“I think you like this new hombre a bit. Eh?”
Maud’s prodding made Shay feel suddenly nervous. “Well . . . he is nice. Reese is pathetically thin—at least fifty pounds underweight—tall and broad shouldered.”
Maud gave her a wry look but said nothing more. “Then, all the more reason to start putting you on our weekly list of buffalo-meat deliveries. I’ll have our truck driver stop by every Monday and drop off twenty pounds of meat to you. That ought to start pumping heavy protein into your hardworking vets. I’ll charge you forty cents a pound until you can pay me more. And there’s no rush on that, okay?”
“That would be wonderful, Maud. This won’t be forever. Reese thinks that if we can get the arena roof on, we can start bringing in more money late this fall. Then, I can pay you full price for your buffalo meat.”
“Fair enough,” Maud said, nodding. “Reese ought to get together with my husband, Steve. You know Steve has an MBA from Princeton? The man is a brilliant financial strategist, which is why our ranch is doing so well when so many others in the valley are not. Steve handles the books and I’m the chief visionary, figuring out how to make money for us. I’m not bad at it, either. They could meet here at Kassie’s. It sounds like they’d get along like two peas that came from the same accounting pod.” She grinned.
“I was thinking about that,” Shay said, smiling a little. She had met Steve, a vibrant, robust rancher, at a local square dance that was held weekly at Charlie Becker’s hay and feed store, from June through September. Every Saturday night, the people of Wind River Valley drove their families to the popular dance in one of Charlie and Pixie’s barns. Everyone was welcome, and it was free. Those who attended always brought a casserole or drinks, and it was where all the ranchers and townsfolk gathered to talk, find out what was going on with their neighbors and their families. Business was discussed as well. Shay had attended her first one last year, shortly after returning home from the service, and loved it. Her father hated such gatherings and made a point of never going. He’d forbade her mother and herself from going, as well.
“See? You keep puttin’ yourself down that you’re bad at math and business, Shay, but you’re really not. The indoor arena is a brilliant idea. I don’t know why we didn’t think of it, but I’m fully supporting you doing this for the Bar C. It will be a steady source of income. You’ll need that to keep pulling the Bar C out of debt.”
Giving an embarrassed shrug, Shay said, “Thanks, Maud. It feels good to hear from you that the indoor arena is a solid idea. I just see something and think of ways to fix it or make it work.”
“Such a typical rancher’s kid,” Maud said, smiling. “A lot of your lack of confidence in your own ideas is because Ray beat you down as a kid.” Maud shook her finger at Shay. “Your father didn’t do you any favors. You need to listen to this Reese fella. He sounds reliable and smart.”
“I’m trying, Maud. I really am.” Shay saw the woman nod and give her a look of pride. It felt good to be with the older woman because she always built her up. Shay wished she had her formidable confidence. Maud and Steve were at the forefront of ideas to move Wind River Valley into a tourist hot spot. They were great role models and she was desperately trying to learn from them and emulate them.
“Okay, this arena-raising?” Maud said.
“Yes?”
“Let me call a few of the ranchers around here. Between us, we can do the hard work of coordinating a two-day arena roof-raising. If we have twenty men and women, all good, hardworking ranchers, I’m sure we can get the other half of that roof completed in one weekend.”
Shay gasped. “That would be incredible. Really? It could be done in two days?”
“Of course. Twenty men and women working on it? I’m gonna go to Red’s Machine Rental here in town. Red will donate his heavy equipment and be happy to help. He’ll truck out a crane, and you’re going to need it to lift those joists into place for the roof.”
“Ugh,” Shay said, nodding. “It takes us three days to lift one section of joists into place, the building is so tall. I can’t afford to rent a crane. Harper, who knows about them, said that’s what we needed. But the rental fee is horribly high.”
“Well,” Maud said, “I know Red Grant personally. We used his cranes when we built a new barn on our ranch. He’s ex-military, Army Delta Force. I’ll put in a call to him when I get back to the ranch. I’ll tell him this is gratis, that it’s for the military vets at your ranch. I’m sure he’ll donate his time and equipment to you. He hires vets, too. And this job will be close to his heart.”