by Riley Moreno
That had been a Saturday, and Alice had spent the entire Sunday doing nothing but thinking. She couldn’t remember the last time she hadn’t worked on a weekend and it felt good take some time to herself. She even picked up a book to read which is something she hadn’t done in years. For someone who prides themselves of being a lover of books, she sure didn’t read a lot. This revelation had made her quite sad and she looked in shock at her bookshelf which was now filled with paperwork. When had she become this person?
Now, days later, looking in the mirror she barely recognised herself. She’d always been told she was beautiful, and she wasn’t shy to admit that she was good looking, but her eyes looked tired now and her hair looked limp and weathered. And while the many years of gym had made her body hard and angular, it had also taken away the soft roundness that she once liked about herself. For some reason, being around those girls had made her look at herself in a new way and she didn’t like what she was seeing. She washed her face and lathered on some makeup and got ready for work – once again not at all excited for the day ahead.
At the office she poured herself some coffee, grabbed the newspaper and started to read. Her newspaper came out twice a day – the morning and afternoon herald. She worked shifts, depending on when and where they needed her. Lately, she’d been doing a lot of afternoon shifts which she preferred. It meant she could come in a bit later in the morning, take some time reading the morning news and get herself ready for the afternoon ahead. Sitting with her coffee she flipped her way through the newspaper, looking for anything that caught her eye. She normally loved reading the news from the other journalist and would rewrite it in her head to see if she could get it to sound better. Of course, she never told anyone that she did this – realising how awful it would make her seem, as if she was better than the rest of them. Today, she didn’t have much interest in doing the rewrites, and simply flipped through the pages without really seeing any of the words. She settled on the ads section – generally not something she was interested in, but she was looking for something light-hearted to start the day.
And then she saw it:
Modern Cowboy looking for love.
At first she laughed when she read it, assuming immediately that it must be some sort of joke. But then she decided that it might actually be real. After all, mail order brides were still in existence today – and this was basically the same thing. This was just a guy, looking for love and using the newspaper to find it. What was wrong with that? Why was that any different from internet dating or going to a bar? What peaked her interest the most was the fact that he had asked interested woman to send a reply by post – not email. There was something so old fashioned and special about this that it made her heart flutter. Alice wondered when the last time was that she had actually written a letter.
And then just like that, an idea struck her. She was so excited by this idea that she felt adrenaline come coursing through her veins, a feeling she had not had for a very long time. It was a feeling that she had been craving and which made her realise that what she was thinking was right. She would write a novel. It was what she had always wanted to do, but she had never had the inspiration up until now. She would gather her inspiration on the ranch, with this modern cowboy. This would make for some amazing research. She won’t go there looking for love – she was too cynical to think that would ever happen. But she’d go for a break – to get away from the city, from this life, from this job. She’d meet a new man, and who knows perhaps they could be friends. Then she’d write a book and she’d finally become the novelist that she had always wanted to be. She felt slightly guilty, after all this was a man looking for love, but then she looked around her office – which suddenly felt as if it was caving in on her – and she made up her mind.
She immediately got out a pen and some paper and started to write.
Chapter 3
Alex
It was less than two weeks after the newspaper advert was placed when the letters started flooding in. Alex had barely expected one reply so he was surprised when he received up to about seventy. He immediately phoned Jerry to tell him the news.
“You got seventy letters? SEVENTY?”
Alex laughed, “Yeah, maybe even more. I haven’t counted them. Crazy hey.”
“Oh man, I think I should do something like this. Now you get the luxury of choosing the girl that sounds the best to you. How often does something like that happen? I’ll be honest Alex, I wasn’t even sure if anyone would reply. I saw the advert. I didn’t think you were nearly detailed enough. I figured some crazy might reply and you’d be stuck with her.”
“What? I thought you were so confident that it would work?
It was Jerry’s turn to laugh, “Confident is maybe not the right word. I thought it would certainly be interesting. Well, you proved me wrong. Now, excuse me while I go type up my advert. Or do I have to be a cowboy to make this work? And as you know, I’m anything but a cowboy.” It was true, Jerry was the opposite of a cowboy. He was a technology freak and barely stepped outside for anything. He would rather drive to a shop that is far than walk to a shop that is close. “So,” Jerry continued, “what are the girls like?”
“I haven’t looked yet,” Alex confessed. The truth was that he was completely overwhelmed by the process and he had no idea where to begin.
“You haven’t looked yet! Okay get off the phone. Go look. Call me back afterwards.” And Jerry hung up, forcing Alex to look at the stack of letters in front of him.
Alex made himself a cup of coffee and went to sit at the kitchen table. He put the letters in front of him and devised a Yes, No and a Maybe pile. Then, he opened the first letter.
Dear Modern Cowboy
I hate my life. I hate my job. I hate my husband. You sound like a dream. I’d love to come to your ranch and escape from the realities of my life.
Alex didn’t even finish reading. He put this one immediately into the No pile. A woman who just wanted to escape from her life wasn’t someone that he wanted – especially someone who was already married. Well that’s not a great start, he thought while opening up the next letter.
Dear Modern Cowboy
The last thing I had expected when reading the newspaper today was to find your advert. It stood out to me immediately and after a lot of consideration I decided to reply. I’ll be honest – its nerve wracking, after all I have no idea who you are and you have no idea who I am. But I’m willing to take a leap of faith.
Eloise
Alex put this one into the Maybe pile, and then after some consideration he moved it over into the Yes pile. It was a short letter but there something very honest about it that he liked.
Two hours later and he was finally getting to the bottom of the pile. He had only two yes’s so far, five maybe’s and a whole lot of no’s. There really were a lot of crazies out there it seemed. He still had about ten letters to go through and while some of the Yes’s and Maybe’s were good, nothing had really stood out to him. But that was all about to change.
Dear Modern Cowboy
I cannot even begin to explain how much your advert spoke to me, and how much it feels a little bit like fate – even though up until now I didn’t believe that something like fate existed. I’ve had an interesting few years – mostly busy, chaotic and challenging, and while I have enjoyed my life up until now I suddenly feel as if something is missing. As if I need to slow it down, breathe a little, find true love – as clichéd as that all might sound.
I’m a journalist, although my dream has always been to write a novel, and I’ve had great success in my career. In other words – I’m a hard worker and I’m confident in my abilities. But just a few days ago I took a day off and read a book – and that’s when it hit me: I haven’t read a book in years. Which is sad, because novels have always been a passion of mine. I am not trying to run away from my life. I have no boyfriend or husband or child to speak of. I have dedicated my life to my career. And now, I want to dedicate my life to
me. To new adventures. I’m not saying that what you are offering is going to be what I’m looking for. I do not think that we are going to fall in love and that I am going to want to change everything to be with you. But I am saying that it might happen. And that small maybe makes it worth taking the chance.
I hope we meet.
Love Alice.
And Alex didn’t know why, but he didn’t even bother to continue with his search. This was the one. He rang up Jerry.
“Jerry, I found her.” Jerry gave a whoop of delight in reply and asked him to read the letter, which he did. Jerry whistled, “Well, she certainly is honest. I like her. Straight forward – you know what you’re getting with this one. So, what about the others? Are you sending a few letters back in reply? See where these letters go before you ask one of them to come over?”
“No. Just this one.”
“Just the one? But you had like seventy letters to go through. You can’t tell me hers was the only good one.”
“It wasn’t. Some might have even been better. But I don’t know Jerry, there’s something about this one that spoke to me. And this is what I’m here for you know. To take that leap of faith and listen to my heart.”
Jerry laughed, “Spoken like a true cowboy.”
Alex sent off his reply. In his letter he invited Alice to come stay with him, detailing everything that she might need to know. Then, he gathered up all the letters, tied them up again and put them away. He wasn’t sure if he should throw them away or keep them. It wasn’t as if he could send another letter to someone if this didn’t work out – they’d know that they were second best. But he decided to hang onto the letters anyway, as a sort of reminder of what he was doing.
Alex spent the rest of the week working on the ranch. He always had so much work to do, especially since he was now in charge, and he wondered how his dad always managed to have time for him despite all this work. It was a true testament to him as a father and Alex was grateful for that. The ranch was something that Alex was very proud of and he knew that it was something that would always be a part of him, as well as something that he wanted to pass down to his children one day. The ranch had been in the family for a very long time. Alex briefly remembered his grandfather walking around the fields, herding the cattle. His dad had taken over when his grandfather passed away and now it was his turn to take the reins. He wondered how Alice was going to adjust to this new environment. He knew, especially from when his friends had come over, that it was not for everyone. A lot of people seemed to think of it as this ideal sort of lifestyle but once they spent a few weeks in it they want to run away. It’s very far removed from the rest of the world, and it’s a lot more hard work than people realise. But looking around the ranch he could do nothing but smile. This was home.
A week after he had sent his letter, he got a reply from Alice. She was coming. The date was set for a week later. It was happening. Alex wasn’t sure how to feel about everything – the whole idea had seemed great when he started the process but suddenly he was starting to get scared. He couldn’t stop thinking about Emily. He wished that she was alive and that he didn’t have to do this. He hoped that she would be okay with it all. He knew she would be, but he suddenly felt unsure about everything. He looked around the ranch again, and wondered if a girl was going to like it here. For the next week he set about cleaning and getting it ready. As he was cleaning Beatrice walked in. She had been with the family for a very long time and was an important to the ranch. She, along with two other ladies, were responsible for all the meals at the ranch. Alex tried to sort himself out with his own meals as often as possible but Beatrice loved cooking for him when he allowed it. She was very motherly – she had been ever since he was a little boy.
“Alex! You’re cleaning up so much. You must let me help you today. I hear we’re in for a visitor?” She had a twinkle in her eye.
“Wow, news gets around fast. Yes, I have a lady coming to spend some time with me. I haven’t met her but I’m hoping the two of us get on well. I’ll be honest Beatrice, I’m quite nervous. What if she doesn’t like me? What if I don’t like her? I’m starting to think I should’ve done a bit more research into all of this. I did it on a whim and now I’m not so sure. She arrives tomorrow. I cannot believe this is all happening. It feels too fast. There is a huge part of me that regrets doing something like this. This could all go horribly wrong, you know.”
Beatrice simply smiled and took his hand, “Oh Alex my boy. Don’t be silly. Of course she’ll like you. If she doesn’t then she’s crazy. What’s not to like? And sometimes the best plans are made on a whim. Who cares whether or not it works out? Either way it will be a fun adventure. And my boy, you need a bit of adventure in your life. We appreciate everything you do for the ranch, but you’re still young and you need to experience a bit more. It will all be fine, I promise. Nothing is set in stone. You don’t have to marry her you know. If you don’t like each other than you just go your separate ways. Oh life is far too short not to take a few risks in life. As the saying goes – you don’t regret the things you did in life, but instead you regret the things you didn’t do. Come, now let me make you something to eat. I know just the thing to make you happy.”
And just like that Alex really did feel better. Beatrice always knew how to do that for him. She knew him so well and always knew what to say. He went to sleep that day feeling calm and woke up feeling refreshed and excited. He had sent a car to meet her at the airport, so he knew that she should be arriving around ten that morning. This gave him just a few hours to have breakfast, do any last minute cleaning and to calm himself. His nerves were back and this time he couldn’t stop them. He found himself pacing around the room over and over again. News of this new girl coming and made its way around the ranch and he knew that they were all just as curious and excited as him. But knowing that everyone would be watching made him even more nervous.
He heard a car pull in and he took a deep breath. Then he stopped at the door and took another deep breath. He opened the door and went outside, noticing a few people staring out from the fields or from their windows. The car door opened and Alice stepped out. She was beautiful.
Chapter 4
Alice
Alice hadn’t expected to actually get a reply from her letter. She sent it and then continued on with her life as if she hadn’t really sent it at all. She assumed he would be inundated with letters and she didn’t think that hers offered anything that he would be interested in. She had been honest in the letter, well as honest as she could be. She meant everything that she had said. The only part that she had left out was her idea of using this as a base for her novel. She didn’t exactly want to tell him that she chose to use this whole idea in order to write a book, and then simply come back to the city to carry on with her real life. There were other reasons why she wanted to get chosen – and those she really had mentioned in the letter.
After she sent the letter she couldn’t stop thinking about her decision to write a novel. She certainly didn’t expect to write something and then to suddenly become a successful author – she knew it didn’t work like that. But she also knew that she had the talent to become one and as with everything in her life she knew that if she just worked hard enough she could make it happen. The idea of life on a ranch with a cowboy looking for love certainly did appeal to her and she knew this would be ideal base for her inspiration. But she didn’t really think that she would be chosen, so she had started to think of other ideas. Almost every idea she came up with involved getting away from the city and from her job. She started looking into idea after idea until finally she made a decision. She was going to Paris. Her French was limited but it would be enough to get her by in the beginning. She realised she was just going from one city to another, and that she had chosen a city so steeped in romantic clichés, but she didn’t care. It was a place she had dreamt about since she was a little girl. She wasn’t sure what she would do for work and while she had quite a lot of money put
away she knew that it wouldn’t last her forever. So she started looking for jobs, determined to set up something before she left. She emailed and phoned company after company but nobody seemed willing to take her on. She was quite specific as well. She wanted something that would pay the bills, be interesting, and yet still offer her the time and freedom to write her novel.
Once again, she wasn’t a believer in fate, but it seemed as if she just wasn’t meant to go to Paris. But if not Paris, then where? The answer, it seemed, was lying right in front of her, in a pile of letters she had picked up from the post box and not looked at yet. When she saw that she had a letter from Texas her heart skipped a beat. This was either a letter to say that she had made it, that she had made a shortlist, or that she had been declined. But surely he wouldn’t have written to those that he declined? With a shaking hand she opened the letter. It was longer than she had expected and the handwriting was neat.