Page 3 of A Rancher's Vow
“Have fun.”
Dustin dropped the phone and grabbed his rod from the holder. He enjoyed a sweet little battle with a rainbow trout before carefully releasing the fish back into Big Sky Lake.
That’s when he noticed his phone was still making noises where it lay in the grass.
Dustin picked it up and glanced at the screen. “The fuck?”
The alert warned 37 MESSAGES. Even as he stared at the number in shock it went up as anotherbuzzsounded.
What the ever-loving hell?
“And that cupboardis where we keep the extra office supplies. After you’ve been here for a few days, if you want to reorganize to make your life easier, feel free.” Tucker Stewart gestured around the room. “I think that’s it in terms of the office tour. Any questions?”
Charity Gruzing linked her fingers together on the back of the office chair in front of her to keep from bouncing with delight. “I’m good for now. If I think of anything, I’ll make a list so I can ask them all at once.”
Tucker grabbed his hat from the rack and replaced the black Stetson on his head. A quiet smile curled his lips as he offered her a wink. “I’m all about efficiency, but if you need to interrupt, go ahead. Don’t worry about saving up the questions to dump them all at once. I’m just delighted to have you take over some of my least favourite tasks.”
“We all have our strengths,” she said politely. She waited until he was no longer visible before closing the sturdy wooden door firmly.
After checking the window that faced into the barn was covered by its privacy curtain, and the window to outside showed an empty green pasture, Charity shot her hands into the air and did a happy dance right there in the middle of the Silver Stone office.
Finally.
She turned eagerly toward the stacks of projects Tucker had laid out for her. With her first day falling on a Friday, she wanted to work fast to familiarize herself with everything so she could dive in full force on Monday.
Her phone rang. She answered it quickly, chatting with her friend Fern Fields even as she organized the first pile of paper according to the dates on the invoices. “Silver Stone ranch. Charity Gruzing speaking. How can I help you?”
A delighted squeal echoed across the line. “Tee! You must be quivering with excitement. First day at the new job. I’m so pumped for you.”
“I’m beyond quivering. Somewhere between vibrating and earthquake, which is going to make it tough when I get on the computer later.”
“Your nerves will settle down soon enough, but I foresee you staying thrilled for quite a while,” Fern said, laughter in her voice. “So?”
Charity paused in the middle of her sorting. “So… What’s the rest of the sentence?”
Fern lowered her voice. “I didn’t want to say anyone’s name in case you’re on speakerphone.”
Oh.Thattopic. The office seemed pretty soundproof, but just in case, Charity picked up her phone and put it to her ear. “I did not get this job in the hopes of ogling Dustin Stone.”
“But it is a sweet side benefit. Besides, he’s a good guy. You’re my best friend. I like it when people who I like also like each other.”
And that was where this conversation needed to get redirected, PDQ. “We do like each other, Little Miss Busybody. Dustin and I are good friends, and that’s that. Do not try any matchmaking.”
“I would never dream of such a thing.” Fern attempted a tone of astonished dismay. Failed miserably.
“You’re such a lying liar, but I love you anyway.” Charity glanced at the clock on the wall. “In the meantime, I am now gainfully employed at a wonderful new position. Which means I’m going to say goodbye to you until tomorrow so I can focus on impressing my new bosses.”
“Sounds like a plan. You’re going to rock that job,” Fern assured her. “Meet you at seven?”
“You bet.”
Charity dove into the paperwork. Her new position as office manager would utilize skills she’d picked up during the four years since graduating from high school. After two years of college on a scholarship, and follow up on-the-job training, she had the basics down pat—simple accounting, organizing, and calendar management.
Some of the new work was a lot more technical, though. Silver Stone had several online booking systems in place that she needed to go over in more detail to make sure she absolutely knew how they worked.
The idea of screwing up something important was enough to make her focus on her tasks and ignore most of the happy distractions floating through her brain.
It wasn’t only that her new job was at a highly respected place like Silver Stone, although that was a huge part of it. Having a consistent salary above minimum wage was the biggest improvement. Charity was tired of living from paycheck to paycheck.
