Page 81 of Giddy Up, Daddy

The Best Memories

By Kessily Lewel

Chapter One

It was a bitterly cold winter day, and the clear skies and sun overhead just made it worse somehow. Everything was covered in a thin layer of white, from the recent snowfall, except the ground around the barn and paddock. There the snow had been worn away by the tromping of boots as the ranch hands did their morning work on the Long Shot Ranch.

The snowfall hadn’t been heavy or thick, but the dropping temperatures had turned it into a hard coating that had stuck around for several days. The sunlight reflecting off the ice had everyone wincing and wearing sunglasses. Sam had left his back at the house, so he had his hat pulled low, and was trying not to look directly at anything but the ground, as he did a circuit around the outside of the barn to see that everything was in order.

A glint of metal caught his attention anyway, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw a flash of bright cherry red up by the house. It probably wouldn’t have been so glaring, except it stood out against all the white. He stopped short. “What the hell is that?”

He hadn’t realized anyone was behind him, but Nick, vision mostly blocked by the two heavy cutting saddles in his arms, hadjust enough time to say, “Huh? What?” before he barreled right into Sam’s back.

Sam was shoved forward onto an icy patch, and he went into a frantic dance as he tried to stay on his feet.

His foreman looked torn between dropping the saddles on the frozen ground so he could help, or just watching as Sam windmilled desperately.

Saddles were expensive, so it was never really a choice. He shifted the weight in his arms, seemingly so he could get a better view of Sam’s acrobatics. Knowing Nick, he was probably making bets in his head on whether Sam would land on his ass.

It was a near thing. Sam almost went down twice, before he finally stumbled off the ice. A stream of curses exploded into the air.

“You alright there, boss?” Nick asked casually, once Sam had finally stopped flailing. He received a glare for his trouble.

“I’d be just fine if people looked where they were going.” Sam couldn’t help the snap in his tone, as he looked for the cause of his distraction. The color had been so vivid, and he could have sworn…

There was nothing there now, except his battered old pickup and Charlie’s car. Neither of them was red. Maybe someone had been visiting, but if so, they hadn’t stayed long. Sam had only left the house an hour ago.

Nick snorted. “You’re the one who stopped short. What did you expect me to do? Levitate over you?” His mouth twitched, as if a grin was lurking just out of sight.

Sam narrowed his eyes. His mouth opened to tell Nick off, but he forced himself to take a deep breath instead. “Smartass,” he muttered under his breath.

“Well, yeah. But you knew that when you hired me,” Nick pointed out.

That was true enough. Sam and Nick had been friends for years. They went way back to Sam’s rodeo days, although Nick had stuck with it long after Sam had returned to the ranch where he’d grown up, to take over as foreman.

Things had changed. Now Sam owned the ranch with his wife Charlie, and Nick was their foreman. But above that they were still friends, and it wasn’t Nick he was mad at. So rather than snarl at him, he stalked into the barn, muttering under his breath as he looked for some work that needed to be done.

He was trying not to be too hands-on. Nick didn’t need to be micromanaged. Sam hadn’t hired him just because they were friends. His foreman was about the most experienced cowboy around.

Aside from that, the whole idea of Sam hiring a foreman was so that he could focus on other parts of their business, but when he was stressed, he tended to find himself down in the barn getting his hands dirty. He was, at heart, a blue-collar man.

Hard work was a distraction, and he needed it. The problem was… he also needed his men to have confidence in Nick. There had to be a clear chain of command, otherwise drama crept up. Men could talk about women gossiping all they wanted, but ranch hands were like a flock of hens when they had a story to share.

Any question about whether Nick had real authority would spread across the ranch like wildfire. He knew full well that working in the barn too often would raise that question, so just inside the doors he stopped short. Again.

This time Nick managed to avoid crashing into him. “Damn, Boss, what’s got into you this morning? These aren’t exactly light, you know.” This time it washistemper that seemed to be fraying.

Sam quickly moved out of the way, rubbing his forehead. “Sorry. Tired, I guess. Didn’t sleep much last night.”

Nick’s tight expression eased, and the lines around his eyes smoothed as he moved over to settle the saddles on a handy rack. He brushed his hands off on his jeans, and turned back to Sam. “Well, why don’t you hit the hay and catch some winks then? I mean what use is it being the owner, if you can’t take a little snooze when you feel like it?”

“I’m tired but wired. You know? My mind’s spinning.”

One black eyebrow shot up. “School wearing you out already?” Nick leaned against the wall and crossed his arms over his chest, inviting Sam to talk.

“No, it’s not that.” He paused, then added, “Although it’s a hell of a lot harder than I expected. Too many years since high school, I guess.”

Nick laughed. “You won’t catch me trying it. Though I’m beginning to feel left out, with all the rest of you taking classes.”

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