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The week went by more quickly than I ever could have imagined, and the only reason I realized how much time had passed was because of the envelope Jed slipped to me after breakfast.
When I looked at him quizzically, he laughed. “You didn’t think you were working for free, did you?”
I opened the envelope to find my first paycheck as a cowhand on the Silver Fork Ranch. It was probably the least amount of money I’d ever made in my entire life, but I was still proud as shit. I’d worked my ass off for every cent. I figured I deserved to buy myself a treat to celebrate, and I tore through my to-do list as fast as possible so that I had a bit of free time before dinner.
I checked with the other hands to see if anyone needed me to pick anything up for them, and then I grabbed the keys to one of the trucks and headed for town. It was late afternoon, the sun sliding toward the Wind River Mountains in the west. The past several days had been warm, but the wind through the truck’s window was cool and refreshing.
The radio station was automatically tuned to some country music station, and I found myself singing along, recognizing the song as one of Hiram’s favorites.
Of course, Silverhollow wasn’t really known as a shopping destination. The closest I could get to any kind of store that might have something I might be interested in was the tack store, where Boone had bought my boots when I’d first arrived in town.
A bell rang over the door when I stepped inside, and the woman behind the checkout counter glanced up and smiled. “Can I help you with anything, hon?”
I waved a hand. “Oh, I’m just browsing, thanks.”
She gave me a curious look. I doubted they had a lot of window shoppers. This really was one of those “get in, get what you need, and get out” kind of stores.
My first stop was the corner with several racks of men’s clothes. As it turned out, designer clothes might feel and look good, but they weren’t necessarily designed for long hours of physical labor. Several of my best shirts had stains I’d rather not think about the origins of, and my best pair of jeans had a rip in the knee.
I fingered one of the snap-front shirts on the sale rack. They weren’t the worst-looking things in the world, and with a few alterations, I could probably make them work. I grabbed a couple, along with a sturdy pair of jeans, and then went hunting for a sewing kit, which I found tucked along a shelf of toiletries.
On my way back up to the front, I passed a nook with kids’ cowboy dress-up clothes. Thinking they could make great embellishments to jazz up the shirts I’d picked out, I grabbed a pair of tiny little tasseled chaps, a small leather vest, and a handful of star-shaped sheriff’s pins.
I was just about to check out when I noticed the rack of fly masks—the things I’d originally thought were puppy-play masks. I snorted to myself at the memory of Boone’s expression when I’d asked about them. I grabbed a few, partly to amuse myself with the thought of giving it to Boone and seeing what he said, but mostly because I’d noticed that Duck hadn’t been her usual self recently. I figured if changing up my wardrobe brightened my mood, maybe new horse accessories would perk her up too.
The woman at the checkout counter rang everything up and gave me my total. I felt a deep blush warming my cheeks. I was so fucking dense. I had money to pay for everything, just not in my checking account. And my credit cards were maxed out.
“Um… any chance you can hold this stuff while I find a bank to cash my paycheck?” I asked tentatively.
She narrowed her eyes, and I was pretty sure she was going to say no, which meant I was going to have to go slinking back to the ranch empty-handed. There was no way I was going to admit to the others that I had no idea what to do with an actual, physical paycheck.
I tried to lay on the charm, hoping to change her mind. “You see, I’m new in town and just started working and got my first paycheck today. I got so excited to shop, I forgot I needed actual money to do it with.” I set the check down on the counter and gave her my best sheepish puppy-dog grin.
She glanced at it, and her expression softened when she noticed who the check was from. “That’s right, you’re one of Boone’s hands. Of course. Though you know he has a tab for his hands to use if they’re buying ranch equipment or necessities. Most of what you’re buying would qualify if you want to put everything on that.”
