Bad Boy Rancher’s Baby by GiGi Reine
Chapter One
Dee
job in Chicago, I was overjoyed when my Uncle Tim offered me a job. City life wasn’t for me anyway, and returning home held its promises, like seeing my best friend, Malorie.
I was so happy to see her again. I nearly knocked her over when I threw myself into Malorie’s arms at the airport.
“Oh, my goodness, I can’t believe I’m home! It’s so good to see you, Malorie!”
We kissed each other’s cheeks and hugged. “I can’t believe it either! You look so amazing, Dee! My goodness, look at that blonde hair, so sleek and stylish, and those clothes. Chicago must really be something!”
“It’s a great place to shop, for sure. Amazing restaurants, cute little boutique shops, coffee houses, and bars with all the fancy folks dressed in business suits and ties. It’s a fantastic place, if you like that sort of thing, but I’ve missed home.”
We started walking side by side, arms around each other, and I picked up my luggage. “Thanks for picking me up. Uncle Tim is so busy, he sent me documents to look at before I even got here. Who would have guessed I’d be home, working for my uncle again, just like in high school.”
“Hey, you can always come work for Alan and me. Since dad passed, he left us the ranch.”, Malorie exclaimed.
“Oh no. I don’t think so.” I climbed into Malorie’s pickup truck and my phone buzzed. It was my uncle, Tim.
“Hello Tim!”
“Have you arrived yet? I need you to call the owner of Red Dirt Ranch, pronto. I need you to schedule a meeting so you can have him sign the papers.”
I rolled my eyes, as if Uncle Tim could see me. “Okay, I’ll do that as soon as I get to your house.”
“Good. Tell Malorie I said hi.”
I smiled. “Okay, love you.”
“Love you too, kiddo.”
I tossed my phone back into my purse. “Uncle Tim says hi. I can’t believe I’m home!”
I looked out at the familiar landscape of Dumas, Texas and laughed. “As soon as we both have a chance, I want to grab some drinks and celebrate. Just you and I, no husband!”
“You got it! Maybe over the weekend sometime. Alan likes to go out with his buddies, and they are supposed to go on a hunting trip soon. We can have a couple days together, just us girls. We’ll go to the bar, dine, and go shopping. There is a new shop in town.”
I leaned in and side-hugged Malorie. “Perfect, I haven’t had a break in a long time. I need some serious down-home fun!”
Before I could blink, Malorie was dropping me off at my uncle’s house and bidding me goodbye with an air kiss. Malorie was always busy, but the promise of some catching up and fun together one of these weekends was exciting.
I threw open the door to my uncle’s log cabin and stepped inside. Ever since my parents passed a few years back, I only had Uncle Tim for family. It felt good to be home, and spending time with him would prove to be difficult with his schedule, but it was worth the effort.
I set my bags down and collapsed on the soft brown couch in his man-cave-style living room that looked out toward the backyard. Shoes off, I curled up to get comfortable and made the phone call he requested.
A deep manly voice answered after one ring. “Hello?”
“Hi, this is Ms. Richards, I am calling to schedule a meeting with Mr. Marshall about the acquisition of Red Dirt Ranch.”
I heard the low primal growl that escaped his lips through the phone and frowned. Uncle Tim mentioned that Mr. Marshall was not an easy man to deal with, and it was going to take every ounce of my patience and determination. Yet, I wasn’t prepared for his immediate attitude over the phone. We hadn’t even met face to face yet.
“I don’t have time for this, Ms. Richards. I need the chance to come up with the money.” There was a hint of desperation in his voice.
I pitied him for a moment. “Listen, I know this is hard. It’s my first day on the job, and you are the first person I’ve spoken with. I don’t know what to say other than that I’m sorry for what you’re going through. Why don’t we schedule a meeting first, and discuss this face to face?”
His voice was still harsh, but less desperate as he spoke. “Fine, the day after tomorrow, Friday. Works for me. Will that work for you?”
I smiled. “10 a.m. is good for me.”
“Alright then, 10 a.m. Friday.”
Before I could say goodbye, he hung up on me. I tried not to take it personally, considering he was under a lot of stress, facing the possibility of losing his ranch, but it was quite rude.
My uncle came storming through the door five minutes later. “Hey Dee, good to see you home. Did you make that call? I have so much to do, and I need your help with this deal. I’m hoping you being a lady will soften the blow for this guy. He’s rough around the edges. Young, but hard as nails.”
I watched as my uncle grabbed a beer from the refrigerator in the open-concept cabin’s kitchen and took a seat in what I presumed was his favorite chair, a leather recliner.
“He was really rude to me on the phone just now, but I didn’t let it get me down.” I smiled.
“Well you can’t let that bother you, or you’re not going to survive in this line of work, and you will be useless to me, if that’s the case. Don’t forget where you come from, girl—Dumas, Texas. You might have left for the big lights of the city, but in your heart you're still strong and tough. I’m sure you’ll get it done.”
“I know I will. Hey, Uncle Tim, I was thinking maybe we could go grab a bite to eat and do something fun, considering it’s my first night home.” I grabbed some juice from the refrigerator and sat back down, hoping to catch up with my uncle and get reacquainted with life back home.
He clicked on the TV.
“Nah, not tonight. Maybe Saturday. I need to rest, getting old isn’t easy and my bones are starting to ache. Maybe Malorie can go with you. I’m sure you two have a lot to catch up on.” He smiled, but his eyes remained fixed on the TV.
Disappointed, I buried my unhappiness. Part of coming home meant reuniting with my family and, considering Uncle Tim was all I had, I wanted to spend time with him and share some of my stories about Chicago and the things I’ve done.
I knew he wouldn’t be as excited as I was, but sharing the stories about my life back in Chicago and hearing all the juicy details of life back here would be a great way to begin. I sipped on juice, studied the room, and tried to ignore the blaring of the TV.
With nothing better to do and feeling lonely, I headed to my room to unpack and get some things done. Once that was out of the way, I grabbed some food from the refrigerator, and before I could say, “Do you want to watch a movie together?” to my uncle, he was fast asleep in his chair, with a beer on the table, the TV playing some old western show.
To spare myself the anguish of listening to it all night, I took pity on my lonely uncle and turned the sound down. I felt a tiny bit sorry for him, he’d lived alone for a long time. I covered him with a red and white quilt that my mother made, which sat on the back of the couch, and dimmed the lights.
“Good night, Uncle Tim,” I whispered as I headed back to my room, a bowl of leftover chili and cornbread in my hand.
“Well, so much for that.” I plopped myself down on the bed covered in a blue quilt and stared out the window as I ate.
I watched the birds dance along the trees outside the window, remembering all the years I called Dumas home, and how things were forever the same here. Despite my disappointment with my first night, I was happy to be home. My uncle's less-than-warm welcome was typical, as he’d been alone for far too long and probably always would be.
After a while, I put my bowl in the sink, took a shower, and settled in for the night as my uncle slept in his chair. I went to bed early, only to be woken by the rooster outside first thing, and smiled to myself at the contrast between city life and my hometown.
“Rise and shine Dee, time for breakfast, and then we must get to work. I need you to see about some other properties I’d like to acquire. I figure we can ride together until I find you a suitable car. Now remember, you need to look the part. As much as I love a good set of jeans and boots, I know I have to make myself a little more presentable than that. But, this isn’t Chicago, so you don’t need to go all out and dress like one of them fancy secretaries they got.”
I laughed, lightly applying makeup, and fussing with my hair.
“Uncle Tim, I think I know how to dress for work, but thank you.”
I heard him chuckle behind me. He was leaning against the doorway, a proud look on his face.
“So glad to have you home. Sorry it wasn’t exciting yesterday; I know I’m getting old. I think I should have taken your parents' advice and found myself a pretty woman a long time ago, sure gets lonely around here at night.”
He sighed heavily, which made me turn to say, “There is still time for you to find love, Uncle Tim. You’re not a dinosaur. You just need to get out more, that's all.”
“Maybe so. Stop fussing with your face. Breakfast is getting cold and I don’t want to be late.”
I hurried along and joined my uncle for breakfast. After a satisfying meal of sausage, eggs, and potatoes, we headed out to the office.
The day was long. I had to make more than a few phone calls to the people in the surrounding community and set up meetings to start with the acquisition of their properties. Some were mad as could be, hanging up on me and refusing to answer the next phone call. Some used the pity card, crying or telling stories of great hardships, and others seemed very matter-of-fact about it.
My uncle reminded me to be myself, be considerate, and be kind. It was the family way, but so was being firm, because business is business. By the time lunch rolled around, I was exhausted and needed some fresh air.
I took a break and walked through one of the town’s nearby parks, admiring the people. Couples were walking their dogs, parents were pushing kids on swings, single men and women were running or reading a book on a bench.
I walked through the park and soaked up every ounce of beauty I could, thinking about how hard my new job was turning out to be. I didn’t really mind it, though. My uncle had a loving heart underneath his harsh exterior and rough edges. As he said, business is business.
I knew that in due time, I would get the hang of things and maybe help a few people find solutions to their problems, but I couldn’t tell my uncle that. That was something for the future, when I’d be standing on my own two feet. For the time being, I would do the work my uncle asked, regardless of my thoughts on the matter.
Just when it was time to return, my phone started buzzing. It was an unknown number from Texas, and I debated whether I should answer it, but did anyway.
“Hello?”
“Ms. Richards, this is Mr. Marshall, from yesterday. I need to reschedule our meeting. Can we do Monday morning?” His deep voice sent a shiver through me.
I was surprised by his call and sat down on a nearby bench to combat my suddenly weakened knees.
“I’m sorry, but we need to do this immediately. If Friday doesn’t work, we can do it sometime earlier in the week, but not later.”
He sighed. “You’re not going to make this easy for me, are you?”
“No, unfortunately not, but I do want to work with you. Would a later time on Friday be better, or an earlier one?”
His tone became harsh again. “Fine, just leave it as it is. I thought yesterday was your first day. Apparently by day two, you have learned the ropes already.”
Offended, I kept it light and smiled so I wouldn’t snap at him. “Yes, I suppose I have. But what I do or don’t do is none of your business, Mr. Marshall. We have important things to discuss about your ranch.”
“Fine. Friday, then.”
Again, he hung up before I could respond.
“What a rude man.”