Page 28 of Inheriting Miss Fortune

“Oh, yeah. Gonna be lit,” he agreed. “Some friends of mine are already heading up the mountain. Hope to connect with them again next week, maybe, but I needed the rest. Did a climb last weekend that was a total muscle-fuck. Totally flashed it, but fuck, man.Intense. You know?”

I definitely did not know, but I nodded anyway. “So, you’re going to be able to wrangle the horses during roundup in a few days?”

His affable smile didn’t dim. “Yeah, dude. Easy-peasy, lemon-squeezy. No stress, lemon zest. I’ve been playing polo forever, so like… how hard can it be?”

I imagined Dev’s response to this attitude. Since it was possible his reaction would cause local law enforcement to show up, and since I definitely didn’t want that sheriff turning up anytime soon with his proprietary attitude toward Dev, I decided to do a little proactive crisis management.

“Well, that depends,” I told Indigo. “In order to separate herds, you need to understand herd dynamics. From what I know about the Fletcher Ranch, these are primarily trail horses used on dude ranches. They spend the winters here being taken care of, and then when the summer tourist season begins, they get sent in smaller batches to their respective ranches for the summer. That means those large herds you see in the pastures will need to be picked through to separate out each individual horse.”

Indigo’s smile had finally faded. “Why don’t they just keep ’em organized all winter? Like the Johnson ranch horses live in this pasture and the Smith horses live in that one? Seems like it’d make it easier come summer.”

I nodded. “It might. Except there are other reasons to separate them differently. Pregnant mares need special care. So they might get put together closer to the barn where Dev can keep an eye on them. Older horses more sensitive to the winter weather might need to be kept in a pasture that’s more protected from the wind. Certain animals might have special dietary needs, and keeping them together would make daily feeds easier.”

My information about Fletcher Ranch had come from an internet search on the plane yesterday, but I’d done some additional research on my phone since hearing Dev describe his job as managing the ranch’s breeding program.

“It’s probable that many of the programs that lease horses from the ranch don’t need specific horses as much as they need a specifickindof horse. Like ones trained for trail riding or ones trained for carrying packs. So at roundup, maybe Dev needs to pull ten trail riding horses of varying sizes for a particular dude ranch program, and then he needs to pull eight packhorses for a different program. And let’s say all of those horses come out of alarge herd in the same pasture. He needs to be able to separate out the right horses to load up in the trailers for those contracts.”

Now there was actual concern on Indigo’s face. “Whoa. But, like, can’t I just clip a lead to each of their harnesses and walk them out?”

“Not when you need to divvy up a hundred horses in a day. But if you’re comfortable in the saddle… do you ride western?”

“Yeah. Been riding since I was little. Only started polo in high school cause of this hot dude…” His cheeks turned pink, and I wondered if he knew he’d tripped and fallen into the gayest ranch in rural Wyoming. Lucky bastard.

“Uh-huh. Well, I suggest asking Dev or Way to take you out before roundup and show you how cutting works. Be honest with them about your abilities and tell them you’re willing to do what it takes to be ready in time.”

Indigo eyed me. “You seem to know a lot about this. You going to help, too?”

I shook my head. “I need to stay here and look after Lellie. The little girl you met earlier.”

His face softened, and his smile returned. “Now, see, I’m much better at wrangling kids than horses. You should switch places with me and let me do the baby thing while you do the cowboy thing.”

I wish, I thought and then immediately dismissed it.

I didn’t actuallywantto be a ranch hand. Not ever again. Dev could side-eye my nice clothes and haircut, but those were the trappings of a life I’d built on my own terms and the way I told the world that Tully Bowman was worth something. I wouldn’t trade that for all the muck boots and saddle leather in the world.

“One of us was hired for the cowboy thing,” I reminded him with a grin. “And it wasn’t me. But you’ll do fine as long as you can get some practice in before the big day.”

He inhaled through his nostrils. “Thanks, Tully. ’Preciate it.”

A squawk from my pocket reminded me about the baby monitor. I pulled it out and saw Lellie waking up. After throwing a “Later!” over my shoulder, I bolted back up to the apartment to grab her before she tried climbing out of the crib herself.

She woke up cranky, whimpering, and wriggly. I did a quick diaper change and spared a moment to wonder at the vast turn my life had taken in the past week.

My clients at Dunlevy, Pace, and Trumble were wealthy power players with high expectations and limitless influence. I was invited to fundraisers and galas, high-stakes wealth-management discussions, and meetings about tax shelters for people who didn’t think twice about purchasing a second yacht.

And here I was, trying not to get poop on me while crouched on a bed over a barn in nowhere Wyoming with a toddler who wasn’t even mine and was every bit as moody as her father.

I felt the uncomfortable pinch in my chest as I remembered Orris’s earlier words.

If it comes down to having to choose sides here, Tully, I expect you to choose the right one.

One of my law school professors had spent an entire lecture on various ethical dilemmas, all relating to the concept of conflict of interest. That professor loved to quote Camus.A man without ethics is a wild beast loosed upon this world.

It was clear that I was being pressured into a conflict of interest here, and my boss was unwilling to recognize it as such. That was wrong. Obviously, it was.

But it was one thing to defend Dev’s right as Lellie’s biological father to retain custody of her and another to defend his right to give her away to a stranger instead of allowing her to stay in her own family. Wasthatworth derailing my entire career?

I hadn’t heard a single compelling reason why Dev was so hell-bent on refusing custody of Lellie himself. He wasaffectionate and sweet with her. He had a support system and a family-centered place to live. With Lellie’s money, he’d be able to afford a proper house and plenty of childcare. So if he didn’t care enough to try to keep her, should I really risk my job to help him keep her away from the Scotts?

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