Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 74968 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 375(@200wpm)___ 300(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74968 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 375(@200wpm)___ 300(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)
Adler, however, kept right on smiling, charming, and fitting in.
Huh. Maybe it wasn’t only me he wanted to charm. Maybe he was nice to the whole world, nothing special about me. I didn’t like that thought, so I kept shoveling in my chili mac to avoid contributing to the conversation.
Adler did right fine, carrying on without my help, which only made me glower that much more.
“Tell me more about the rescue horses,” he urged Kat.
“Not much to tell.” Kat shrugged, her long dark braid bouncing against her shoulders. “Way too common of a story around here. Someone bought a small hobby ranch above their means, discovered the high cost of hay and feed, and the horses were the ones to suffer when the ranch went belly up. Rescue stepped in, but the organization couldn’t line up a good placement, so I volunteered.”
“As usual.” Motley snorted. He was slightly younger than Kat’s late thirties/early forties. Giving her a hard time was one of Motley’s few hobbies. “You’re too soft-hearted.”
“I’d rather be that than foul-tempered,” she shot back. She could give as good as she got from any of the hands, but her sparring matches with Motley were legendary in the bunkhouse.
“Like Gray,” Reindeer added slyly. I’d hired him on when we’d been desperate for hands willing to work for Maverick’s father’s below-market wages, and he was a little too fond of giving me shit because he knew I couldn’t afford to sack him simply for mouthing off.
“Hey now.” Casey was our good-natured peacemaker.
“It’s true.” Chips spoke up for the first time all dinner. Somewhere in his late twenties, he got along with Reindeer but was quieter than his friend. “Gray’s been pissed off ever since Maverick came up with that fool dude ranch idea.”
“How about we don’t badmouth Maverick with his friend right here?” Casey suggested before I could.
“No, go on.” Adler gestured with his fork. He offered a generous smile. “I’m here as one of you. If you’re not happy with the dude ranch idea, I’m not going to tattle. Heck, your complaints might help me brainstorm things that would make the idea work better.”
“I don’t want strangers in our bunkhouse,” Chips grumbled. At least he didn’t have the spicy tortilla chip breath that had earned him his name tonight. He wore his hair in a military short buzz, and he was forever leaving his hat in places. As a result, his skin was ruddy from a summer spent in the sun. “No offense.”
“None taken.” Adler’s good mood persisted, and I half expected him to whip out his phone to take notes. “We’re talking about other options like getting some tiny house cabins or converting one of the other buildings for guests.”
“A bunch of bored tourists wandering around are bound to be trouble,” Motley warned.
“So we keep them from being bored.” Adler’s earnest smile was damn hard to deny. He almost had me convinced this wasn’t a terrible idea. Almost.
“How are we supposed to keep ’em from being bored?” Reindeer asked.
“Chores. Activities. Outings.” Adler ticked items off an imaginary list.
Chips made a rude noise. “Sounds like summer camp.”
“Sounds like more work for us.” Motley rolled his eyes.
“That’s why I’m here for the next few months.” Adler could sell umbrellas in a dry desert and leave the buyer feeling great about the purchase. “I want to figure out ways to have the guests help without being a burden on all of you.”
“Thank you.” Casey smiled back at Adler. “Appreciate that.”
“How can I help clean up?” Adler went for extra brownie points as folks started leaving the table. “Is there a dishwasher?”
“Yep.” Casey was quick with the answer. “I’ll show you.”
“At least he’s helpful,” Kat said to me in a low voice as we did our part of the cleanup and packed up the leftovers while Casey and Adler tackled the dishwasher. Others did the counters and washed the pots.
“Yeah.” I kept my voice down as well. “He did decent with Cinder today. Don’t tell him I said that though. Don’t need him gettin’ all cocky around the horses.”
“Of course.” Kat gave a soft, knowing laugh as we moved on to gathering up the trash to take to the bear-proof cans outside. “Can’t have him thinking he’s doing a good job.”
“You saying I’m being too hard on him?” I dumped the trash bags into the larger outdoor can with more force than was needed.
“He seems under your skin.” Kat leaned against a post for the overhang that shielded the trash cans. She didn’t have a jacket on, but she also didn’t seem inclined to head back in. “Most people don’t faze you. But something about Adler has you pricklier than a cactus.”
“Don’t care for city folk. That’s all.” I wasn’t about to agree with her, let alone unpack all my conflicting thoughts. I continued to have no clue why my body—and brain—reacted to Adler like tinder to a spark. All I knew was that I had no business acting on that attraction again.