Page 14 of Ava
“Are you a triplet?”
Morgan laughed. “Nope,” she said with a pop of the ‘p’. “The family joke is that Mom had to have three boys at once, because one has the brain, one the brawn, and one the beauty, but we can’t tell which one got what. However, I, on the other hand, got all three at once. I didn’t need to be a triplet.” They laughed together and then Morgan invited Ava to follow her. “I have an office over at the construction site, but the noise got to me. While this is Wyatt’s office, and he’s out on the range all day, I have my peace and quiet. I’ll take you over there tomorrow. But, for now, this is your room. Feel free to unload your stuff whenever you get a chance. Supper is on the table at six every night.” Morgan looked down at her watch. “In under two hours. Oh, follow me.” Morgan opened another door and went down the stairs.
“Sweet,” Ava said when she saw all the exercise equipment. “Will something like this be over at the barracks?”
“Yes, while you’re living in the house, you have free access to this gym. Do you run?”
“I do.”
“So do I. I wake at five and go for ten, you’re more than welcome to join me.”
“Thank you. Where do you want me to park my bike? From what you’ve said, I’m assuming this is a working ranch, and I don’t want to disturb the horses.”
“Let me show you.” They went through the house, and Ava noted that in the back room, Morgan kicked off a pair of slippers and slipped her feet into a pair of riding boots.
“Do you prefer shoes off in the house?”
“It’s up to you. If I know I’m going to be in the house for a long time, then I wear my slippers. The guys kick off their shoes, because they’re either caked with horse shit, or mud from the construction site.”
“If your shoes are dirty,” Dolly said from the doorway. “I would prefer for you to remove your shoes. If you’d like to leave a pair of slippers or flip flops in the back room, feel free. I like to try to keep the vacuuming down to at least twice a week.” She winked before she turned and left them alone. Morgan and Ava exchanged grins before they hurried out. Morgan walked around the house and barn to tell Ava what was what, and where she could park, along with places to avoid.
“That’s the bunkhouse for the unmarried ranch hands, and the campers behind them are where the J’s and A’s are staying until they can find a place to live. However, right now, they’re living there while they’re building the barracks. After that I think they’re going to stick around the area.” Morgan looked over both shoulders, and though they were alone, she leaned in, and whispered, “I’ll explain more tomorrow, but the J’s know what we’re looking at with the preppers. They’ve been read into the situation.”
“Are they trained?”
“Not like you and me, but I have to trust Uncle Chip.”
“You’ve said that name several times now, who is this Uncle Chip?”
“He really is my uncle. His wife and my mother are sisters. His name is Chip Boswell, he’s the one that put the Boswell Group together back east, and he’s the one who’s funding this branch, until we can get on our feet by ourselves. Again, I’ll read you in on more tomorrow.”
“Are there any more women like us arriving soon?”
“I’ve asked Uncle Chip to do background checks on five more women. I figured six, including yourself would do for what we need. If not, we’ll recruit more. I’ve received all the cleared files, and Uncle Chip’s approval to hire them. I’ll be calling them in during the next couple of months. I’m not stalling, but I just gave you the only empty room in the house. I figured I’d wait until the barracks is closer to being done. I don’t know how long it would take them to arrive, so I’m waiting. All of them were an EWM at one time, and got out like we did.”
“Were you injured?”
“Yes, but I didn’t go through what you did. I need you to tell me if you can’t do something, or if you’re hurting.”
“I will. I don’t want to look a gift horse in the mouth. I need something like this. If that asshat of a doctor would have waited two or three weeks for my clearance exam, I would have passed it. He wouldn’t wait. I’m not in any pain anymore.”
“I totally understand.” Morgan nodded, then turned to point. “Now comes the man of my life and his brother back from the range.”
Ava watched as two horses with riders came toward them from a long distance away. “Is he okay with my being here?”
“He is, and he’s okay with what’s happening, or what I’m trying to build. Before I started everything, he had a nice long talk with several members of Brotherhood Protection. They answered a lot of his questions. We’ve both agreed that we won’t discuss the actual logistics of what we’re doing, only if I need his help. He’s got his ranch, I’ll have Boswell.”
“That’s good.” Ava nodded, and stood next to Morgan and watched the men approach.
CHAPTER7
Ava leftMorgan as she waited for the men to arrive to go back to her bike and unload it. Carrying in her packs, she walked around the room she’d been offered, and in no time had everything unpacked. Deciding to wash the road off, she gathered a set of clothes and took a hot shower. Dressed in a pair of jeans, and a tee, she slipped her feet into a pair of sandals and rubbed a towel through her hair. Satisfied with her appearance without any makeup, she made her way out to the kitchen.
“Can I help?” Ava asked Dolly as she entered the kitchen, and noted that only the older woman was present.
“Sure, but first, we weren’t formally introduced. I’m Dolly.”
“I’m Ava.” They shook hands and Ava followed directions about getting the food out of the refrigerator. “Do you always cook this much?”
