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“Are you okay?”
Sawyer snapped out of his memories, and Josie was looking up at him with that transparent curiosity of hers.
“Sorry,” he said, aware that not only had he drifted off, but he was fidgeting as well. “I’ve been driving all day. I’m not used to sitting still for so long.”
“I can walk and talk,” Josie said with a shrug, ambling out of the barn as if it were as simple as that. She seemed nice, like genuinely nice deep down, not just on the surface. Sawyer found himself following her, more curious about her than anything else.
Back outside, away from the neat interior of the barn, the shabbiness of the ranch hit him all over again. And it wasn’t exactly a small ranch either. He’d expected to be back for as short a visit as possible, to make it as convenient for everyone as he was able, but looking around, Sawyer started mentally adding days onto his trip. A lot of them.
“We’ve got our work cut out for us,” he said.
Josie grimaced and nodded in agreement. “It’ll be worth it, though,” she said with another shrug. “You can’t get the best results without a little elbow grease, right?”
Did she ever stop smiling? Sawyer didn’t think he’d met someone sobrightbefore. And not only cheerful and bubbly, but also fully capable of fending for herself if need be. When she’d first spotted him in the barn, she’d looked about ready to haul him out by the scruff of his neck if she’d had to. She was such an interesting mix of things that Sawyer felt like she was some sort of puzzle, one that he’d never be able to figure out no matter how long he lived.
In the field closest to the barn, Sawyer spotted two horses that he hadn’t noticed on the drive up; he had been too busy taking in the state of things.
“These guys are new,” said Sawyer, nodding over at the animals in their pasture, ignoring both of the humans as they continued to graze. A chestnut mare and a plain, old, brown gelding.
“They’ve been here a few years now,” Josie said, correcting his assumption. It wasn’t harsh, the way she said it, just a statement, but he still felt it like a punch to the gut. A fewyears. The amount of time Sawyer had spent away from here was starting to become clearer with everything he learned. Luke’s frosty reception no longer seemed quite so uncalled for.
“Originally we got them to help herd the cattle if the ATVs ever went down,” continued Josie, happily carrying the conversation. “But then Luke and your dad started selling off a bunch of the herd anyways, then the ATVs did end up going down, so now Indy and Clyde just get to be fat and happy and pampered without doing anything to pay rent. But I’m the one that takescare of them, and I’ve decided they’re forgiven for their lazy ways. They’re just lucky they’re cute.”
It was obvious she was fond of them as she stepped up onto an overturned bucket, whose sole purpose seemed to be as a step stool for her, and the chestnut mare came over at her call, ignoring Sawyer entirely, which was fair enough, he guessed.
“Yeah, that’s on my list,” he said, watching Josie stroke the horse’s nose. “Selling the ATV for scrap.”
Josie rolled her eyes. “Did Luke tell you to do that?” she asked, almost scornful.
“Uh, yeah? Should I cross that off or…”
“We should just trash the whole thing,” she said disdainfully. “It’s not worth the energy to take it apart for pieces. It’s so busted up and broken that anything worth something has probably rusted away from being out in the rain for so long. But you know how Luke is. If there’s a way to pinch a penny or two, he will.”
No, he didn’t know that. Sawyer had always sent home money. He’d been nothing but generous with his salary, and that was definitelyonething that nobody could argue with. So why was Luke still pinching pennies like that?
It seemed Sawyer had a lot to learn about his brother, more than he’d ever realized.
CHAPTER 3
JOSIE
“These are the only cattle left,” said Josie, climbing through the gap in the gate to get into the field. But she quickly realized Sawyer couldn’t follow her that way. He was… well,colossalmight have sounded rude if she said it out loud, but it was the first thing that came to her mind. He watched her climb through the gate with a bemused look before unlatching it and walking through like an adult.
“Not as nimble as you,” he said, closing it behind him.
“Well, you’re built like a bull,” she said. “So I don’t blame you. Tell you what, you reach things for me, maybe give me a boost if I need it, and I’ll scoot through small spaces? Deal?”
“Sounds like a plan.”
They shook hands on it, as if it were a terribly serious bargain they’d just made, and Josie smiled. Okay, so the guy didn’t take himself too seriously. That was a plus. They only walked a few yards into the field. The cattle had spotted them and were making their way over, thinking they’d get food, even though the greedy things had all the grass they could eat.
“So why keep these ones?” Sawyer asked, his eyes roaming over the animals, and Josie realized what he was doing. He was checking on them — the same way she and Luke and Sandy all did. Checking for bumps, scrapes and injuries, checking for any obvious pests, if one of them had a limp or needed a hoof trimmed.
Guess once a country boy, always a country boy…though Josie didn’t imagine you came across that many cattle in the professional football league.
“Luke figured it would be more incentive for any buyers, you know? Having some cattle already on the farm, the start of a herd.”
“Smart.”
