Page 41 of Taming the Wild Cowboy

*

You’re getting ahead of yourself. A word with the boss wasn’t the same as getting hired.

But it was the first glimmer of hope she’d had since being fired.

Raisin met her at the door of the foreman’s house, then darted outside as Mac stepped inside. She let the dog back in a few minutes later, then started putting together a peanut butter sandwich. Trev did not seem all that happy about her going to work for the vet, but she figured it had to do with being left shorthanded again. She wouldn’t do that to him, and she was pretty certain he knew that.

She’d just washed the knife and put the peanut butter away when her phone rang.

“Just checking in,” Shay said. “Um … I heard Robyn and Julian talking in their office yesterday. A reference request had come in for you, and they were debating wording.”

In other words, how to pass along their negative feelings while avoiding a lawsuit.

“Do I want to know?”

“They went with adequate.”

Well, that wasn’t going to do her any favors.

“It kind of fried me after all the extra hours you put in.”

Maclyn agreed. She’d gone beyond the call of duty repeatedly, which was why she’d been stunned when they fired her. All she’d done was save a horse they’d wanted to kill.

“I thought if you knew, you could maybe come up with specifics to counteract their …”

“Less than enthusiastic endorsement?” Mac asked wryly.

“Yes. That.”

“I appreciate it. How’s your search going?”

“I’m picky.” Shay hesitated, then said, “I have tomorrow off. Would you like to meet up in Marietta? Girls’ night out? We can hash through things properly?”

Maclyn hadn’t had a girls anything for way too long. Nights of dancing and drinking and laughter had become rare after she’d hired on to the Sweet Grass Ranch. Getting up at five o’clock every morning to feed and groom had her in bed around nine, which did not lend itself to the party life.

But Mac was confident that it was like riding a bike.

“I’d love it.”

“Do you want to eat? Or just get bar food.”

“Bar food.”

Shay laughed. “Great. Umm … Grey’s? Seven o’clock?”

“They have bar food?”

“Not sure. I don’t go out much. We’ll order a pizza. As long as we have beer in front of us, I don’t think they’ll care.”

*

Killer Moo was on her feet by the time Mac rejoined Trev at the pasture gate. The cow was wobbly but could walk short distances and when she stopped moving, the calf would nurse, rooting impatiently as she tried to make up for the meals she’d lost while her mama was down.

“We’ll get her inside, where we can keep an eye on her, keep the other girls from bothering her.”

They drove the cow to the barn, letting her rest every few yards. She moved a little faster toward the end and walked through the open barn door without slowing down, her calf beside her. Trev shooed her into a straw-filled pen while Mac kept the calf from escaping. Once inside, the cow went to the water and drank while the calf plopped down in the straw, exhausted after his journey. Trev and Mac stood side by side, studying the cow as an odd silence fell over them.

“Okay.” Trev addressed the pen.