18. Bishop
bishop
. . .
“Knock, knock!” I looked up and saw Josie standing in my doorway.
She had a stack of paperwork in her arms, looking at me with an apologetic smile.
“I need you to look through the supply order. I think I have everything we’ll need, but I need to submit the feed orders tonight before we leave for the day. ”
“Alright,” I said, letting my shoulders drop. That wasn’t too bad. “I can do that.”
“And I need you to prep your expense report, too,” she added quickly, cringing when I groaned. “I know, I know! There’s still like a week left before the end of the month, but if I don’t start asking for it now…”
“I fuckin’ hate paperwork,” I muttered. “I’ve got too much shit on my plate as it is.”
We’d already decided to move the branding from this weekend to two weeks from now. It was later than we had liked, but Lincoln was out of town with a clinic. We couldn’t afford not to have him, even though I knew Lennox could easily step in to help.
Doug and I sat down with Josie after he came home to talk about the finances.
We could afford to hire some temporary help and had already sent out the call.
There were a few cowboys coming out today, so I could see their skills.
The last thing I needed was some idiot who didn’t know their ass from their elbow.
“Like I said, I know you hate it, and it’s a pain. Believe me, I don’t like having to hound grown men to do their job, yet here I am,” she deadpanned.
“You’ve never had to hound me?—”
Josie rolled her eyes. “We have this same conversation every week, Bishop.”
I leaned back in my chair. “You’re grumpy when your little boy toy is away. Were you always like this?”
“Nope, but when you’re used to having sex every day?—”
I plugged my ears. “Never mind! Forget I asked.”
She smiled, backing slowly out of the door. “That’s what I thought. So, make sure that report is on my desk by month’s end, or else I’ll plop my ass right there,” she said, pointing at the sad-looking folding chair in front of my desk, “and tell you all about the time he put his fingers in my?—”
“Thanks, Josie!” I shouted, trying to block the image of her and Lincoln out of my mind. “I’ll be sure to get right on that.”
“See that you do, Bishop!” she said, waving over her shoulder.
I blew out a breath, running my fingers through my hair. “Fuckin’ Hayes women, I swear,” I muttered, getting up to refill my coffee.
I wasn’t used to sitting behind a desk for long periods.
Computers and I didn’t exactly get along.
Doug was better at using the damn thing than I was—something he constantly felt the need to tease me about.
Josie had been about as patient as I could’ve asked for, but lately, paperwork had gotten out of control.
Ever since the summer when she found out her ex-boyfriend was stealing funds from the ranch, Josie had run a tight ship around here. We were expected to hand in our receipts the moment we had them, and she promptly filed them away for reconciliation.
It wasn’t that I didn’t have what she needed, it was just that I often got sidetracked and let things pile up until I had to go through everything at once. As much as I didn’t want to admit it, maybe I did need help.
“Bishop!” Dallas, one of our newer workers, shouted my name from the alley. “You got someone here to see you.”
I checked the time, kicking myself for not paying attention. “Gimme a minute,” I called back, grabbing my hat and locking my office behind me.
“Kid’s early,” I said, stopping beside Dallas, who stood at the barn entrance with his hands on his hips.
“I like that. We need more people to show that kinda dedication.” We watched as a beat-up red Dodge came slowly up the drive.
An orange and white cattle dog stood on shaking legs in the truck bed.
Well, I sure as shit didn’t like that.
I’d never had a dog of my own, mostly because I was hardly ever home, and it seemed like they took way too much time to train, but we’d had dogs here at the ranch over the years.
Lennox was always partial to them. Always bringing them home and crying because she’d found them on the side of the road.
That was the unfortunate thing about living where we did. People would drive out here and dump the animals they didn’t want, leaving them behind without a second thought.
I fuckin’ hated people.
The guy hopped out of the truck, and I already knew he wasn’t the one for us.
He was tall and lanky, yapping on his cell phone.
His clothes looked way too tight, and the aviator glasses he was wearing nearly dwarfed his face.
There was something cocky in the way he stood, examining the ranch as though he was judging us.
There was an anxious whine as the dog seemed to glance between the owner and the drop from the tailgate. He leaned over to slap the side of the truck, ushering out a curse and command to be quiet. The dog flinched before laying down with its head on its paws, and my stomach dropped.
Dallas gave me a knowing look and shook his head. “Oooh, boy. Need me to call back up?”
“Naw, I can handle this,” I said, toeing my boot along the trim line that broke up the concrete from the dirt. “This won’t take long.”
“I’m sure it won’t,” Dallas said, laughing as he got back to cleaning the stalls.
I stepped forward, raising my hand in greeting. He gave me a simple nod of his chin like we’d been friends for years. Fat fucking chance. And then he hung up his phone and tucked it away in his pocket.
“Nick?” I asked, meeting him halfway.
He smiled. “Yeah, man. How ya doin’?”
I already knew I wouldn’t hire him, but call me curious… I wanted to see what he thought he knew.
“You bring your rope?” I asked, keeping my voice even.
“Sure did,” he said. “It’s in the truck. Need me to get it?”
I widened my stance. “Well, I’m not gonna loan you one, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“Alright, man. Whatever you say. You got a horse for me, though, right?”
I dipped my chin. Not that he would need it. We wouldn’t make it that far. “Told you I would.”
“You don’t say much, do you?” he asked, shaking his head. “Man, I heard you were a hard guy to work for, but?—”
“That’s an odd thing to say at a job interview, don’t ya think?” I asked, tilting my head. “You’re more than welcome to hop in your truck and get the hell off the ranch I run.”
Nick’s eyes widened in surprise. “Nope, we’re all good here.”
“That’s what I thought. Grab your rope and your gloves, meet me in the round pen over there,” I said, pointing toward the area we used to break horses.
Lincoln and I had gone to auction before he left and came home with four we thought had real potential.
There was one of them that was really giving us a hard time, though.
She was stubborn as hell and reminded me of Lennox.
As Nick followed me, his dog started barking. It was a real high-pitched noise that had him turning around and shouting for her to shut up. I picked up my pace, trying my damndest not to hit him right here.
Unfortunately, so did Nick. He came jogging up behind me. “Sorry ‘bout her,” he said, chuckling. “Damn, bitch won’t shut the fuck up.”
I didn’t say anything; I just clenched my jaw tighter . Little prick . If this was how he treated his own animal, there was no way in fuck he could be trusted to take care of anything he didn’t have a vested interest in.
Three other guys were working the pens, excluding someone in the center, and gently loping one of the more docile fillies of the group.
I didn’t recognize who it was until I caught a glimpse of blonde hair beneath a baseball cap.
“Hey, boss man’s coming!” they called out, raising their hand. “And is that fresh meat I smell?”
The dust settled, and Lennox turned, narrowing her eyes as Nick and I came closer. At least she was wearing a pair of fucking gloves today. She gave me a tentative smile as the horse stopped in front of her.
I stopped along the railing, resting my elbows on the dusty posts. “She giving you any trouble?” I asked.
“Are you talking about me or the horse? Because we’ve both been perfect angels, haven’t we, girl?” Lennox reached out, letting the filly step forward and nuzzle her palm.
“We had to talk her out of starting with that one,” Keith said, pointing toward the pissed-off looking stallion two pens over.
His chest heaved, and his nostrils flared as he stared at the railing like it was a cage.
I supposed it was, in a way. “He’s one mean son-of-a-bitch.
Bit Reggie while we were unloading him.”
“Probably best,” Nick said. “Pretty little things like her should be watching from the sidelines, not putting themselves in danger.”
Reggie and Keith looked at one another and chuckled. “Fresh meat’s about to be dead meat.”
I watched Lennox transform from the hard-working rancher’s daughter to the stone-cold vixen who chewed up and spit out weak little shits like Nick. She glanced up through long lashes as she stepped forward. Her lips curved, morphing into a seductive smile with each sway of her hips.
“Is that right?” she asked, bracing one hand on the railing and the other on her waist.
“Sure is,” he said, stepping up beside me. “Especially with that big brute over there. We wouldn’t want you getting hurt now.”
Usually, I’d step in and say something, but that wicked little spark in Lennox’s eye said she could handle it herself. I believed her too. Hell, I wanted her to show this fucker what she was made of and prove him wrong.
“Do you think you could handle him?” she asked, dropping her voice.
“I know I could.”
I’d give it to the kid. He had confidence in fucking spades. It was hugely misplaced, but maybe he’d find somewhere to fake it until he made it.
Or maybe he was about to get his ass handed to him by a five-foot-seven blonde who terrified most men around here.
Only time would tell.