Chapter 7

The late afternoon wind blew the hat off of Jamie’s head and it rolled down into the gully of Cripple Creek. But she held the wire taut, making sure not to grab the barbs like Jake had shown her.

“Got it,” Jake called out. “You can let go now.” He watched as she shook her arms and then rubbed her shoulders a little bit. “You sure this is what you want to be doin’?”

She turned her face into the wind so it blew her long red hair off her face. She wiped the sweat from her brow with her arm before answering. “Can’t think of anywhere else I want to be right now.”

“Well, we’re almost done. Just two more posts to dig and wire up. You’ve been a big help, Jamie.” He tossed her a bottle of somewhat-cool water, which she drank fully.

“Let’s do it.” She went and got her hat out of the dirt and put it back on.

Jake had never known anyone to be so enthusiastic about fixing barbed-wire fences, but Jamie proved very helpful for a rookie. However, she had barely spoken since they left the lodge, only answering questions about the work. “You feel like talkin’ yet?” he asked.

“Nope.”

“Alright, then, grab me that post-hole digger, would ya?”

When they had returned from the trail ride a few hours earlier Jake noticed one of the courtesy vans in the roundabout in front of the lodge. They rode past the front to the corral, where everyone unhorsed themselves and said their farewells before going on to their next activity. Several people put twenty-dollar bills in Jake’s hand, something that rarely happened on the first day. Jake had only taken three saddles off the horses when Jamie charged back into the corral. “What’re you doing the rest of today?”

“Ummm...” Jake looked past Jamie and saw the courtesy van leaving the lodge–it had a male passenger in the back. “Well, I’ve gotta get these horses situated, then finish up some fence-fixin’.”

“Feel like some company?”

His eyes widened. “You wanna help me fix fences?” He studied her beautiful alabaster skin and her fiery red hair. Does this woman have the faintest clue how stunning she is? he wondered.

“Yes, I do.” She paused for a moment. “If you’ll show me what to do.”

And now here she is, helping me dig fricking holes and stringing wire for the last three hours. I know that Chad left in that van, and she knows I know. When is she gonna talk to me?

Snow blanketed the nearby mountains a couple of thousand feet above them, but the direct sunlight, unfiltered by smog or clouds, beat down mercilessly. And though Jake sweated profusely in the late afternoon sun, he kept his shirt on. He knew the damage that the sun could cause, so he, like most older and wiser cowboys, stayed as covered up as he could and slathered sunblock on his face and neck twice a day.

Jamie, however, couldn’t take the heat anymore, and she unbuttoned her long-sleeve shirt, took it off as an enthralled Jake watched, and threw it on the seat of The Donk. Her blue sports bra strained to keep her large breasts in place and covered but still left a lot of skin exposed on her stomach and her back. She noticed Jake staring at her as she stepped back into the work area. “What? There’s nothing to see here. Nobody gets excited about a chubby girl.”

Chubby ... girl? What the fuck? “Ummm ... Jamie,” he said as he slammed the post-hole digger into the soft bank of the creek. “I admitted earlier I was guilty of philandering ... hey, you don’t have to do that!”

Jamie had picked up the other digger and started to dig her own hole. “We’ll finish faster this way.” She slammed the digger into the ground, squeezed the handles, and pulled out some dirt.

“Well, as I was saying, you know what philanderin’ means?”

Ka-chunk went her digger. “Not really. Maybe messing around with women or something.”

“That’s exactly what it is. My point is, I’m ... somewhat of an expert on the female form, having seen quite a few.”

“That’s good to know. In case you’re wondering, you’re not impressing me, you’re just ... you know ... digging a hole.” Ka-chunk.

“Jamie. Listen. Look at me.” She stopped working and their eyes met. “Even if you were chubby, you’d still be a beautiful woman, believe me. But you are certainly not chubby. Not at all. Not even a little bit.”

“It’s your job to be polite and respectful to the guests, especially the chubby ones. I appreciate it ... so ... thanks.” She raised her hands and drove the tool into the earth. Ka-chunk.