Page 87 of Cherry Tree Ranch

I hold out half the money to Cash.

“Yeah … no.” Cash puts his hand out in refusal.

“I have to pay you at some point.”

“I was never in it for the money.” He smirks and raises his eyebrows.

“Oh, really? What, then?”

“Something much better than money,” he says, staring.

I close the cash box and stare back at him.

He lifts me up and sets me on the empty table. The stubble on his top lip prickles my mouth. I wrap my legs round his hips and pull him in closer. Some kids walk behind us, and call out “ewws” and “whoop whoops”.

I look deeply into Cash’s eyes. Then I hear a groan from behind. “You all seriously need to get a room,” someone says.

I turn, expecting to see one of the kids from a moment ago. Instead, Kaylee is there. I remember an idea that’s been brewing since Cash told me he could help with hay production. How, with all the right conditions, the last thing I’d need would be fertilizer. This idea could help me pay off the debt for sure. So I swallow my pride.

“Hey, Kaylee, I’m curious. Do you have any thoughts about getting my hay to grow? I was told that grazing can stimulate growth, but if there’s nothing there to graze, then what do you do?”

Kaylee shifts on her feet and steps into the shade of my tent. Her face drops. “Are you asking me for advice?” She points at her chest.

“Sure am,” I say. “Figure with all the grazing your family does, you might have some expertise.”

“Ha! I have expertise,” she says with a heavy dose of confidence. “First, you need to get animals on your hay ground so that they’ll poop and fertilize the soil. Poop is gold. You don’t have to have anything for them to graze at first. Just spread out some hay, like all around so they spread their poop everywhere.”

I stand up next to the table. “Yeah? Does it matter what kind of animals?”

“Cattle would be best because they’ll give you more bang for your buck, with cow pies, that is.” She laughs. Kaylee is human after all. “But sheep and goats are great too.”

I cross my arms and tighten the side of my mouth. Cattle. Just what Earl wanted – to get cattle on my ranch. Now Kaylee is suggesting that as the solution to my hay problem.

Before I can spit out my next thought, Kaylee brightens. “Daddy and I need a place to put our weaned calves…”

“The only thing is,” I say, unfolding my arms, “I don’t have enough hay, and I don’t have grass seed to plant.”

She waves off my comment about the hay. “Oh, don’t worry about hay. Daddy has plenty. We can bring up a couple of round bales, if you don’t mind spreading it every few days. That part will help too. The hay will create shade for the soil.”

“I can do that,” I say, looking to Cash. “Will I owe you anything?”

“No. You give us a place to keep the calves to finish weaning, and we’ll give you their poop. And, as far as the seed goes, there’s probably dormant seed in the ground that’ll come up after it’s grazed. Do you have water for the calves?”

“There’s a pond, but hardly any water after the firefighters used it. Other than that, no.”

“That’s OK. We can haul water up too.”

Her saccharine sweetness is suspicious, but, the way I see it, I’ve got very few options left – grazing cattle, selling the ranch, or waiting until the last minute to see how the antique auction goes. So I put out my hand to shake hers. “It’s a deal.”

Chapter Thirty-Four

Kaylee and Rhett get the calves to the far side of their ranch so we can push them to my ranch together. When they’re ready, Cash and I saddle up Luna and Blue. We ride through land I’ve never seen and find the gate on their fence line. It’s just after dawn and we’re right on time. There’s no room for niceties.

“We have to keep them moving,” Kaylee says, a little frantic. “We don’t want ’em turning back to their mamas.”

“Stay on that side,” Rhett calls to me. “We’ll push them along the line of oak brush.”

I ride Blue on the side of the herd as a swing rider, keeping the calves in line. Blue acts like he was born to drive cattle – he pays attention when they get out of line and stays calm. Cash and Kaylee are the point riders in the front, checking for where we’re going because the country is rough – steep hills covered in rock, oak brush and junipers. Rhett is at the back as the drag rider, pushing the calves forward.