On the Fence

Chapter 1

Mr. Bailey's eyes slowly traveled down the length of me, taking in the red flannel shirt and worn jeans I wore with my cowboy boots. His eyes returned to my face, and he looked over at Mr. Simmons.

"Well, that's interesting," was his only comment.

I chuckled in response, and a playful smirk captured my features. Mr. Bailey got a good-humored smile as he took in my smile and turned to Mr. Simmons.

"Well, Brant, you better get her settled."

"You're ok with this?"

Mr. Bailey laughed and answered, "It doesn't matter at this point. The contract is solid and signed, so you'd better go get her settled."

"In the bunkhouse with the rest of the guys?" Mr. Bailey's eyes searched Brant's face for a moment before they turned back to look at me.

"No, I suppose not. There is the apartment above the stables. Put her there. Introduce her to the other guys and give her a tour of the place before Marney rings for dinner."

Brant gave our boss a nod and turned to head out of the office when Mr. Bailey called out to him, saying, "And Brant."

"Yes, sir?"

"Make sure you lay down the law with the guys concerning Ms. Lundsen."

"Yes, sir."

Mr. Bailey's eyes turned on me, saying, "Welcome to Bridlewood Ranch, Taylor." I smiled and gave him a nod before I turned to follow Brant out of the office.

We walked out of the house, and Brant picked up my gunny sack on his way down the steps, heading toward the massive barn across the way. As we entered the barn and headed into the stables, I followed him without comment. I looked around at the very well-kept and fancy stables, catching sight of prize-winning horses in the stalls as we walked past them towards the back.

A wrought-iron spiral staircase was in the back corner of the stables. Brant started up them and stood on the landing to unlock the door with a key on his massive key ring; he was the manager here at Bridlewood Ranch.

We entered, and he walked over to set my bag on the bed. I looked around me at the lovely studio apartment in amazement. It was well beyond my accommodation expectations; I had expected the bunkhouse with the guys.

"Here's a copy of the key for you. I'm the only other one that will have a copy, so if you get locked out for some reason, you'll need to find me. The guys here are all decent guys, but they can get a little rowdy on the weekends or when drinking's involved, so I would still lock your door at night. Bathroom is that door there, and the rest should be self-explanatory."

"Thanks and sorry for the trouble. This is really nice, much more than I expected," I said with a smile.

"Taylor, can I ask what made you want to apply to work as a ranchhand alongside a bunch of guys?" I looked at him and laughed a little. A small smile came to his face like my laughter had pulled it out of him, but his green eyes were intense as they looked at me.

"I have experience with this setting, and I need work for the summer and when college starts back up. As my contract says, I'm full-time through the summer with room and board and then switch to part-time, paying rent when I start school again. I'd rather work here than be a barista or something," I shrugged.

"You sure you know what you're doing here?" He asked me again, obviously concerned about me.

"Mr. Simmons, I've always preferred the company of men, so it doesn't bother me," I said. His eyebrows shot up at my statement. I laughed when I realized he could take my statement multiple ways.