Home On The Range Ch. 06

To call his bluff I said, "OK, I'll show you boys how it's really done."

The only problem was snake still had the lead rope in his hand and wouldn't let it go. I looked at both of them and they started laughing. Finally, grandpa said, "Ya know snake, I believe she'd go out there and try to cut one if you didn't have that lead rope."

"Frank, now you are starting to scare me."

I held out my hand towards snake and said, "Let me have the rope."

He looked at grandpa and he nodded his head. Snake handed me the rope and I tucked it under the front of my saddle, but grandpa spurred his horse and moved around in front of my horse. He unsnapped the lead rope and said, "You ain't gonna learn unless ya go out there and try one. Pick a small one but don't stay on him like we did. Just see if you can move him some. Make sure you hold tight to that saddle horn and keep your body like I told you."

We had to move closer to the herd because they were a bit spooked by the guys separating them out. Plus, my guys wanted to be close enough to me in case anything happened. When we were a couple hundred feet away from a smaller bull, I let my horse walk slowly towards him. I did exactly as I had seen snake and spike do but for some reason, he got away from me.

I moved forward again and this time I moved into the herd and selected my target and I said to my horse, "Make me look good, PLEASE. Let's get that one over there. My horse moved ahead, and I held tight to the saddle horn and sure enough when my horse engaged the beef, he stayed with him and I kept looking towards my guys because that's where I wanted that beef to go. I almost fell off a couple times while my horse worked that beef, but he didn't give up and neither did I. I was wishing my ass would have had some glue on it, but I sat like grandpa told me and when my beef ran past them, I called out, "How do I stop my horse?"

Grandpa and snake ran up along side of my horse and stopped him. Grandpa was laughing his darned fool head off as he said, "Girl, you can cut 'em but you don't know how to stop your own damn horse?"

I laughed and said, "You only gave me lesson number one, and that's how to cut them out. You didn't tell me how to stop my horse when I finished the job."

Snake butted in and asked, "Ain't ya ever watched any western movies girl?"

"Since I've been here on this ranch, I want both of you to think about how many times I've let you guys look between my naked legs and get a close-up view of my pussy. Now, think hard guys, do I look like the kind of person who would be interested in western movies or barbie dolls and romance movies. Come on guys, that's NOT a trick question."

Grandpa asked, "Britt, then I have a question for you. Since you excelled in school, do you know what Paul Revere said at the end of his midnight ride?"

I thought about the question before I said, "Nope, don't know."

Spike laughed and he said, "Whoa."

Both my men busted out laughing and I bet Bart and his family probably heard them back by the pond. I sat on my horse and then questioned, "Is that all I had to say to get him to stop?"

Grandpa laughed and said, "Basically honey, that and a little light pressure on his reins back towards you. Don't pull to hard on the reins it will hurt his mouth."

"I think you've had enough for today. We need to head back in and take a dip in that cool pond to help your muscles." Grandpa said, "You'll need some liniment on your legs tonight as it is. And as much as you hate them granny panties as you call them, I suggest you wear them to bed tonight so the liniment doesn't get up on that pussy of yours. If it does, you'll be sorry, I guarantee."

"If you can stand the pain, we need to get you back on your horse again tomorrow. Your muscles won't adjust with riding every now and then. Once they get used to being on horseback, you won't have any problem." Grandpa added.

They took me on a different route going back to the barn. We saw a lot more angus beef and we crossed a creek that was about three feet deep. Grandpa halted the horses and let them drink their fill, before we moved on slowly.

When we arrived back at the barn, we rode the horses into the barn before we dismounted them. I had to get my lead rope from grandpa before I could fasten him to the ring by my stall. Grandpa came over and had me loosen the strap on my saddle and then take my saddle and blanket off him. I carried it over and put my saddle on the rack and then hung the blanket up where I saw my guys hang theirs. I went back and took my bridle off my horse and hung that up too.

Grandpa fixed the pail of water and all three of us washed down each horse and rinsed them off before we brushed them down. We put each horse in their stall and while we were there, we fed all the animals.

Snake went up to his apartment and took a quick shower while grandpa and I walked up to the house. We stripped off our clothes and took a shower. While we were in the shower, I asked, "What are we going to eat for supper?"

Grandpa thought about it before he said, "Ya wanna go in and eat in town tonight? We can go and eat first and then go swimming afterwards."

"I'm surprised we ain't heard from anyone about working. Maybe I need to go in town and spread the word again."

We got out and dried off and I went into my old room and selected a pair of my short shorts that left some of my ass cheeks visible when I pulled them up and showed a little bit of my bald pubic area when I pushed them down. Today, I felt like pushing them down they rode low and left the legs a little floppy. If I sat down with my legs spread, it was possible for someone to look in and see at least one bald pussy lip. Oh, I forgot to mention they are white so in the sunlight, they didn't leave anything for the imagination.

Since we were going to town for the specific purpose of eating supper, I decided to wear my short tank top that hung just below my titties, but the arm holes were large enough to see a side boob view. The tank is white and had the word Cleveland in orange letters on the front. Back at home, if the wind was blowing, it would blow up and my titties were briefly exposed.

As we walked downstairs the phone started to ring. I walked over and picked it up and said, "Hello, the Campbell Ranch." I listened to the phone a few seconds and then said, "Would you please hold for a second, I'll get the man you need to talk to."

I handed the phone to grandpa and said he wants to talk to you about the job offer. Grandpa took the phone and talked to the guy for about ten minutes before he said, "Ok, bring your wife with you and be here at eleven tomorrow morning. If you know anyone else who may be looking to fill a ranch hand position bring them along with you. I'm looking to hire four ranch hands within the next week. See you in the morning."

Snake had come up to the house while grandpa was on the phone, so I told him we were going out to eat supper. He went back down to his apartment to get dressed. When grandpa got off the phone, I told him snake would be down by the truck.

We stepped off the porch and snake was just coming around the shed heading towards the truck. We all got in the truck with snake again refusing to sit up in the front. Grandpa told snake he had a young married couple coming by tomorrow to find out more about the ranch hand job.

He continued with, "I didn't go into any detail with him on the phone, so I don't have to explain it to them again when we meet. Britt, you can do the same if you happen to be home when someone calls. Set them up with a time to come by and we'll find out their qualifications and then offer them what we think it's worth to us. Obviously, someone with more experience will be of interest to us."

We rode into town and grandpa parked by the little diner. We got out and went inside and people were surprised to see us. We got a real warm welcome as grandpa selected the same table, we sat at the last time we were there for lunch. The waitress was the same one we had before, and she gave me a special welcome and touched my shoulder and asked me how things were going out on the ranch.

Grandpa was quick to tell her; I was a real good cook and he thinks he gained five pounds since I showed up. I smiled but the waitress was quick to ask, "Frank are you telling me your lovely wife was starving you to death out there?"

Grandpa laughed and said, "Oh no, she wasn't just trying, she was doing a fine job of starving both me and snake."

The waitress slapped grandpa on the shoulder as she said, "Now Frank cut that out. If Maggie was here right now, she'd be boxing your ears."

"I know. Maggie was a one of a kind woman. I could search until I died, and I'd never find another woman as good as she was. Of course, now I have Britt here and she's coming in pretty close, but she already knows, she has to take second place."

The waitress smiled at me as she said, "Honey don't worry about these grumpy old coots, I'm sure you are doing a fine job keeping your men fed. Men get all cranky when they get as old as these two guys."

I smiled up at her and said, "They talk a good story, but I've got both of them right under my thumb where I want them."

The waitress leaned down and kissed my cheek as she said, "You go girl."

We ordered three of the specials for supper. It was sliced roast beef with mashed potatoes and gravy with a choice of vegetable. All three of us selected corn. We talked quietly between ourselves for only a few minutes before our meals were served.

We ate in relative quiet because there were only a couple of other people in the place. When the waitress came back to check how we were doing and if our meals were ok, she said to grandpa, "Did you hear from a young couple about the ranch hand jobs? They were in here a little while ago, seemed like a nice couple and they were looking for work. I told them about you and gave them your number."

"As a matter of fact," Grandpa replied, "They did call, and I told them to stop by tomorrow at eleven o'clock so we could talk."

"Just so you know Frank," the waitress said, "They just got married and they were pulling a horse trailer, so they have horses. They didn't really say much but I did overhear her asking how long they were going to sleep in the truck. I think they really need a job Frank."

"Did they leave a number for you to reach them if there was anything else that came up?" Grandpa inquired.

The waitress smiled and said, "As a matter of fact, they did. Do you want me to call them Frank? They didn't eat much while they were here."

We looked at each other and I nodded my head to grandpa before he said, "Call them back and tell them we are here eating and to stop by if they are close to town."

The waitress was gone only a few minutes when she came back and said, "They are over by the feed store Frank. I told them to come back here."

We were just finishing up our meal when an old truck with a horse trailer pulled up outside. The couple came in and the waitress greeted them. She walked them over to our table and then pushed another table next to ours and the guy moved the chairs over. He held the chair for the young lady who sat down beside me and he sat down opposite her.

Grandpa signaled the waitress and asked her to bring two more specials the same as we had. The waitress smiled and said, "Sure thing Frank."

The young man spoke up and said, "Hi, my name is Mark Snyder, and this is my wife Nicole. The waitress told us you are looking for four ranch hands, and we are looking for a job. I was the one who called you a little earlier."

"Yes, I remember. You were going to come out to the ranch at eleven o'clock tomorrow."

Grandpa said, "My name is Frank Campbell, but my nickname is spike. Over there is Charlie Wilson but we call him snake. Here beside me is Brittany Benson but we call her Britt."

Both Nicole and Mark said together, "Glad ta meet ya."

The waitress came back and placed a meal in front of Mark and Nicole then asked them what they wanted to drink. Mark was quick to tell the waitress they couldn't afford to pay for the meal. Grandpa spoke up saying, "That's ok Mark and Nicole, eat up, the meal is on me."

"I've seen homeless people in Cleveland, but I've never been this close to any. I watched Nicole dig in like she hadn't eaten in days. Mark tried to eat his food slower, but it was obvious that he was hungry too. Grandpa ordered coffee for all of us. I think grandpa ordered our coffee, so it didn't look like we were watching them eat.

Mark attempted to talk to grandpa, but grandpa said, "Eat first and then we'll talk."

After that, Mark attacked the food like his wife had done from the beginning. When they were finished eating, grandpa called the waitress over again and told her we were ready for dessert. Since being on the ranch, I'd not given dessert a thought but tonight it seemed so right. We ordered apple pie all around with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.

After we finished our dessert grandpa paid the tab with a healthy tip for the waitress before he said, "Come on folks, follow me back to my ranch. We can get your horses off that trailer and into a stall."

We left the place with Mark following us. In the truck grandpa said, "I wonder how long it's been since Mark and his wife have eaten a decent meal. Moreover, I wonder about their horses since it looks like they didn't have enough money to feed themselves."

He wasn't really expecting an answer, but snake spoke up saying, "The waitress said they were down near the grain store when she called them, maybe they were scraping up some of the spilled grain to feed their horses."

We rode in silence for a few minutes before I asked the obvious question, "You are going to hire them, right? I mean even if they don't have that much experience, they can always do the barn chores, not that I'm trying to get out of doing the chores. I just think it would give them some work."

"And the girl has plenty of heart too." Grandpa snickered.

I looked at him and said, "I do. Did you see the look on Nicole's face when you said their supper was on you? She attacked that meal like she hadn't eaten in a few days if not longer."

We arrived at the ranch and grandpa parked his truck where he normally did, and they directed Mark to back his trailer around so we could unload the horses. Snake and I went into the barn and opened two stalls and then spread out bedding in both stalls, while grandpa helped them unload.

I saw snake eye both horses as they passed by him on the way into the stalls. The way he looked at them made me suspicious what he was thinking. I looked at him and he at me and then he rolled his eyes and shrugged his shoulders. I walked over and bumped grandpa's hip while Mark and Nicole were tending to their horses. I motioned towards snake with my head and grandpa looked at snake and between the two of them they sent enough of a signal for grandpa to ask, "Mark, have your horses been looked at by a vet recently?"

Mark hesitated for at least a half minute before he responded with, "Well, money is tight right now, and as soon as we get a job, we were going to have a vet take a look at them."

"Snake, would you please go give Doc Johnson a call and ask him to stop by here tomorrow."

Mark said, "We don't have the money right now to pay a vet bill."

Grandpa spoke up and said, "If you are going to work for me, you need healthy horses. I want to have them checked to make sure your horses are ready to ride when the time comes."

Mark said, "Yes sir, I understand. I'll pay you back, I promise."

"Son, it's getting late, so you and your wife can go out to the bunk house and find a bed. There ain't much privacy out there when the rest of the ranch hands come in, but you'll have it all to yourselves for a little while. Britt and I will take you up there when you're ready."

"I hope you two aren't shy and bashful when it comes to this hot weather we've been having lately. Britt just moved out here from Cleveland, Ohio a little over a month ago and she's been complaining about the heat here in Texas. She seems to have solved her problem by wearing only her boots when she does barn chores. I thought I'd warn you ahead of time, if you know what I mean."

"Also, for a few days until we get you situated around, if you choose to stay, you can eat breakfast with us in the morning. We can sit down and talk about you working for me, tomorrow when you have a full belly. I can have snake stop by and wake you up when he comes up for breakfast."

"Nicole, if you and Mark are going to join us for breakfast, Britt here could use some help since there will be two more mouths to feed. Our day starts early around here, so when snake stops by, to wake you up, breakfast will be on shortly after that."

Snake came back from calling Doc Johnson and said, "The doc will be here in the morning first thing."

Mark went to his truck and moved it to the side of the barn and when he came back, he was carrying one duffle bag with him. He asked if there were sheets and blankets in the bunk house, and grandpa told him there were some out there.

We walked out to the bunk house and as we walked, I asked snake to stop by and wake them up in the morning. He told us, "No problem spike."

When we arrived at the very big building, grandpa went in first and turned on the lights. This was the first time I'd been in there, so I looked around while grandpa gave Nicole and Mark a tour of the facilities. Grandpa showed the young couple the kitchen with a single range/oven with a large double commercial refrigerator, and a separate freezer. Of course, he said there was a sink and the cupboards were full of dishes and the silverware was in the drawers.

We went to the bathroom next which grandpa described as a co-ed bathroom because there were both male and female ranch hands that came in for the round up. We walked into the bathroom and there were two urinals (not separated) on one wall with two toilets in separate stalls next to the urinals. Across from the urinals and toilets were four sinks with a huge mirror which spanned the whole sink area. In the back of the bathroom were four shower stalls with one dressing room for two shower stalls.

In the middle of the large room were two huge tables with chairs stacked upside down on each table. Immediately behind the tables were two rows of simple single beds in the old military barracks style. In other words, there was absolutely no privacy between the beds. Grandpa explained the bunk house wasn't meant for permanent housing for the ranch hands unless they didn't mind the set up. He stated both males and females that tour around Texas to do round ups only stay long enough to get the job done and then move on. He showed Nicole where the sheets and blankets were.

Snake walked over and told us he turned on the refrigerator and the water heater. He told Mark and Nicole they should have some hot water to shower, but it would most likely take an hour to heat up the water.

Mark shook our hands and said, "I'm sure we will make out ok. It will be great to have a bed to sleep on instead of the truck."

I walked over to Nicole and asked to speak to her privately for a second. We strolled away from the guys and ended up in the bathroom. I asked Nicole if she needed anything and she said she was good. I told her I had shampoo and conditioner if she needed some. She looked at me and suddenly she had tears in her eyes. I hugged her to me and said, "I'm here if you need anything."

She sobbed and said, "You can't do anything to help us except give us a job. My parents kicked us out of our house because they don't like my husband. They didn't want me to marry him and when they found out we eloped; they were pissed off. We have nowhere to go, that's why we are hopeful that we'll get a job here."