Page 109 of Heartstrings & Horseshoes

“Sorry, Reid. Won’t happen again.”

“Sit down,” Reid orders, so, I do.

“The fuck’s going on with you? Don’t bother lyin’.” He leans against the doorframe of the office, arms crossed across his broad chest. Not intimidating at all…

“I’m fucking exhausted. Don’t get me wrong, I love managing the stables and wouldn’t trade it for anything. But I have three full time jobs right now—the ranch, the farrier program, and building the house. I know I did it to myself. It’s catching up to me is all,” I admit.

Reid scratches his beard thoughtfully. He doesn’t have his hat on; he must’ve come from indoors because I only ever see him in a hat if he’s working outside. It’s a big damn deal since he spent so many years hiding his facial scarring. Those Tate girls sure have a way of healing a man. Except they aren’t Tates anymore—thank god.

Just when I’m sure Reid’s about to rip me a new asshole, he stuns me stupid.

“How can we help?” he asks.

“Wh-what?”

“Might take a while for you to get it through your thick head, but you’re family. If the Andersens value anything, it’s family. So, how can we help?”

I’m a fixer, the one who helps. I thrive when I’m helping others, and I rarely ask for help in return. I’ve been getting better about it—I asked for Reid and CJ’s help pulling off the elopement. I asked for help in one way or another when I took the job at Lucky Spurs Ranch and took a risk on the farrier program.

Reid’s been endlessly supportive, and he took a huge chance on me in his business.

He also helped me out when he agreed to sell me the land I’m building Delilah’s dream home on. If he gave me a job and land to build a house, he’d probably help me with just about anything. From stories I’ve heard, the Andersen brothers and Greyson don’t let silly things like the law or morality stop them from doing what’s right.

“Not used to being the one asking for help,” I admit.

Reid chuckles. “Tell me about it.”

“I’m so close to getting my farrier certificate—nothing anyone can do to help me there. I’ve taken to it like a horse with a peppermint and I love it. Have to get to the finish line, you know?” I explain. Reid nods, processing but not interjecting.

“My work at the ranch gives me purpose and I’m honored you trust me with the care of your animals and the boarded horses. They bring me a calm I never expected. When I’m out here working, my hands are busy and my mind’s quiet.”

Reid responds to my vulnerability with his own. “This land’s always been where I go when the world becomes too heavy. Real or not, I’ve always believed the ranch has a spirit of its own, and lord knows horses heal people.”

I think of my wife and how she so desperately wants to work with the horses to help people with their struggles. There’s got to be a path forward where she’s happy. Because I won’t let her give up on her dream because of a master’s degree-sized roadblock.

“Exactly, I don’t want to give any of that up—shit, not that I’m asking you to do anything about it. The work’s the work, it takes as long as it takes.”

He continues to nod, his hazel eyes impossible to read.

“Now the house is another story. I bit off more than I could chew trying to get the damn thing built in such a short amount of time with just the two of us.” I shake my head in defeat. “I don’t know where to ask for help, to be honest.”

Admitting it is a weight off my shoulders. Reid takes his time mulling it over so long I grow uncomfortable under his scrutiny.

“Tell you what. Hadn’t discussed it with you yet, but I’d like you to focus on your farrier apprenticeship after you finish your certificate program. I’d already been planning on hiring a part-time stable manage or assistant manager to help out. But I know how you love the animals and the work. So, let me give you a choice.” He pauses, making sure I’m paying damn close attention.

“Do you want to take the apprenticeship slower, and maintain your workload at the ranch but with a part-time staffer? Or do you want to go full boar into your apprenticeship, and we train a new stable manager, and a part-time staffer to handle the stables?”

I blink at him stupidly. Is he seriously asking me if I want to have my cake and eat it too? Or, to have a buffet of cakes, eat them, and have leftovers?

“Reid…if I slow down, you’ll have to hire farriers until I’m done and that’s a hefty chunk of money for the ranch—on top of hiring a part-timer.”

“Mmhmm.”

“If I go full-time into the program, I’d do most of my hours here, reducing your external farrier expenses, but in exchange for hiring a full-timer and a part-timer. Either way will be fucking expensive and a lot of work for you,” I say sheepishly.

“What’s your point?” Reid drawls.

“I…uh…”