“In case we haven’t been properly introduced, my name’s Jake. I’m the foreman on the ranch, and I’m the guy who will be making you do all my chores this week.”
My eyes scanned the crowd, and I was pleased to see that this week held a lot more men in attendance than cowboy-obsessed females. Though I didn’t let my gaze settle on the tall redhead holding a camera in the back, I felt her presence. Like she was still forcing me to hug her. To go off contract with a touch I hadn’t been ready for.
After our movie night last week, I’d kept myself scarce. I chalked it up to needing a break from the smell of coconut shampoo that seemed to be infused into my brain. I spent most of my evenings teaching Sophie to swim in the pond nearby. If I was going to be both parents for my daughter, that meant that some days the fun had to win out. Occasionally, that meantSophie stayed up later than normal, which meant we both went to bed at the same time, making it too late for flirting lessons.
“By show of hands, who has ridden a horse more than once in their life?” I asked.
Four hands in the crowd went up. “Alright, line up here, and we’ll get you assigned a horse.”
It took half an hour of Shelby and me assessing skill levels and assigning horses appropriately before the trail ride was finally underway. She was there to take pictures. I’d never asked her to help me with this part of my job, but I was grateful she was there. I led the pack of fifteen horses along an easy trail up into the mountains. Shelby brought up the rear, falling behind to take pictures of the group with the mountains as her backdrop.
There were no clouds in the sky, and I felt the sun heat my back as we rode. I had fun teasing and laughing with Dotty and Valeen, two elderly sisters just behind me in the front of the pack. Every time I glanced back to check on the group, I noticed a taller guy letting other riders pass him so he could be closer to Shelby.
“You’re not looking at me, are you, Cowboy Jake? Because I’ve got to tell you, I’m probably thirty years your senior, young man,” came the voice of Dotty.
Thirty years was probably being generous.
I laughed and held up my hands in front of me. “Just checking on the herd, Dot. I promise.”
“If I had a dime for every time I heard that.”
I laughed and told her to behave.
Which she did not.
“You sure it’s not that cute redhead in the back?”
For a moment, I sat puzzled at her statement. What were Shelby and I doing that would give someone that impression? I’d hardly spoken to her all day. We worked as a team gettinghorses lined out for guests. I might have teased her a bit, but I couldn’t remember anything specific. She’d laughed a few times. But that wasn’t unusual.
I moved ahead of Dotty at the pretense of scouting ahead to find our picnic spot by the river. When we stopped for lunch, I hung by the horses, taking them each for a drink at the river while the talk and chatter of the group went on all around me.
It turned out the guy paying attention to Shelby was named Easton, and he was from Boise. The whole group on the ranch this week was his extended family. Dotty, the grandma, had grown up in Challis and wanted a way to bring all of her kids and grandkids back for a visit. Enter the dude ranch.
He was from Boise.
The same city Shelby would be moving to after the summer.
The fact that Shelby could practice flirting with a guy she could easily see again put a different spin on this whole thing.
A good spin.
But a definite spin.
But it might not matter at all if Shelby kept on talking to Easton like she was.
Dang my conscience. I needed to save her.
“Shelby, can you help me with these horses for a sec?”
A relieved expression lit her face. She grabbed the reins and followed me to the river.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Huh?”
“Why are you bringing up other girls talking with that guy? He’s talking to you. He doesn’t care about your friends.”
Her cheeks colored. “I hate when you listen to my conversations.”