It's Just A Ranch

by Misty Malone

  Seeing how uncomfortable she was becoming, he quickly changed the topic. “See? Another thing we have in common. I’m sure it’s great for some people, but I don’t plan on visiting there, either. Well, here we are at a Ford dealership. Are there any in particular you’re thinking about?”

  She started to relax as soon as he changed the subject, and they continued looking at cars. She was especially interested in a bright yellow Mustang.

  That evening while he was doing chores he found himself thinking about the lady he’d just spent the afternoon with. They had become very comfortable around each other and had begun to talk pretty openly. The one exception to that was her past. She still didn’t want to talk about the years between when she graduated from high school, and when she came to the ranch. Today was the first she’d mentioned anything about that period of time, and he was pretty sure she hadn’t intentionally brought it up. He still had no idea what happened that upset her so much. He didn’t even know what she majored in in college, or what she did for a living after graduating.

  Anytime anything was mentioned about the last five to seven years, either by himself or anyone else, Garrett could see her physically tense. He knew getting past whatever happened was why she was staying at the ranch, but he was beginning to become concerned about her.

  Another thing that was beginning to concern him a bit was their developing relationship, or lack of it. He was concerned because he didn’t know which it was. They were getting along really well and conversation always flowed easily between them. He found himself looking forward to meals, and the time they had begun spending together in the evenings. But as friendly as she seemed to be, she also seemed to be holding back from having any kind of relationship that was more than friends.

  It seemed to him she was sending mixed signals. One day she was warm and inviting, but the next she was more reserved. She was always friendly, but some days she was much more receptive than others. He started to wonder if this seeming change in her behavior had something to do with her past.

  Since moving in she had begun taking walks around the ranch. The first couple days her walks were very limited, but as she started feeling more at home, her walks began to lengthen. On Monday, the day after they’d gone to look at cars, she went out for a walk to think about the cars she’d seen and decide which one she wanted to buy.

  She left shortly after dinner, and told Helen she was going for a walk to think. She warned her she had a lot on her mind, so she may find a nice spot in a shade somewhere and sit down for a while. When Max and Garrett came in for supper a few minutes before 6:00 they found Helen and Maria in a tizzy. “Mindy left for a walk shortly after we ate dinner, and she’s not back yet,” Helen said.

  Both men were concerned, but Garrett was the first to speak. “Have you tried calling her?”

  “I have, but she hasn’t answered. When she wasn’t back yet by 5:30 I thought I’d call to make sure she hadn’t gotten so involved with her thinking she forgot to watch the time. I’ve called her three times, and she hasn’t answered.”

  Garrett already had his phone out, and he shook his head. “She didn’t answer my call, either. I wonder what’s going on?”

  “I don’t know,” Max said, but I’m glad she knows not to go further than the woods. We should be able to find her. Let’s go get a couple of the hands to help, and we’ll take the four wheelers out. If four of us go out and we’re just looking between here and the woods, it shouldn’t take long to spot her.”

  “Go get a couple of the men, I’ll be out in a minute or two.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “I’m going to climb this tree I used to climb all the time. I used to get up high enough that you could see clear to the woods in every direction. There are just a couple of valleys that could hide her. Hopefully I’ll be able to see her and we’ll know which way to go.”

  “Is that safe? Can you still climb the tree like you used to?”

  “Dad, it’s like riding a bike. I’ll be careful. You go get a couple men ready in case I don’t see her.”

  “Be careful. You falling out and breaking a leg won’t help her any.”

  “I know, Dad. I’ll be careful. I climbed this tree all the time when I was in school.”

  Ten minutes later Garrett met his dad and Wyatt, along with two of their ranch hands, Coy and Trace. “Do we know where she is, Garrett?” Max asked with a hopeful expression.

  “I didn’t see her anywhere, and I took the binoculars up with me. I’m getting concerned. Let’s get going.”

  “Coy and Trace both volunteered. We’ve got the others all standing by in case we need them. They’re going to go ahead and eat their supper. If we don’t find her fairly quickly, I’ll call and they’ll head out on horses.”

  “Good. Let’s get out there and find her.” Garrett gave each of them an area to cover, with instructions to call him as soon as anyone spotted her. He quickly turned and headed out on his route, and the others followed suit. Max had to smile a bit. He would be willing to bet his son didn’t even realize he’d just taken control of the search for Mindy. Max normally was in charge of any rescue mission on the ranch. That told Max a great deal about Garrett’s feelings for their house guest.

  Max was the last to leave. As they were all heading off in different directions, he caught movement out of the corner of his eye and turned to see Mindy standing up. Apparently she’d been sitting under a tree not real far from the house this whole time. She was on the back side of the tree, which would explain why Garrett wouldn’t have seen her from the tree. The ear buds she took out of her ears explained why she hadn’t answered when they yelled.

  He turned the four wheeler around and went to talk to her. She smiled as he approached, but the smile quickly left when she saw his expression. “What’s wrong?” she asked as soon as he turned the four wheeler off.

  “Are you okay?”

  “Yes, of course. Why wouldn’t I be?”

  “We have men out looking for you. If you’re okay, why haven’t you been answering your phone, and why aren’t you in the house for supper?”

  Her eyes grew as she looked at her watch. “I’m sorry. I had no idea it was this late. And I must have left my phone in my room,” she said, reaching into her pocket.

  Max took out his phone and made a few calls, telling the men he found her, before addressing her again. “Go on into the house while I put the four wheeler up. We’ll talk more during supper. I’m sure Garrett will have a thing or two to say to you.”

  With that, and without giving her a chance to respond, he drove off, leaving her standing there, wondering. He sounded upset, which she didn’t fully understand. Yes, she’d forgotten to watch the time, but it was only 6:10. He was getting all upset over ten minutes? And what did he mean Garrett would have a thing or two to say to her? Surely he wouldn’t be so upset over ten minutes. Maybe he’d settle his dad down for her.

  With that thought in mind, she turned toward the house. She and Garrett had become—she paused. What had they become? She really liked Garrett, and she had the impression he had similar feelings. But she wasn’t ready for a relationship yet. She loved spending time with him, talking with him, and she really enjoyed it when they swam together. They seemed to fit together in a natural sort of way. But she just didn’t think she could handle anything more than friends yet.

  That thought bothered her a bit, though. What if Garrett wanted them to be more than just friends? If she told him she couldn’t commit to anything more than that right now, would that hurt what they had? She really liked what they had, and didn’t want to lose it, but was that being fair to Garrett? To be honest, earlier in her life when she was looking to date, hoping to find her forever man, he was exactly the type of man she was looking for. She was even willing to admit to herself that once she got her feet back under her and her head cleared, she would probably welcome a man just like him in her life. Just exactly like him. But not now.

  As that th
ought was going through her head, the man she was thinking about came running over to her. “Mindy, you’re okay?”

  “Yes, I’m fine. I just forgot to watch the time. Sorry.”

  He frowned instead of smiled, again making her wonder. They were at the house, though, so he didn’t say anything else. He opened the door for her, and as she walked in, Helen immediately had her in her arms, giving her a hug. “Oh, it’s so good to see you. Are you all right, dear?”

  She was assuring Helen she was fine, when Max and Wyatt came in. “Let’s sit down and eat. We’ll talk while we eat,” Max declared. No one seemed to question that at all, and everyone sat down. Once plates were full and people started eating, Max wasted no time. “Okay, Mindy. Suppose we start with you explaining to us what happened that caused us all to go out looking for you.”

  Mindy was momentarily speechless. He still sounded upset; angry even. She shrugged her shoulders and tried to answer him the best she could. “Max, I’m sorry, but I don’t know exactly what you want me to say. I just forgot to watch the time. I had a lot on my mind and didn’t realize it had gotten so late.”

  Everyone seemed to still for a moment, as if waiting for her to continue. When she didn’t, Max put his fork down and looked at her. “And your phone? What happened there? We called repeatedly.”

  “Like I said, I must have forgotten it. I didn’t realize it wasn’t in my pocket.”

  Mindy saw Max and Garrett’s eyes meet. Helen cleared her throat and both men looked over at her. She had what looked to Mindy to be a look of warning in her eyes, but she didn’t understand what it was about. The men seemed to, though, as both men took rather deep breaths and exhaled slowly. Mindy thought it looked like they were trying to calm down. But what did they have to calm down about? She was ten lousy minutes late for a meal!

  She was just about to voice that very thought, when Garrett spoke. “Mindy, do you remember your first day here, when Dad gave you the rules you need to follow at the ranch?”

  “Yes, of course I do,” she said, trying to keep her temper under control. “And I admit I was ten minutes late for a meal. I’m sorry about that. But it was only ten minutes. I had a lot on my mind and time got away from me. Are you saying that’s never happened to you? Come on. It was ten minutes!”

  Her voice had gotten louder than she’d meant for it to, and apparently it surprised everyone, because again it got quiet and very still.

  Garrett’s eyebrows shot up, and he looked at her with an expression she couldn’t read. “Mindy, that sounds like the beginning of a temper tantrum, but I certainly hope it’s not. Temper tantrums don’t have a place at our supper table. Let me try to explain something to you. That first night when Dad told you about the rules, those are rules we all live by. Those rules include some checks and balances. For instance, the reason Dad insists everyone be here at 6:00 for supper is a check. If anyone isn’t there, we know to go look for them. They may be hurt.”

  “I understand that, Garrett, and I said I’m sorry. But I didn’t forget to watch the time on purpose, and I was only ten minutes late.”

  Garrett ignored her comment for the time being. “And keeping your phone with you is another part of the checks and balances. When someone isn’t here at supper time, we call them. I can understand you’re not used to this and forgot to watch the time. But if you would have had your phone on you we would have avoided everyone’s worry.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said in a much quieter tone. “I see what you mean now, checks and balances. I’m sorry I forgot my phone. I didn’t mean to worry anyone.”

  All four of the other adults at the table seemed to accept her apology this time, and relaxed a bit. “I’m glad you understand the checks and balance system we use now,” Max said. “I must not have made that clear before, and I’m sorry for that. I’m glad you understand it now, so it won’t happen again.” He easily went into ranch talk, as they normally did at the beginning of their supper, and everyone acted as if nothing had happened.

  Garrett noticed Mindy was quiet during supper, but didn’t seem to be pouting, which was good. He and his father neither one went for pouting. He had decided last night that he wanted to talk to her, and that would give him the opportunity to be sure she wasn’t pouting.

  He waited until everyone was finished with supper before approaching her. “Mindy, would you like to go for a walk this evening?”

  “I was going to help Maria with the dishes,” she said. “Maybe tomorrow.”

  “How about after they’re done? I’d really like to talk to you for a few minutes, and I hate to put it off until tomorrow.”

  “What do you want to talk about? If it’s more about my phone, I really am sorry.”

  “No, I believe you. It’s not about that.”

  Helen had heard the two talking, and stepped in. “Mindy, thank you for offering to help. I appreciate that. I wanted to talk to Maria about something, though, and I thought we could talk while I help her with the dishes. Why don’t you two go on out by the pool or for a walk. I’ll help her tonight.”

  “If you’re sure?”

  “I’m positive,” Helen assured her.

  “Thanks, Mom,” Garrett said as he led Mindy toward the back yard. Once outside, he turned her to face him. “I do want to talk to you, but I don’t want to worry about us being interrupted. Have you ever ridden a horse?”

  “No,” she said a little hesitantly. “I don’t think I could do that.”

  “Have you ever been around horses at all?”

  “Not really. I always thought I’d like to, but I never have. Why?”

  “Do you want to go for a ride? You can ride in front of me on my horse. That will give you a chance to see if you’d like to learn how to ride.”

  “I think I’d like that,” she said after a couple moments of thought. “If I like it, is there somewhere I can go to learn how to ride myself?”

  “Of course there is. You could go to our barn. I can teach you, if you want to learn.”

  “You would?”

  “If you want me to. Let’s go for a ride tonight and see what you think of it. If you like it, we’ll talk more about teaching you how to ride.”

  “Sounds fun. You’ll have to tell me what I need to do, though.”

  “This first time you don’t have to do anything. You can just watch while I saddle Duke. Then I’ll help you up on him and we’ll go.” They’d reached the barn, and he watched her reaction to the horses as they walked through the barn to Duke’s stall. He was happy to see her going over to several of them that had their heads out, and petting or scratching them. She didn’t seem afraid. That told him a great deal about how this first ride might go.

  Fifteen minutes later they were heading down a worn path behind the barn. He kept his arm tight around her. She seemed to be enjoying it, and didn’t seem at all scared. He gave her several minutes to get used to it before checking on her. “Are you doing okay?”

  “I’m doing great,” she enthused. “This is fun.”

  He smiled, and couldn’t have been happier to hear that. They talked a little as he took her to a favorite spot of his. He stopped at a large tree close to a creek, overlooking a little meadow of sorts, that the creek ran through. He slid down off of Duke, and lifted her off. They’d only been riding about twenty minutes, but he made sure her legs were sturdy underneath her before he let go of her. He tied Duke loosely to one of the lower branches, and grabbed a blanket he’d brought with them.

  He saw her over by the creek and had to smile. She was beautiful standing there studying the creek, with the evening sun shining behind her. “See any guppies?”

  “I do,” she said, glancing back at him. “They’re so fun to watch as they dart here and there.” She was walking slowly along the creek, watching it carefully. “It looks like some bigger fish are in here, too. Do you ever fish, or are these the kind of fish you can eat?”

  “I used to fish here when I was growing up. Do you fish?”


  “Dad took me fishing a few times when I was growing up, and I loved it. I hardly ever caught anything, but I still loved it. It was very relaxing.”

  “We’ll have to come out here fishing sometime then,” he said as he came up behind her. “Come on, I’ll show you where I used to fish.” He led her several yards up the creek to a large stone that overhung the creek. “This is the perfect spot. This boulder is huge. It’s in the side of the hill to stay, very deep, so you can walk clear out to the edge of it. I used to sit at the edge and throw my line in. This creek isn’t too deep for most of it, but it has a few deeper spots, like holes, and one of them is right below this rock. You’re only about three feet above the water, but if you fall off and go into the water, you don’t really have to worry too much about hitting a rock and getting hurt. You might want to hold your breath before you hit the water, but you don’t have to worry about hitting a rock.”

  She was laughing, and had a mischievous look on her face. “Or if it was hot out and you weren’t catching any fish, you could accidentally fall in for a few minutes?” She watched as his face turned slightly red. “What’s wrong? Did I say something? There’s a story here, isn’t there?”

  “There is,” he admitted. “I was fishing here one Sunday afternoon, and that’s exactly what happened. It was really hot that day, and that water looked awfully inviting. We had the pool at the house, and I thought about going back home to swim a little bit, but I really wanted to keep fishing. I figured if I could just jump in for a few minutes it would cool me off and I’d feel so much better while I fished a while longer.”

  “What was the problem? Why not just jump in?”

  “I knew Dad’s rule about swimming alone. They took me for swimming lessons when I was small, so after several years of lessons I was a good swimmer and Dad knew it, but that didn’t matter. His rule was you never swim alone if you’re away from the house, and you never go swimming at home without letting someone know first. But I was young and didn’t see that five minutes would hurt anything, so I stood up on the rock, took my shirt off, and jumped in. I did a great cannonball into the water, and it felt great. I swam a few minutes and got out, just like planned. I put my shirt back on and went back to fishing, feeling good.”