Chapter 1 #2
“At the family ranch in Montana where we grew up. We were standing at the corral looking at horses.”
“And Kitty wanted a paint that was apparently yours.”
“Yes.”
“Okay, the rest of the story please, as verbatim as you can remember it.”
Shadow was sitting patiently by her master but little whimpers were evidencing her impatience. She had a blue chip stud waiting and she was really in the mood. Molly patted her on the head to calm her down, but didn’t release her.
“Hey Bart, what do you want for the paint?”
“That paint is not for sale. And if she were, it’d be more than you can afford.”
“How about one of the new pups?”
“That paint is worth ten times one of those pups.”
“In your dreams.”
“So, what are you selling them for?”
“Between $1500 and $3,000.”
“That’s ridiculous. You can get a nice dog at the pound for free.”
“Not one of those. Their dad was a grand champion and their mother is as pure as they come.”
And that was the information Molly was looking for, but she let him continue the story.
“Then we walked over to the stables where the pups were running around and I said something like, ‘You’re telling me those pups are worth thousands of dollars each?’”
“At least that.”
“Okay, I’ll take the darkest one.”
“No way. Absolutely no way. He’s the pick of the litter, worth $3,000 easy.”
Molly interrupted, “Okay, that’s what I needed to know. Does your sister have the papers?”
“Yes. She’s very organized about that stuff. She’ll have a file on Bear with all the history, photos, and papers.”
“Is she somewhere I can reach her?”
“Yeah, no problem. I’ll give you an email. You can tell her the story. She’ll get you what you need.”
Molly turned to Shadow. “Okay, girl, go do your thing.” And she waved her arm. Shadow was off in a flash and disappeared around the cabin, Bear in hot pursuit.
Bart said, “So you’re looking to breed Shadow and sell the pups.”
“Yes, this is her first breeding.”
“What are they worth?”
“Kitty’s estimate was right on. I’m hoping to average $2,000 each.”
“I probably should have mentioned the stud fee. Bear charges a $5,000 breeding fee.”
“And that would be in your dreams.”
They were both laughing. The second beer was half gone.
Bart said, a gleam in his eye, “And what makes the pups yours? Seems like they belong half and half to Shadow and Bear. Isn’t this a community property state?”
At that, Bart held up his hand to quiet the conversation. Molly rolled her eyes as she could hear Shadow whimpering on the other side of the cabin.
She put her bottle up for a toast. “That was pretty impressive. Does Bear’s recharge rate run in the family?”
That got Molly a double eyebrow raise, a smile that showed off the perfect whites, and a blue-eyed gaze that she felt between her legs. Two beers on an empty stomach and she needed the third, reloading them both out of the ice chest.
“Oh, by the way, Bear charges double for a twofer.”
“Good luck with that. I assume you know that the first time in a day is loaded with sperm. The count dramatically drops with the second round.”
“This isn’t your first rodeo, is it?”
“I know a little about breeding. I used to do it for a living.”
Molly watched him bite his lip. There was just so much to work with in her statement.
She clarified, “I wasn’t breeding myself.”
That brought a good chuckle. “Shoot. I was just wondering about the stud fee for that?”
“You couldn’t afford it.” She could banter with the best of cowboys, especially after nearly chugging two beers on an empty stomach. She couldn’t help herself, “Did you just call me a whore?”
He put up his hands. “I surrender.”
She let him off the hook, “So, Kitty got the paint and you got Bear.”
“I still don’t think it was a fair trade. But I bought the paint intending to give it to her, and I know she wanted me to have one of those pups. That’s just how business gets done in my family.”
“Lot of bartering?”
“You have no idea. Dinner is like attending an auction.”
“I might get that. My father was a professional auctioneer.”
Molly pulled the plate, cheese, and salami out of the ice chest and fashioned a platter to go with the third beer.
“Nice set up you have here. Is the cabin yours?”
“Yeah, long story, built by my grandfather.”
“I’m interested in the history.”
The sun was headed for the western horizon.
It was a warm spring evening, the light on Summer Lake beautiful, the Pasayten Wilderness and Canadian Rockies beckoning in the distance.
Bear and Shadow were walking closely together around the cabin.
Bart and Molly, deeply settled in the Adirondacks with beers in hand, watched them walk to the lake and lie down together.
Shadow was grooming Bear. Both looked happy.
“The property is fourth generation in the family. My great grandfather homesteaded here a hundred years ago. It started as a simple fishing resort and grew over time.”
“So you own it now?”
“Pretty much. My brother got an interest and I’m buying him out.”
“So how many businesses are there?”
“Depends on how you count them. I say six: the restaurant, the general store, the stables, the cabins, the RV Park, and the Forest Service lease. But really, they all merge together.”
“Impressive. Where’s the money?”
“The restaurant is steady, busiest in the summer, of course, but as the winter business has picked up, it’s doing better in the off season.”
Molly took a drink of beer.
“The store manages the boat rental and fishing businesses. It used to just be fishing tackle but has evolved into a general store that serves the greater neighborhood. We have a dozen boats that rent by the half day. Spring, summer, and fall, that’s a pretty steady business.
The state stocks the lake four times a year, so that keeps the fishermen coming. ”
She put a piece of cheese on a cracker.
“We have twelve lakefront cabins now that we rent by the day or week. That’s very steady year round now, a good business.
I’m trying to add a cabin every year as the demand is going up.
We board horses and mules in the stables and corrals.
We run a pretty steady horseback riding business and lease horses and mules to local back country outfitters.
We could get into that, but the people who run those businesses are our friends and customers, so I don’t want to compete with them.
We make our money boarding, grooming, and caring for the animals, and leasing them to the outfitters. It works for everyone.”
“How about the campsites?”
“We lease that land to the Forest Service. Believe it or not, that’s one of our best performing businesses, the rent on that land, especially the parking lot.
The Forest Service does all the development and maintenance and pays us rent.
We have no expenses so that goes right to the bottom line.
And, of course, all those campers are spending money at the restaurant and store.
And, they like to go fishing and ride horses. It all works together.”
“And the RVs?”
“We own that land and run that. We have forty sites, and they’re busy all the time.
Honestly, we could fill up twice that many, and we keep adding sites.
It’s my least favorite business. I don’t like the aesthetics of the RVs in the rustic setting, so that’s why they’re tucked back in the woods, and the cabins get the lakefront.
The RVs actually like it back there, so it works for everyone. ”
“And in the winter?”
“That’s our biggest growth focus right now.
We used to close in the winter, but not now.
Cross country skiing, snowshoeing, horseback riding, and winter camping is growing every year.
We’re now grooming cross country trails in cooperation with the Forest Service.
I’m thinking about putting in an outdoor skating rink with a big fire pit.
” She took a drink. “And one of my dreams is to sponsor the state’s first dogsled race.
That would put us on the map, and I’d love it. ”
“You’re quite the business lady. Did you grow up here?”
“I spent a lot of time here as a kid, but we lived on a ranch outside Omak. Dad grew up here, then bought the ranch, and he also ran a livestock auction, mostly horses and cattle.”
“We both grew up on ranches.”
“I’m guessing your ranch was bigger than ours. We had horses and cattle, but it was a pretty small operation.”
Molly noted that he didn’t offer details on his family ranch. She decided not to pry, but was picturing a large ranch in Montana nestled into mountains.
The platter was empty, the third beers drained, and the sun was almost to the Canadian Rockies. Molly thought about inviting him to stay for another beer, a steak, and see what happened. But the only sober part of her brain was arguing for a slower approach.
She asked, “Where are you staying?”
“I have a tent at the campsite.”
“Where do you live?”
He waved his hand toward the Pasayten Wilderness Area. “Out there.”
She chuckled. “Off the grid.”
“Pretty much.”
“When are you headed out?”
“Whenever I feel like it. It’ll take another day to provision, so probably Sunday.”
“If you came over for breakfast, it’d give the dogs another chance to spend time together.”
“I’d like that. What time?”
“How about 9:00?”
“Great. What can I bring?”
“Just Bear.”