dinner.”
Daddy slid behind the wheel of his beat up farm truck and set off for the cattle pasture.
“I can’t believe James Parker’s mom is going to be working with us!” Matt squealed, sounding uncharacteristically feminine. “It’s going to be so amazing… do you think he’ll visit her here?”
“I don’t know,” I replied with a frown. “I’m more concerned about how well she’ll take direction from us. I hope she doesn’t show up and try to take over the place.”
Matt stopped the ATV in the middle of the driveway and turned to me with his full attention. “Willow, I know this is hard for you. I have to admit, I’ve loved it being just you and me for the last year. But your dad is right. If we’re going to make it to the races and handle everything that comes along with that, we need someone we can trust to take care of the horses.”
“And if neither of our horses place and business doesn’t boom after the Derby? What then?”
“If we don’t need her after racing season is over, I’m sure Cole can move her to another barn. It’s not like you have a shortage of them,” he teased, gesturing around the landscape.
Matt was right. The ranch was more than big enough to utilize an extra set of hands. The left side of the property was occupied by the Mustang and Quarter horse pastures, along with the massive stock barn. The main house was in the middle of the land, with the thoroughbred barn, stables, and supply barn in front of it. The staff cabins sat behind the main house and the right side of the property was all cattle pasture.
“I guess you’re right,” I relented. “In fact, I’m going to assume you’re right. I’ll treat this like a temporary situation. It’s the only way I’ll be able to get through tomorrow. Renee better know her place when she shows up though. I get that she’s older than us, but this is our barn.”
“If you want, we can piss in all the corners and mark our territory before she gets here,” Matt teased.
I gave him a good natured slap on the shoulder. “Very funny. Let’s get back to work. We’ve got tons of things to do, and now we need to clean the barn on top of everything else… our office too. The last think I want is for Renee to show up and think we’re sloppy and unorganized.”
“But we are sloppy and unorganized,” Matt laughed as he put the ATV in drive.
“Maybe so, but we don’t need to advertise it. When are the Fosters supposed to be here?”
“Around four, they’re going to wait until the kids get out of school. You know how much Lilly and Martin like visiting the ranch.”
Fantastic… there’s no point in cleaning or organizing anything until after the rugrats have left.
“Okay, let’s get the paddock ready first. I’ll make sure the water trough is clean if you’ll jump on the tractor and bring in a bale of hay. If we have the stallions out on the walker when the kids get here, we may be able to keep them outside. The barn looked like it had been hit by a tornado the last time they came out.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Matt agreed as we pulled up next to the hitching pole. Mayhem was still saddled and waiting patiently, but I knew I wouldn’t have a chance to ride again that day.
“What are you doing tonight?” Matt asked.
“Dinner with Daddy, I guess. Why?”
“Want to rent a movie and hang out? Something tells me that you’re going to need a drink or two when this day is over.”
I grinned. “Sounds like a plan.”
CHAPTER 2
As promised, Renee showed up at the house bright and early the next morning. I heard the doorbell ring from my bedroom, took a deep breath, and vowed to keep my attitude in check. I knew Daddy was right about Matt and I needing help, but I wasn’t about to admit it to anyone but myself. I checked my reflection in my vanity mirror. My blue eyes stood out against my porcelain complexion and I was relieved that I didn’t look as tired as I felt. I tucked a few stray hairs behind my ear, and set off down the hallway. By the time I got to the front door, no one was there. I followed the sound of voices to the kitchen and found Daddy and Renee drinking coffee at the table. Daddy smiled when I entered the room.
“Good morning, pumpkin. You remember Mrs. Parker?”
Good God… do they expect me to call her Mrs. Parker? She’s an employee for Christ’s sake. And she better not even think about calling me pumpkin.
“Yes, of course,” I replied with a tight smile. “How are you… Mrs. Parker?”
“Please, Willow, call me Renee,” she said. Renee gave me a kind, broad smile and seemed perfectly at ease. The fact that she was so comfortable in our house irritated me, but I wasn’t sure why. “I’m doing well,” Renee continued. “I’m excited to get started today. I was just telling Cole how much I’ve missed working with horses. Believe it or not, I was quite the cowgirl in my day.”
“That must be where James gets it,” I replied. I walked to the countertop and poured myself a cup of coffee. “I hear he’s making a name for himself on the rodeo circuit.”
“That he
is,” Renee confirmed. “But he didn’t get that from me. Horses are one thing, but when he climbs onto the backs of those bulls, my heart stops. Fortunately, he hasn’t been injured too badly yet… not that he’s told me about, anyway.”
“James is young,” Daddy chimed in. “I’m sure he hits the ground and bounces right back up.”
“It must be hard for you, having him away from home so much,” I observed. I leaned against the kitchen counter and drank my coffee.
Renee nodded. “It has… I’m ashamed to admit it, but I leaned on James a bit too much after Gus died. Now that it’s just me at the house, I’ve had a hard time figuring out what to do with myself. That’s why I’m so happy to be here.”
I remembered when James’s father died. Gus Parker had been a kind man, and very involved in his son’s life. He was a teacher and coached the Durango High football team. When I was in middle school, Gus was hit by a drunk driver and died on the scene. James was a sophomore in high school when it happened. That’s when he quit the football team and discovered bull riding.
Daddy reached across the table and squeezed Renee’s hand. “We’re happy to have you here.” There was a hint of affection in his voice that grated on my already frayed nerves. Renee gave Daddy a tender look that made me feel even more uncomfortable.
“Thank you, Cole,” she replied. They stared at each other for a moment and then suddenly dropped hands and broke eye contact. It was if they’d just remembered I was there.
“When will James be home?” I asked.
So you’ll have a reason not to be here all the time…
“Actually, he’ll be home this weekend. He’s riding in a rodeo in Pagosa Springs. After that, he’s going on the road for another two weeks and then he’ll be home for at least a month.”
My stomach fluttered at the thought of James being close by again. “You’ll have to bring him out sometime,” I suggested, trying to hide the eagerness in my voice.
Daddy and Renee exchanged a satisfied look. “I’m so glad to hear you say that,” Daddy told me. “I wasn’t going to mention this until all the details were worked out, but I’ve decided to add to our trail riding tours this year. Extreme survival tours are all the rage right now. Instead of taking people out on day trips, we’ll set up rustic camping areas and do overnight and weekend rides. I’m going to offer James a job as one of our guides. He’s great with animals and he knows the badlands like the back of his hand.”
