Chapter 5
Colette checked her outfit in the mirror one more time, smoothing out her cardigan and plaid skirt. Her Peter Pan collar was pulled out and perfectly sweet. A dash of fruity gloss and she was ready for her first meeting with Marshall as the Rosebud Ranch accountant.
Reaching for her stack of files on the small desk in the living room, she checked each one.
Nothing was missing. Marshall’s grandfather had sent her financial reports and information on their current clients.
A few grumpy suppliers had started making noise about the ranch missing financial commitments, and rumors circulated about the quality of their stock.
What could have motivated their former accountant to leave behind such a mess?
Colette was curious about the same thing.
She made some notes and tucked them into her pink briefcase with a beautiful bow detail. She loved the girly touches and because she was basically working alone, there was no dress code to maintain, only whatever worked for being alone at home or for meetings at the ranch office.
Rosebud Ranch was in dire need of her services from the mess she had already observed in their finances. They arranged to meet in his office as soon as Marshall had completed the early-morning routine on the ranch and assigned the workers to their tasks for the day.
Strolling in a few minutes early, Colette entered the building and was instantly assailed with the strong odor of hay and horse poop. She pressed a hand to the wall, a shot of panic blasting through her. Closing her eyes, she released a breath and swallowed.
Horses.
How could she still be afraid after this long?
Colette was not a woman who enjoyed animals and their…
unpredictability. She was hit with the reality that she might have to interact with them, given her new work environment.
Horses were huge and powerful. Terrifying.
She clutched her briefcase to her chest and walked slowly down the hallway, searching for the office.
Ignoring any snuffing and whinnying sounds coming from the stalls near her, she focussed on her destination.
Wooden walls kept the animals in their place, with black open bars to the ceiling making them visible, but only able to stick out their heads from one side of the pen.
She peeked around the corner, and her blood ran cold.
The offices were at the end of the hallway, all the way past the horse stalls.
What if they bit her?
Did her presence upset them? Colette shivered and whispered words of courage to herself.
Quiet as a mouse, she walked between the stalls, her breath shivering in her chest. The horses perked up at the arrival of a new human.
An unfamiliar person. With small nervous breaths, Colette took tiny steps, making slow progress to the door at the end of the hall, jumping every time a horse made a sound.
She tried to calm her racing heart, knowing they sensed fear or something like that.
Would they attack if they knew she was afraid?
Did horses attack? Why was that black one eyeing her and sticking his head out as far as it could?
Colette shivered. She jumped at the sudden intrusion of purposeful footsteps coming up behind her.
“Hey, Colette,” Marshall greeted her.
She nearly jumped out of her skin.
Turning, her eyes locked with his.
“Hey, Marshall,” her breathy voice said, heart hammering and close to bursting out of her chest. Marshall seemed to assess her situation quickly, taking in her stiff body and fearful tone.
“Are you nervous around horses?” he asked. Walking beside her with an ease that could only come from years of living on the ranch, she found his presence soothing.
Colette nodded vigorously, relaxing as soon as Marshall pressed a hand to her back.
“Come on, I’ll guide you.” He walked around to face her and placed his hands on her shoulders. “Take a few deep breaths. It’s best to stay calm around the animals. They sense your emotions.”
She closed her eyes and suddenly, Marshall’s hand surrounded hers and he pulled her slowly through the hall.
Her eyes flicked open and landed on his intense, light-green eyes.
How had she not noticed how beautiful they were?
A golden halo surrounded a leafy green center, with soft variations of green all around his pupils.
His eyes were the color of fields of grass, moving in the breeze, a verdant golden ripple through a pasture.
He walked backwards, guiding her towards the office.
“That’s it,” he said softly. “Just keep looking into my eyes and you’ll see there’s nothing to be afraid of. Look, we’re almost there.”
She hazarded a glance each side of her and noticed that the horses remained in their stalls, either completely ignoring them or attempting to brush up against Marshall. Her brain connected with the fact that they couldn’t reach her, and she calmed.
Dropping Marshall’s hand, she smiled.
“I think I’m okay now,” she said. “I’m never around animals, and I find horses so huge and terrifying. I almost got trampled by a horse as a kid. Sorry.” She cleared her throat and followed Marshall.
The black horse stepped up closer to them, straining to reach them.
“Not now, Vinny,” Marshall warned. The horse stuck out its tongue, attempting to kiss his shoulder.
Marshall paused. “Here,” his mouth quirked up as he guided her hand to touch Vinny’s smooth nose.
She startled, her shoulders coming up to her ears. The horse stood there, calm and reassuring. His warm breath tickled her arm.
She giggled.
“He’s not so bad, eh?” Marshall asked, his voice tinged with hope.
Vinny swiped his tongue on her hand, and she yelped.
Marshall quietly chastised the animal with a stern shake of his head.
Colette dodged the amorous horse, clutching her hand to her chest. Her steps quickened as she rushed behind Marshall into the office.
It was a spacious, sparsely furnished room with a large desk and computer, a filing cabinet, and some simple shelving.
It was kept clean by the staff, she assumed, since it wasn’t as dusty as she would have expected.
Colette took the chair across from Marshall’s and waited while he settled in. Pulling out her papers, she watched as he opened his laptop, twined his hands, and laid them on the desk.
“Your grandfather has filled me in on what has been going on, but I’d love to hear it from you,” Colette began. “It will help me get a fuller picture.”
Marshall exhaled sharply. “It’s quite simple, really.
I was charged with keeping things in order when our accountant decided to retire last minute.
Plug in some numbers, send a few payments, take care of the basics.
Then my grandfather started noticing issues with clients as he looked over the books.
He got a few angry emails. I’m a rancher, not a bookkeeper, clearly,” he explained.
Frowning, Colette placed her papers on the desk. Marshall had done his best, though it seemed like he saw his efforts as a failure. She was glad to be there to help him. It was nice to feel truly needed.
“Even for a small organization like this one, the finances can become disordered quickly if not attended to properly. I’m happy to take some work off your plate,” she said with a nod. “Do you mind if we look over these files together?”
Marshall gave an impatient sigh. “I don’t see the point. I’m clearly incapable of handling this responsibility.” He pushed the files back toward her.
Sensing some tension in his tone, Colette tried another angle.
“I want to help you, but I could use your input to get familiarized with the clients, suppliers, and all that. I’m sure you have a lot of information I could use.
” Her tone was polite, encouraging, even pleading for his cooperation.
She had a few strategies for dealing with prickly clients. Make him feel needed.
He glanced at the stack of files and pulled it back to him. “These guys are pissed because I sent payments, but they never received them,” Marshall explained, pointing at the first invoice. “I have no idea how to figure out what went wrong.”
“This buyer canceled our contract after we missed a few deliveries. Our emails back and forth clearly stated the dates, but our schedule got mixed up. I figured out the confusion there, but it was too late,” he confessed.
Colette nodded, flipping through another file, and listened as Marshall explained the ranch’s relationship with various buyers and suppliers.
In her notebook, she made notes as to which files to investigate further and ways she could help restore the ranch’s reputation and maybe win back unsatisfied clients.
At the bottom of the stack, she pointed out the client communications she had printed up for clarification.
“What about this one?” she asked.
Marshall studied the papers before him.
“Something here isn’t adding up. You have a record of payment sent, with your confirmation on it. But then follow-up emails from suppliers that they received no money? Either you didn’t send the money, or something is messed up with your payment system,” she explained.
Marshall scratched his head, grasping the paper in his hand and exhaling as he studied the information. Or rather, opened his eyes to what was missing on these records.
“I guess there could be a problem with our online payment system,” Marshall said as he shrugged.
“I remember sending those payments, making these orders over here. It’s the same as I’ve always done.
I followed the same process as before, and yet, the accounting is off.
” His eyes ran over the documents again.
“It must be that. Or I was too distracted, and I messed it up.”
“Does anyone else have access to your computer that could interfere with or cancel payments? Has that ever occurred to you?” Colette watched for his reaction, studying his brows drawing together in frustration.