Chapter 4: What a Mess

I rose fairly early the next morning, knowing that Rance and I were going to take a tour of the ranch. I dressed in my tightest jeans, and a light cotton t-shirt, expecting the weather to be warm. When I stepped out on the porch, I got a shock. It was cold. It might warm up later, but right now it was cold.

I quickly went back to my room and put on a sweater and a nylon shell. I'd forgotten we were over a mile high in altitude, and the temperature extremes were much greater than in Spokane or Salinas. I had a pair of white cotton athletic socks to keep my feet warm in my sneakers. Not as sexy as I'd like to be, but necessary. I had a plan for Rance today and I needed to look good for him.

By the time I got back, Marion was in the kitchen preparing breakfast. As I watched, it seemed like she was cooking for ten. Eggs, bacon, potatoes, fried tomatoes, biscuits and gravy, and of course, coffee. I wondered how they could eat all this and still remain slim. It must be the work. They must burn it off, I guessed. Then again, I remembered my diet when I was swimming competitively. It wasn't much different in calories, just the content.

"Mornin' Julie. You sleep well?"

"Yes ma'am. It's so quiet and dark around here. I think the only thing that woke me up was the rooster I heard."

Just then, Rance appeared, pushing Angus into the kitchen. I remembered Marion telling me that Rance helped his father get out of bed and dress in the morning. He was too big for Marion to handle.

"Mornin' ladies," Rance said happily, kissing his mother on the cheek and nodding toward me.

"Marion, it sure is nice to have another woman in the house," Angus said happily. "You suppose there's any way we can make this a permanent state of affairs?"

I was getting used to the good natured banter that Angus and Marion exchanged and for the first time, I wasn't embarrassed by it. The inference was obvious, but Rance pretended that he didn't hear it. It was at that moment that I decided to take a chance.

I sidled over to Rance where he was leaning against the center island with a freshly poured coffee. I moved beside him, close enough that my hip was touching his. I slowly rubbed my arm against his, and I felt him stiffen. I had his attention.

"What do you think, Rance?" I asked coquettishly.

"Uhhm ... what do I think about what?" he answered nervously.

"About having another woman in the house ... all the time."

"Oh ... I don't know. Depends, I guess," he struggled.

I could see Marion trying desperately to contain herself. She was moments away from bursting out laughing. Angus just had an odd look about him, like he wondered what was going on. Rance had that same look, except a little more like a deer in the headlights.

We dug into the breakfast, conversation at a minimum. Rance seemed to be concentrating on the food more than usual. I had a hunch the comments had unsettled him more than he would like to admit. As I picked up the empty plates and moved to the sink, Rance rose from his chair and poured himself another coffee. To get back to the table, I had to squeeze by him, so I had the opportunity I was looking for.

I swung my butt away from him, then smacked back into him with it. His coffee went straight up in the air before mostly settling back in the cup. In all the days I had been around Rance, I'd never seen him as befuddled or confused as he was at that moment. I had done something completely unexpected and out of character. I'd gone out on a ledge and threatened to jump. Now, it was up to him.

"I think ... maybe ... we should get goin'," he said nervously. "We've got a fair distance to travel today. I don't want to tire you out too much."

"What ... are you going to make we walk?" I kidded.

He was beginning to recover his wits. "Well, I hadn't thought of that, but if you'd like..." I could see the grin spread across his face.

"Horses or trucks?" I asked, cutting off the kidding.

"Lady's choice," he came back quickly.

"Horses first ... then the truck if you get too tired," I challenged.

He looked at me with disdain. I got a 'harrumph' kind of sound from him as he grabbed my hand and led me out of the house. As I left, I got a glimpse of Marion with a big smile on her face and a thumbs-up vote of approval.

As he pulled me to the barn, I realized we had broken another barrier. He was touching me. Sure, it wasn't anything sexy or warm, but at least I had knocked him off his perch and he was responding. I wondered if it was the butt check I put on him, or something else.

"How long since you've been on a horse?" he asked me as we walked into the barn.

"About five years. My uncle has a farm up near Hollister and he has a couple of horses. I used to ride quite a bit before college and work interfered."

"Okay ... I've got a nice bay mare that should be fine for you. You know how to saddle her?"

"I don't think I've forgotten anything. It wouldn't hurt if you checked it before we left, though."

I think that bit of conciliatory effort was just the thing. The aggressive Rance was suddenly gone. He was back to the solicitous Rance. That's where I wanted him.

"How many acres do you have," I asked as we rode out of the barn.

"A little over five thousand ... eight sections. We lease some land too if feed is scarce."

"My God! That's the size of a small country. How many cattle do you have?"

"We've cut back quite a bit in the last few years. There's only a little over twelve hundred head right now. It'll depend on how things go in the next couple of years just what we'll do in the future."

"The dude ranch?"

He nodded. It didn't look like this was his favorite solution.

"Those trailers I saw away from the barn. Were they for the men?"

"Yep. Got six full time hands including the foreman. We look to get a few more when there's a drive on."

"If you've got a foreman, why do you have to be here?"

"Charlie's gettin' on. He's got all the experience in the world, but he's not the leader. Doesn't want the hassle. Everythin' else, he's the top kick, but somebody has to decide what to do and when to do it. That ain't Charlie. Dad's housebound, so he can't see what's goin' on. That leaves me ... so here I am."

That explained it. I had wondered how the ranch could survive without Rance for five years, not counting when he was in the service. His father was the decision maker until he was injured. Now his son was in charge.

We rode for a couple of hours before stopping at a small creek to let the horses drink. Rance reminded me not to let them drink too much, and when they were done, we walked them away from the stream and loose-tied them to a nearby bush. They could still graze on the grass without any problem.

"Rance ... if money were no object, what would you want to do with the ranch?"

"Well, first I'd start to change the breed. We could do better with fewer cattle of a higher quality. I always though Charolais would be a good choice. It would take a while, but once the breedin' stock was established, we could gradually cull out the Herefords and convert the herd. Probably take about six or eight years."

"Wow. That long?"

"Yep. Couldn't do it just like that," he said, snapping his fingers.

"This is where you'd rather be ... isn't it?" I said in a moment of boldness.

He turned and looked at me, an unsmiling but calm face. "Yeah, I suppose it is."

"So what's keeping you in Spokane?"

He looked like he wanted to be anywhere but here right at that moment.

"Circumstances," was all he would say.

We walked for a few minutes, moving to a small rise in the meadow. The vista was magnificent. We were surrounded by hills, in a narrow valley that widened as we moved further northeast. This was the eastern foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains and the beginnings of the Great Plains. It was a beautiful setting and I could see why anyone would fall in love with this land.

We stopped at the top of the little hill and I moved to Rance's side, wrapping my arm through his as we stood looking over the valley before us. It was a simple thing, but I felt Rance stiffen at first before relaxing. He was still very nervous and uncertain in my company. I would have to keep trying to make him more comfortable with my presence and my touch.

"This is a very beautiful place," I said, breaking the silence.

"About as pretty a place as there ever could be," he agreed quietly.

"You're staying here, aren't you," I said in a moment of recklessness.