Black Mountain Ranch, A.R.E [read me a book .TXT] 📗

Kalie Hale sighed and leaned back against her dad’s pick-up, her tanned skin prickling in the heat of the sun. Having just finished helping Jake Darrel and Rufus Keating stack hay bails, the chestnut haired girl was ready to get inside for a glass of ice cold water…or maybe lemonade. She started to make her way to the ranch house to do just that when a voice stopped her in her tracks.
“Hey Kalie, mind holding Giaccomo for me today?” It was Jared Griffin, Mr. Hale’s twister. A beautiful fresh mustang stallion and he was impatient to get her ready for use. Jared could just imagine himself atop the magnificent buckskin beast, roping stubborn cattle out on the range.
Kalie glanced regretfully in the direction of the kitchen sink inside the house and turned in Jared’s direction. He didn’t like waiting, even for a minute or two. Grabbing her cowboy hat, left on the giant stack of hay in the barn, she trotted over to meet him. “Yeah, coming!”
Kalie helped Jared hobble the horses feet and then held him still with fingers over his eyes while the big man climbed into the saddle. As soon as he was situated, Kalie pulled the ropes away and bounded back away from the seething buckskin animal. His muscles rippled in readiness. He stood still only for a moment, letting his eyes adjust to the bright sunlight. Then he began to fight.
Giaccomo twisted, bucked, reared, and bellowed all around the sandy corral. But Jared was too experienced a rider to be thrown. He held on, waving his hat. After a while, the stallion settled down in defeat, and finally stood still with flaring nostrils. Kalie whooped congratulations to Jared, half to see what the horse’s reaction would be to the noise. Giaccomo only flinched and, after a single half hearted rear, snorted. Kalie climbed down and went to hold him so Jared could dismount.
“Great job. He’ll be a star out there with you,” Kalie praised. Jared smiled and nodded his appreciation. He already had the reigns in his hand again, so Kalie jogged off again to get her much needed drink. The cold water soothed her aching throat and washed out the dust from the hard day’s work. She walked outside again to meet her father coming inside the house.
“Hey dad, you’re back early,” she said casually. The ranch boss hugged his daughter close for a second before pulling back and looking at her.
“What, you’d rather not see me for another three days?” he asked with a big grin on his face. Kalie knew he was teasing, so she teased him back.
“Well, I was just getting to enjoy being on my own. Most girls my age have moved out and don’t live with their parents.” Still her dad’s little girl at age twenty-two, Kalie lived on the ranch with him, helping out with chores and range responsibilities.
“Yeah, well, ok, I’ve got to go check on the hands and see if everything is going alright with the new man. You’ve met Rex, right?” Aaron Reese, better known as Rex by the members of Black Mountain Ranch, had just been hired only a week before. Mr. Hale had not yet been able to see how the young man was doing, because he had left on a trip with some of the boys around the range. He was supposed to be gone for three more days, but had come back early.
“Yeah, I’ve met him.”
“Do you like him?”
Kalie looked at her dad strangely. “Uh…he’s a nice guy, yeah.”
Her dad laughed. “That’s all I wanted to know. I wouldn’t want any…not nice guys, around my beautiful daughter.”
Kalie smirked at her dad’s lousy humor and continued on her way down the steps. She heard the door open and close as her dad went in, so she looked around for something to do. Most of the ranch hands had specific duties to do, but Kalie just helped wherever she was needed. She liked it that way, because she got a lot of variety in her work.
Making her way over to the barns, Kalie spotted Jake lounging against a grazing mare with his Stetson pulled down over his eyes against the sun. She flopped down on the grass beside him.
“Hey.”
Jake opened an eye and glanced down at her before straightening and lifting his hat. “Hey. What brings you out here?”
“Boredom, I guess. Have you seen that buckskin Jared’s got over in the corral?” Kalie tried to make conversation. Cowboys weren’t known for having much to say, so in order to talk to them it has to be about horses or hay or cows.
“Yeah, he’s a beauty isn’t he? Jared lucked out getting that one,” Jake said jealously. Kalie chuckled. Everyone wanted the stallion.
“Yep.”
That was the end. Jake pulled the Stetson back down after a few minutes of silence and relaxed against the broke mustang’s flank. Kalie snorted and walked away. Cowboys!
With the sun dropping closer to the horizon, the hands once again aroused themselves to finish up the evening chores. Kalie found Jake again, staring bluntly at a horse’s hind leg. Even from across the pathway, Kalie could tell that something was wrong. The leg was glistening with sweat and was swollen.
“I’m going to go get the kit,” Jake grunted as he walked off. Kalie walked up in front of the mare, letting her sniff her outstretched hand curiously. Finally Kalie began rubbing her nose, and then up to her forehead, down her mane, and all along her back and down her inflamed leg. By then Jake had returned with bandages and ointment.
Kalie took the kit and rubbed a thick gooey substance gently over the infection. She smiled at the way the mare’s head drooped and a contented sigh came out of her mouth. The cool ointment felt good on her hot skin. Once it was good and thick, she wrapped a white bandage around the area firmly and secured it. Once finished, Jake put a hand on the horse’s shoulder and led her to a pen.
Kalie brushed dust off of the knees of her jeans from kneeling next to the horse. She looked up into the face of Aaron Reese.
“Uh, hi,” she said.
“Hey.”
“What do you want?”
“Nothing. Did you know your eyes are beautiful?” he asked. Kalie couldn’t tell how serious he was, but she knew he was flirting. She wanted to roll her eyes, but instead smiled politely.
“Thank you, Aaron. Now get off and do your job,” she said kindly.
“Call me Rex, please, and yes, ma’am.”
Kalie shook her head as the cowboy walked away. Several of the ranch hands before him had tried to flirt with her, but got no headway. She never believed men meant what they said when they flirted; they always seemed to be trying to trick her. Just the tone of voice said it all.
After the evening chores were completed, the cowboys invited Kalie to join them for a cookout with them. Even though she wasn’t actually hired help, she treated them like equals and they treated her the same.
Eating hotdogs and potato salad as the sun dipped below the horizon, the members of Black Mountain relaxed against the outside of house. It was nice just to close her eyes and listen to the laughs of her friends and fellow workers. Suddenly Kalie’s eyes snapped open. Someone was standing over her.
“Rex?”
“Hey, Kalie.”
“What are you doing?”
“Looking at you.”
“Do you have to do it so close?”
“I’m sorry, I just…you are so pretty.”
“Thank you.”
“What are you doing tomorrow night?”
Kalie groaned inwardly and rolled her eyes. It was too dark for Rex to see, so she sighed loudly. “Working. I live on a ranch.”
For a moment Rex was silent and Kalie wondered what he was going to say. She knew what she had said was kind of harsh…but she didn’t want Rex standing over her staring at her. But instead he just turned and walked away, joining the rest of the cowboys. Kalie frowned and closed her eyes again. If someone wanted to flirt with her, it was their own choice to get rejection.
“Kalie wake up!” a voice jerked Kalie back to reality. She opened her eyes to see Rufus staring at her.
“I wasn’t asleep!”
“You sure looked like it. Kinda cute too,” he said grinning. Kalie took the compliment, but knew it half joking.
“Thanks. Now why do I need to get up?”
Rufus held out his hand to help her up. “Jake’s got a guitar. While you were sleeping we argued over who got first dance. I won.”
His grin made Kalie smile. Rufus made everything funny, whether it was or not. She took his hands and waited for Jake to start strumming his guitar. Dancing with Rufus was nice for the most part…but it had its drawbacks, especially since he hadn’t quite mastered it.
After dancing for a few minutes, Rufus swung her completely away from him, letting go in the process. Kalie spun out into the arms of Rex. Oh no, I’m dancing with the guy who tries to flirt with me, she thought as he stepped out into the circle with her.
It was a dream. Rex was completely in control as she swung in and out, around and about. Finally he let her go. As she danced with another partner, she looked up and found him staring at her. She blushed and looked back down at the ground, glad that the totally darkness hid her red face.
Slowly everyone went back to their bunkhouses. Kalie usually stayed until the last person was gone, and she did so this night. Unfortunately, it was Rex. She blinked in surprise when she found that she didn’t mind as much as before. He might be terrible at flirting, but he was a great dancer.
Kalie leaned against the siding and watched him walk away. She smiled. At least he wasn’t staying to talk to her.
She jumped as she felt a presence by her side. Turning she saw him.
“Hey, uh Kalie. I just wanted you to know…I had a great time tonight.”
Kalie looked up and saw a slight smile on his face.
“Yeah…me too. Maybe we can do it again sometime,” she replied hurriedly. Then she slipped away and walked up the steps to the house. As he left, something moved in the corner of her eye. She spun her head toward it, but there was nothing there.

Rex kept away from Kalie for the next several days. He could tell that she wasn’t interested in him. At least not the way he was interested in her. He frowned as he filled buckets of water to bring