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“She did?”
“Asked if I needed someone in the front office.”
“Really! She didn’t tell me.” Probably because she knew Ellen would ask her to stay away from Ross. She liked him too much to burden him with Jan, didn’t want him to feel he had to do her yet another favor. “And...do you? Need someone, I mean?”
“Figure...couldn’t hurt.”
“So youdon’tneed anyone, but you’re trying to create a job for her,” she said with a laugh. That wassolike him...
“I could use her,” he argued. “She was just here for the interview. Actually kept the appointment we made, which I saw as a good sign. So I gave her the job. But I told her she’d better show up on time, and if she calls in sick without a doctor’s confirmation even once, she’s gone.”
“You think that makes you sound tough?” Ellen rolled her eyes but felt no real irritation, just a surge of affection. “You’re all heart!”
“Yeah, well, I figure you don’t need her draggingyoudown,” he said. “And if she’s looking for work... We both know what that means.”
Ellen had often felt as though she was completely alone in the world, but she was pretty sure this old driller loved her. “You’ve always tried to help me where you could.”
“I haven’t done anythin’, darlin’. You worked your butt off when you were here. And if I did do a little somethin’ to help you out, I don’t know a little girl who deserves it more.”
She blinked back the tears that were welling up. “I’m not a little girl anymore, Ross,” she said, chuckling as she sniffed.
“Well, I’m not getting any younger. You’ll always be a little girl to me,” he said. “But you musta gone soft since you left, because if I’d ever said somethin’ like that to you while you were here, you’d have had my hide.”
She’d called him on his sexist bullshit more than once, wouldn’t tolerate him treating her as though she were any less capable than his male workers. But that’d only made him say or do misogynistic things just to get her mad.
She freely forgave him for that and all the fun he’d had at her expense, though. He didn’t like talking about anything deeply emotional. He may have teased her mercilessly, but he’d done more than most employers would to take care of her. “Thanks for giving my mom a shot. I really, really hope she doesn’t let you down. But—and this is me keeping it real—I can’t promise you won’t be sorry.”
“I know. It’s nothing for you to worry about. She and I will either make a go of it or we won’t.”
She dropped her head into her hand. It was so good to talk to him she was beginning to wonder why she hadn’t kept on working for him and let him worry about how to stay in business, find new jobs, pay for equipment, insurance, employees and all the rest of it. It would’ve been a lot easier, and she probably would’ve made almost as much. It was the possibility of future earnings that would have been lost—owning a very productive business like his one day. But still... As beleaguered as she was feeling right now, it was tempting to crawl back into the safety of what she’d known before. “Maybe I need to return to Anaconda and go back to work for you myself...”
“I would love to have you here, and you know it. But you wouldn’t be satisfied working for me. Not after getting a taste of being your own boss. Now that you’ve flown the coop, you need to soar, little girl. Tell me you’re still giving Fetterman Well Services hell.”
She winced as she thought of welcoming Hendrix into her bed. She’d given him a lot last night, but she certainly hadn’t given him hell. When she got home, she’d moved the flowers into her bedroom, since that was where she planned on spending most of her evening. But, of course, she didn’t say that. “I am. I’m stealing all the jobs from them I can get.”
“Good for you.”
She smiled at his response, but because she was still emotional, she had to sniff again. “I’m in a bit of a jam right now, Ross.”
He sobered. “What’s going on? What do you need?”
“Fortunately, just the benefit of your knowledge.”
“In what regard?”
“I had to fire Ben.”
“Wasn’t he your only employee?”
“He was.”
“Wait—you’re not trying to drill alone, are you? You know it’s not safe.”
It wasn’t easy to accomplish, either. She could handle a few small jobs on her own—some out-of-water calls and pump repairs—but others would be impossible. “I’m hoping I won’t have to resort to that. I’ve been rearranging my schedule to allow for some downtime, but I can’t go very long without working. It’ll hurt my cash flow too badly.”
“I know what that’s like. Need me to loan you a worker?”
She hadn’t thought of borrowing someone, but the idea sounded like it could save her—as long as it didn’t hurt him. “Only if you have one to spare. But I’d rather hire someone of my own right away. You don’t know anyone who’s looking for a job, do you?”
