Chapter 7 #2
We forged across the yard through at least five inches of new snow on top of the old, with the wind blowing drifts and valleys, and stinging our faces.
Seth wrestled the barn door open for me, then let it blow shut behind us and flipped on the overhead lights.
“Wow, that’s really coming down.” He pulled out his cell phone and hit a contact, then tried again. “Fuck. No bars. What about yours?”
I waved my empty hand in the air.
“Oh. Crap. We should’ve called them from the house on the landline. Well, Mama’s has windows so hopefully they can see the storm coming in.” Seth stuck his phone away in a pocket and stamped the snow off his boots. “Let’s check up on our girl.”
The cats came to greet us as we walked down the aisle, winding through our ankles and trying to trip us. “Should we bring them inside the cabin?” I asked. “With the storm and all?”
Seth paused to pet Garfield. “No, they have a heated bed box in the feed room. Heated water dish too, and they’re too smart to go out in a snowstorm.” He nudged Mimi aside. “Move your furry butts, kitties. We have a cow to take care of.”
Ebony was down in her straw, clearly in labor. Seth fetched plastic gloves from the feed room and did some kind of exam on her back end. “Looking good,” he said when he straightened. “Hooves and a nose coming. We just need to give her time.”
He backed out of the stall, and we watched over the door.
Ahwan nickered to us from down the aisle, banging her empty feed bucket.
“You’ve eaten, greedy girl,” Seth called to her.
I went to pet her, rubbing her forehead, and a thought occurred to me. “Where are the dogs? Are they safe?”
“Davis shut them in his cabin till he gets back, with this storm in the forecast. Usually, they stay with Tiffany and John— John trained them from puppies— but Davis will watch them for the weekend.”
“If he can make it home.” I tried to peer through the dusty window of Ahwan’s stall, but the pane just reflected the lighted interior with darkness behind. “I wouldn’t want to drive hilly roads, the way it’s coming down.”
“Davis knows every inch of those roads like the back of his hand.” Seth came over to stand beside me as a gust of wind threw snow against the glass. “They might need to camp out with Pete tonight, though.”
“Pete?”
“Was the foreman before John. He moved up to Selbyville when he retired.”
“I think I met him.” We both flinched as the wind howled around the barn. Seth moved closer, his shoulder brushing mine. “Sounds like it’s building up to a blizzard,” I said, to not think about how near he was to me.
“We were only supposed to get four inches.”
“Seemed like we have more than that already.”
“Yep.” Seth shook his head and stepped away. “Well, worst comes to worst, Kendrick may be really glad he hired you.”
“When the two of us have to do all the chores tomorrow?”
“Yep.” Seth gave me a grin that took years off his face. “We’re going to earn our pay.”
“Lead me to it.” I’d only glanced at the papers Mr. Bowen filled out before putting them away safe in my pack, but he was paying me fifteen bucks an hour.
A regular work week would net me around six hundred dollars before taxes, but if we worked longer, I might do better.
Maybe enough to feed me and gas the truck until I found another job. “I’m fine with the overtime.”
“Good man.” Seth thumped my shoulder and I turned away to hide my smile. Damn but I liked working beside him.
A groan from Ebony’s stall made us hurry over. She was working now, the tips of the calf’s hooves emerging. Seth didn’t go in, just watched closely from outside the door.
“What if she has trouble?” I whispered. I hadn’t been around the cows when they were calving much.
Last spring I’d still been in school, mostly working odd jobs around the barn while the cows did their thing out in the pastures.
By the time school let out and I went full time, all baby hooves were on the ground.
Seth said, “You and me would help her. We have ropes and chains, a calf puller if we need it. I think she’ll be fine, though. Once you see hooves and a nose, they’re generally past the hardest part.”
Calving was a messy business, but the baby was cute, ears flapping as it struggled up on wobbly legs. Seth had me rub the calf down with some straw while he helped the cow pass the placenta.
“A heifer,” I noted. “Is that good or bad? Were you looking for a bull calf from her?”
“Not this time round. Maybe next year, Kendrick will buy some semen and try for something special. This year, a girl’s fine.”
“Are we supposed to name her?” I knew better than to name a bull calf, destined for someone’s table, but some of the heifers stayed around longer. Since she was out of Mr. Bowen’s prized cow, maybe he’d keep her.
Seth laughed as he scooped messy straw into the wheelbarrow. “In theory, no. We’ll tag her as soon as she’s dried off and nursed, and that number’s all she needs. In practice, if you want to name her, you can’t come up with worse than Dirt. Go for it.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence.” I eyed the little black calf as Ebony stood and nosed at her. “Olive, maybe.”
“Black Olive? Works for me.” Seth tossed me the shovel, which I caught awkwardly. “Now bundle up, kid. We’re going to bury this placenta deep in the manure pile so it doesn’t attract coyotes, and that’ll be a fun job in the blizzard.”
“Won’t the pile be frozen?” I scrubbed at my hands, then pulled on the gloves I’d stuck in my pockets.
“Hopefully not. It makes its own heat. If it is, this’ll be an even funner job. Come on.”
We were lucky in the not-frozen department, but unlucky in the way the wind drove wet stinging snow into our faces. By the time the brief chore was done, we were both coated.
Inside the barn, mom and baby seemed to be doing well. We watched Olive nurse, her little tail jerking like a propeller. Seth snuck in close and inserted her ear tag, a pop she greeted with a small bleat, before going back to eating.
“Hell of a lot easier than tagging calves out on the range,” he noted. “Come on, let’s wash up, fetch your laundry, and collect the dogs before we hole up in my cabin. I’m damned sure Davis is too smart to drive home in this mess.”
“I hope so.” I’d barely met the man, but I’d liked him and Colby both.
We waded through six wet white inches to the main house, where I reluctantly gave Seth his sweatpants back and pulled on my jeans, shouldering the clean laundry bag.
Then Seth led the way to the third cabin down.
He dug out keys, and as soon as he unlocked the door, Patch and Ramble came bounding over to say hello.
Seth went to one knee on the doorstep to rub their furry chests. “Yes, I’m glad to see you, too. All your favorite people are out of town, so you’re down to just me, but better than being trapped alone. Come on.”
“What do you mean, just you?” I asked as we forged our way back to Seth’s place. “You’re awesome.”
“Never been anyone’s first choice,” he said, like that was a normal thought.
“How about Miguel’s?” Jealousy made me poke at that idea.
“Second, after the horses.”
“You’re kidding.”
“We weren’t serious. Not really.” Seth opened his door and urged the dogs inside. “Miguel liked a good time, and he liked me, but he loved the horses. He tolerated the cattle for the sake of getting to ride. As soon as someone offered him a job on a horse spread, I knew he’d be gone.”
I followed Seth in and joined him taking off snow-encrusted boots. “You didn’t want to go with him?”
Seth’s expression shut down to stone cold. “Wasn’t asked.”
There was clearly a sore spot lurking, to do with Miguel.
Whether that was being left behind, or still pining for him, or what, I didn’t know and didn’t want to pry.
No, that was a lie. I wanted to understand everything about Seth, but I already knew better than to push.
I shook snow off my parka on the mat, hung it up, and dropped the laundry bag on the couch.
Seth put down a big bowl of water for the dogs in his corner kitchen and opened the fridge. “Hungry? I’ve worked up an appetite again.”
“I could eat.” I smirked at him.
I saw him stutter, his hand jolting on the door, before he cleared his throat and told me, “I have some leftover meatloaf and gravy.”
“Not going to say no.”
“Let me put plates in the microwave.”
The dogs pushed past me to Seth’s side, paws dancing on the narrow tile floor as they peered up at him.
“You think they need to be fed, or did Davis likely do it before he left?” I asked.
“They’re greedy. I’m sure he fed them.” Seth cut thick slabs of meatloaf for us. “Toast?”
“Sure. Uh.” Ramble came over and nudged me, his nose cold against my hand. “You think maybe Davis forgot? They look hungry.” I petted the dog’s soft ears and thick ruff.
“I think they know a sucker when they see one.” Seth sighed. “All right, a few bites.” He crumbled a little of the leftover slice onto two saucers and set them down against the wall. Happy slurping followed.
I leaned against the door and watched. There was this hot cowboy sharing space with me, looking tired and disheveled but happy after a long day; two friendly dogs licking the last ketchup topping off each other’s faces; a snug warm cabin with the snow outside.
I want this. Someday. I reminded myself I had a week, which was a hell of a lot better than nothing.
“Do you have a video feed from the barn? Should we check up on Ebony?”
“Yeah, Kendrick hooked all the cabins into the network when they were built.” Seth set his laptop on the kitchen table and opened the lid.
“Let me check. Crap, still no internet. Local is working, though. Here.” He tapped a few times, and the stall video came up with Ebony on her feet while Olive slept in the straw. “All good.”