“How do people find out about their availability, then?”
“Usually by word of mouth for the private sales. In a county as small as Ridgeview, people know the others who do what they do. If you raise cattle, you know everybody else who raises cattle. If you breed and train horses, you know everybody else who does the same thing. It’s the way small towns and rural areas operate.”
“Yeah, I suppose you’re right. In Colorado, we knew the other players who had cattle ranches. Sounds like I’ll have to get involved in the rancher network.”
“I can probably introduce you to some folks. Jethro Gordon has a place that butts up against Wayward Ranch to the south. He usually has between sixty to seventy head of cattle. I’ll call him and set something up for later this week, if that’s okay with you.”
“Thanks. I’m grateful for any help I can get.”
“No problem.” He checked the horses. “You ready to head back?”
“Sure. Want me to lead this time?”
“No, I want Emmalyn to get used to leading. Plus, I want you to watch, if you don’t mind. I’d like your opinion on her gait and manners. Another set of eyes are helpful.”
They mounted up, and Rob let Tyler and Emmalyn sidle past Chieftain and head down the trail before he clucked his mount into action.
Later, they cooled down their horses, and let them out into the nearby paddock.
“What did you notice about Emmalyn on the trip back?” Tyler asked.
“She didn’t seem as confident going downhill. You had to prod her more. She balked in a couple places where the trail was narrow.”
“Yep. She needs a lot more practice on the trail. Maybe next time, I’ll have her go second to see if there’s any change when she follows another horse.”
“Count me in when you want to ride again.” Rob leaned side to side and stretched out his torso, then leaned over the fence rail and did a hamstring stretch. “I’m pleased with how I feel. I wasn’t sure if I’d even be able to move after my first ride. With luck, my muscles won’t cramp up later.”
“As long as you ease into it, I suspect you’ll be fine,” Tyler observed.
“I’d better head back.”
“I’ll pick you up for group tomorrow about six-fifteen. Traffic is sometimes brutal.”
“Okay, I’ll be ready.” Rob gave his friend directions to MJ’s.
***
MJ felt the phone in her pocket vibrate with an incoming text as she was reaching up to re-shelve a paperback about the Appalachian Trail. She finished putting it and several other books back in place before repositioning her cart near the library’s computer stations where users accessed the computerize card catalog.
She went behind the main desk and pulled her cell out to check the message from Nick:
Heading 2 Oasis 4 burgers. Join us?
She texted back:
Sure, time?
A moment later, the reply came:
5:30
She answered back:
Sounds good. I’ll call Rob. C U there.
She looked around to see if she had time to make a quick phone call and scurried into the break room, closing the door behind her.
“Hey, Rob. It’s me,” she said a minute later. “Nick and Tess want to meet us at the Oasis for burgers at five-thirty. Are you okay with that?”
“Sure, honey. I’ll walk Maverick before I leave. Are you coming home first?”
“No. I’ll go right to the bar. See you there. I love you.”
“Love you, too. I miss you.”
She loved hearing that. She found she missed Rob and thought about him when they were apart. He’d become such a big part of her life.
She consciously pushed the thought of him out of her mind and went back to the front desk, just in time to check out Lucy Bendale, an elderly woman who came in every single Tuesday to check out large-print romance novels. Same as always, she’d brought a stack of six books, and MJ dutifully scanned her books into the library-card record. “These are due in two weeks,” she said as always, although Lucy would return them in a week. “Enjoy them.”
“I will, dear. I’ll see you next week.”
She loved her work. People like Lucy, the Children’s Story Hour, the kids doing research papers, and helping library patrons learn the magic that books contained made her day so worthwhile. She couldn’t imagine doing anything else. Rob’s dream of living in the country on a ranch overlooking the Smoky Mountains sounded appealing. She could work at the library and still help him on the ranch, couldn’t she? She didn’t know much about ranching, but she was willing to learn.
The rest of the afternoon went quickly, and she hurried to close up the library at five, so she’d be on time to meet Nick and Tess at the Oasis. Her mouth watered at the thought of their hamburgers. Maybe she’d have hers with onion rings.
She arrived at the Oasis just before five-thirty, and almost immediately, Rob pulled into a parking space next to her. They walked into the bar together. Nick and Tess had already arrived and snagged a booth. Even on a Monday night, the bar was full of people coming for supper. Later it would be mobbed with teams playing pool or darts. She waved at her brother as they made their way through the tables to the booth along the back wall.
Nick stood up as she approached and kissed her on the cheek. “Hey, sis. How’re you doing?”
“I’m good.” She greeted Tess with a smile. Her brother’s fiancée looked happy. Rob reached out and shook Nick’s hand and nodded at Tess before guiding MJ into the booth seat
