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She was right about that, too. If he’d been paying attention, Adam might have realized that Faye wasn’t trying to get a handout. She was desperately clinging to a memory of her mother. And while he allowed his thoughts to spiral into a place he wasn’t prepared to visit, Bridget started talking about something else.
Maybe he should call the Callahans and see if there was a possibility of a payment arrangement. Or he could talk to his dad about lowering the cost of labor. From what he knew, the Callahans were well off enough it would only take one phone call to Zeke to get this job paid for.
But then why hadn’t Faye done that when she was here?
“What about you? Anything fun this weekend?”
Adam jumped and stared at Bridget. “What?”
“There’s a rodeo this weekend. Didn’t you say you wanted to learn how to do that sort of thing?” The smile she wore mocked him. He could tell just by looking at her that Bridget thought the idea of Adam riding a horse at the rodeo was hilarious.
“You know well enough that I don’t know how to ride.”
Bridget snickered. “That’s the best part of this whole thing. You don’t know how to ride but you grew up here. How could you live your entire life in a rancher’s town and never go riding?”
“It wasn’t for lack of trying,” he scoffed, “Most of my friends lived in town.”
Understanding filled her expression. “You were a townie.”
“You were a city girl. I don’t see why that matters.”
Her smile returned. “Hey, isn’t that girl you like in the rodeo?” Bridget snapped her fingers a few times. “I can’t remember her name. What is it? Rose? Daisy? It’s a flower name, right?”
“Dahlia,” he muttered. “And it’s none of your business. Speaking of which, don’t you have some work to get to?”
Bridget frowned. “You’re no fun.”
“This is a place of business, not a gossip hub. Go find something to do, will you?”
She huffed but started toward the shop. Her footsteps slowed and it took everything in his power not to let out a groan. Her soft voice was the only thing that stopped him. “You know what I would do?”
“You’ll have to elaborate.” Adam kept his focus trained on the computer, but his ears were burning.
“About Dahlia. You wanna know what I would do?”
“I don’t suppose you’re going to give me a choice to listen or not.”
“Nope. What I would do is find some common ground. She’s a rodeo star. Learn how to ride a horse or compete in a show that’s coming up. They have amateur events too, you know.”
Adam sighed and faced her. “And where do you suppose I would have an opportunity to do something like that?”
Bridget shrugged. “Faye lives on a ranch. What if you ask for her help in exchange for some cheap labor?”
Her suggestion wasn’t half-bad. For once, Bridget’s nosiness was going to pay off. This could be a win-win situation for both himself and Faye. He just needed to get her to see it.
Before he could tell Bridget thanks for her idea, the mechanic had disappeared into the shop. Adam’s father would be back from running his errands pretty soon and maybe Adam could convince him to allow such a trade.
Knowing his father, Sam would be all over this. He always liked doing little acts of service. Not to mention, if it got Adam dating someone again, his dad would likely push him to take part in any activity that entailed.
* * *
Adam pulledonto the Callahan property, ducking his head to get a better view of the large ranch house. While it was only two stories tall, it still felt like it towered overhead. He’d known the family was well off, which was why this swap still seemed silly. If Faye didn’t want to help him, then she could just go begging her father to pay for it.
There was no way that Zeke would tell his own daughter no when it came to something she loved that reminded her of her mother. He was her father. That’s what parents were supposed to do.
Then again, Adam had heard plenty of stories regarding the gruff man. Maybe he wasn’t that kind of father. It was entirely possible he raised his daughters to be hard workers. Adam couldn’t help but feel a small amount of respect for the man.
He put his truck into park and surveyed the area. There were cowboys wandering the premises, leading horses to and from the barn. He didn’t see many women working, but that didn’t mean they weren’t. The one in particular he wanted to speak with should be there based on the presence of the truck he’d looked at earlier in the day.
