Читать книгу Corporate Cowboy - Pamela Bauer - Страница 12

“I don’t suppose you have an umbrella in that, do you?” Kacy pointed to his briefcase. “It’s coming down pretty good out there.”

Austin thought pretty good was an understatement. The road out front looked like a river. “It wasn’t raining when I left Chicago.”

“I take it that’s a no.”

“Considering the prices your facility charges, Ms. Judd, one would expect that umbrellas would be provided for guests by the Triple J.” Austin didn’t mean to snap at the woman, but he didn’t care for the censure in her tone. After his conversation with Daphne, he wasn’t in the mood to be defending himself to any woman.

And especially not this one. His gaze slid over her again, wondering just what kind of a place would send a woman wearing cowboy boots, a cowboy hat and a yellow rain slicker better suited to a two-hundred-pound firefighter.

“Oh, but we do provide umbrellas, Mr. Bennett. All of your employees who came on time were greeted with an umbrella escort. We carry them in the vans.”

“But you didn’t come in a van?”

“Uh-uh. I drive that orange pickup that’s in the front row of the parking lot.”

He glanced outside and noticed an orangish blur which he knew had to be the truck. Running even a short distance would leave him with a drenched suit. Not a pleasant thought especially since he had no change of clothes.

“I think it would be more prudent to wait a few minutes,” he advised.

“Don’t want to get your fancy suit wet, eh?” She gave him an understanding grin. “All right. You wait here. I’ll bring the truck to the door.”

“That won’t be necessary. I can walk out with you, although I don’t see why we can’t wait until it isn’t raining quite so hard.” He could feel his patience slipping away.

She shrugged. “It’s only water, but if you want to wait, that’s fine with me. I should tell you, though, that the way it’s been raining here lately, who knows when it’ll clear. And the longer we stay here, the less time you’ll have to spend with your employees when we get back.”

“I’m sure my employees can get along without me this evening,” he retorted smoothly.

“That may be true, but it is a long drive back to the ranch, Mr. Bennett, and it’s already late.” She reached for the door. “You’re the guest, I’m the driver. You wait here. I’ll get the truck.”

“I’m not having you pick me up at the door!”

“Why not?”

“Because I’m not.” He unzipped his briefcase to get a section of the newspaper to use as protection from the rain.

“Is that a laptop?” Kacy asked, peering over his shoulder.

“Yes.” He pulled out the business section of the Chicago Sunday Times, aware of her eyes watching him closely.

“Now that’s a shame.”

“What is?”

“That you brought your PC in that carry-on. You could have packed a change of clothes. Most people do that—pack an extra set of clothes just in case the luggage goes astray.”

Austin wondered if she was deliberately trying to annoy him or if he was simply in a bad mood because number one, he didn’t want to be here and number two, he had just argued with Daphne. “I’m not most people and I happen to need my laptop.”

“Not at the ranch you don’t. You’re going to be unplugged while you’re there.”

“Unplugged?”

“Yes. No telephones, no faxes, no PCs. This isn’t a working vacation, Mr. Bennett. It’s a team-building workshop that requires all of your attention and concentration.”

He sighed impatiently. “Ms. Judd, I am the CEO of Bennett Industries. I have responsibilities. It would be not only foolish, but inconsiderate, for me to lose my connection with my office.”

“Well, that may be, Mr. Bennett, but I think it would be even more foolish and inconsiderate of you to waste company money—which is what you will be doing if you don’t give your one hundred percent to the program.”

“Excuse me?” Did she honestly think that running around playing cowboy was more important than running one of the country’s most successful manufacturing industries?

“This whole concept is based on teamwork. You and your fellow employees are going to have to rely on each other. You’re not their CEO while you’re here, just another member of the team. And as a member of the team you need to work hard so that the others will know that they can count on you. Your attention needs to be with them, not with a bunch of suits in Chicago.”

Austin could only stare at her in disbelief. He ran one of the most successful manufacturing companies in the country and he was being given a lecture on management by a woman wearing cowboy boots, a yellow rubber slicker and a ten-gallon hat. What had his father gotten him into?

She peeked her nose out the door, then turned back to him and said, “I think there’s a slight lull in the rainfall. We’d better leave while we can.”

If this was a lull, he shuddered to think what a downpour would be. By the time Austin reached the pickup he was soaked. His hair, his face, his hands—everything dripped with water, including his briefcase. The section of the Times that had acted as an umbrella was a soggy mess and had done little to shield him from the driving rain. Now it fell apart, clinging to his wet fingers as he tried to shake them free.

“Do you want me to put the heat on so you can dry off a bit?” she asked as she climbed in beside him.

“I’m not cold. I’m wet,” he said stiffly.

Again she shrugged. “Very well.” She stuck the key in the ignition and started up the engine. “Fasten your seat belt. Next stop the Triple J.”

As she let out the clutch, the truck lunged forward.

“Sorry. Sometimes the pedal sticks,” she explained with a sly grin which only raised Austin’s suspicions about the sincerity of her apology. “You ever been to North Dakota before Mr. Bennett?” she asked once they were out of the parking lot and on their way.

“Once.”

“And?”

“It was a long time ago.”

“Well, what did you think?”

“That there’s a lot of flat land,” he said dully.

She chuckled. “Don’t tell me you’re one of those people who think the two best things about North Dakota are the east and west ends of Interstate 94?”

“Is that supposed to be a joke?”

“Of course it’s a joke. Interstate 94 runs smack dab through the middle of the state from Minnesota to Montana. It implies there’s nothing in between the borders, which couldn’t be further from the truth. It’s true that much of the state is flat farmland, but if you haven’t been to the northeast corner, you’re in for a treat. There’s the Pembina Gorge which is a beautiful river valley and there’s even a ski resort. Most people…”

He quickly cut her off. “You can save yourself the bother of giving me the guided tour, Ms. Judd.”

“You don’t want to hear what your colleagues already heard?” she asked in an annoying innocent tone.

“I’m sure North Dakota has an abundance of natural wonders, but right now I’m wet, I have no change of clothing and I don’t feel up to hearing a travelogue of your state,” he snapped.

“You should have let me pick you up at the door.” She had the audacity to scold him cheerfully.

Before he could utter another word his cellular phone rang. As he pulled it out of his pocket, he heard Kacy click her tongue in admonition. He shot her a nasty look before answering the call. “Yes?”

It was Daphne, hoping to continue the phone conversation he had started at the airport.

“I can’t believe you hung up on me like that!” Her voice was so loud Austin had to wonder if Kacy didn’t hear it, too.

“This isn’t a good time for me to talk. Go to bed. I’ll call you in the morning,” he said quietly into the pocket-sized phone.

“I’m not going to let you cast me aside like some used piece of furniture,” Daphne continued to shout into the phone.

“I’m not doing that. All I’m saying is this is not a good time to talk.”

“But we need to discuss our feelings.”

Feelings were something Austin rarely discussed with anyone. And certainly not in the presence of a cowgirl.

“Daphne, please,” he pleaded, but she refused to be deterred. Fortunately, they were driving out of range of the transmission and her voice became weaker. Finally he said, “I can’t hear you, Daphne. I’m going to have to hang up and talk to you when I’m not in transit.” He said goodbye and tucked the phone back into his pocket.

A glance told him Kacy sat with a smug smile of satisfaction—as if she knew he wasn’t going to be able to get any reception on the phone and was pleased about it.

“Satisfied?” he asked churlishly, wondering what it was about the woman sitting next to him that made him want to reach across and kiss that smile right off her pretty little face.

And it was a pretty face. At least what he could see of it. Cute bow lips highlighted with just the faintest of red lipstick, a pert little nose, a dainty but determined chin. And green eyes that he swore sparkled with mischief. She didn’t have the kind of looks that made the runway models famous, but she was pretty.

Of course he couldn’t see her forehead. Maybe she had one of those apelike brows that would erase the beauty of the rest of her face. That could be why she wore the hat—to cover up a bad hairline.

He chuckled. Who was he kidding? She was cute, in a country sort of way. Not that it mattered to him. He hadn’t come to North Dakota looking for Daphne’s replacement. At the thought of the model he sighed. He should have broken it off with her weeks ago. The relationship was going nowhere. Kacy Judd must have mistaken the meaning of his sigh.

“If you need to make emergency calls, we do have phones at the ranch,” she said politely.

“Do I have to be bleeding to use one?” He couldn’t keep the sarcasm from his voice.

“We don’t want to completely isolate you, Mr. Bennett,” she continued in her annoying calm voice, “but the team approach is much more effective if there are no phone interruptions. Of course we understand that there are times when you may need to touch base with your family.”

Family? What he needed to keep in touch with was work, not family. Although in his case, the two were unfortunately connected. If there was anything positive to be said about the trip to North Dakota it was that he would get a break from people who seemed hellbent upon making his life stressful.

He leaned his head back and closed his eyes. He really was tired. Maybe a week at a ranch wouldn’t be so bad after all. He could get some much needed rest as well as work without any interruptions. Mentally he prepared the upcoming week, assessing the pending reports, letting the sounds of the tires rotating over the pavement lull him into a state of relaxation.

How long they traveled in silence he wasn’t sure. His peace was shattered at the sound of tires squealing on pavement and a horn blaring. Austin’s eyes flew open to discover they had come to a stop only inches in front of the biggest moose he had ever seen. Actually, it might have been the only moose he had ever seen.

The creature seemed to be in no hurry to move from the highway. It was almost as if it took a wicked pleasure in blocking the road.

Kacy leaned her head on her steering wheel and let out a long gasp of air. “That was too close for comfort.”

Much too close thought Austin, watching the moose sniff the hood of the pickup, as if expecting to find dinner. It snorted, causing Austin to sit back as far as possible in the truck.

Kacy again tooted the horn, but the animal seemed oblivious to the noise.

“It’s not moving,” Austin stated inanely.

“No foolin’.”

“Why isn’t it moving?”

“Because moose don’t move for anyone or anything. They don’t have to.”

He hoped she was joking, but he could see by the caution on her face that she wasn’t. “Now what?”

“Now we wait until it moves out of our way.”

“You can’t just back up and drive around it?”

“It’s best not to try to outsmart a moose.”

“You’re pulling my leg, right?”

She shot him a sideways glance. “Messing with a moose is no joking matter, Mr. Bennett and it’s something you should remember should you find yourself face to face with one while you’re here. Bullwinkle may be sweet and lovable, but the moose out here can be mean, nasty creatures.”

As if to prove her point, the large animal nudged the front end of the truck with his rack, causing Kacy to cuss. “Damn! I hope he doesn’t dent my front end.”

Austin wasn’t so much worried about the truck as he was about the two of them inside. He wasn’t sure if humans could outrun moose.

Finally, after what seemed to Austin to be an eternity, the animal backed away from the pickup and sauntered over to the shoulder of the highway where he paused to give them another look before ambling away. Kacy put the truck in gear and her foot on the gas pedal. As they sped down the highway she hummed as if she hadn’t a care in the world.

After a few minutes, Austin asked, “Does that happen often?”

“What? Moose blocking the road? Every now and then. It’s a good thing we weren’t talking, otherwise I might not have noticed it when I did.”

Austin decided it would better not to engage her in conversation and went silent. She, however, didn’t seem to be as concerned.

“You ever see the damage a deer can do when it hits a car?” She didn’t wait for him to respond but continued on, “Well, that animal weighs about twice as much as any deer, maybe even three times. And moose have longer legs which means a higher center of gravity so they often come right through the windshield. Did you ever see that movie with Geena Davis where that deer came crashing right through the windshield? It’s not a pretty sight.”

And one Austin didn’t care to visualize. He wondered where help would come from if they were to have an accident or even break down. In the entire time they’d been driving, they hadn’t passed a single car. “Is it always this dark along this highway?”

“You’re not in Chicago, Mr. Bennett. This is North Dakota. You’re lucky we have a paved road…and that’s coming to an end before long.” Was that pleasure he heard in her voice?

Austin wasn’t sure which was worse—riding with his eyes wide open and watching for a critter to leap out of the darkness or sitting with his eyes shut and waiting for her to slam on her brakes. In the beam of the headlights he could see all sorts of flying insects and occasionally one would plop against the windshield.

What was he doing here? he asked himself, growing more restless by the minute. He wasn’t a nature lover and he certainly had no affinity for the wide open spaces. He was a city boy, born and bred, and while other people complained of the congestion and noise, he thrived on it.

“You know, you look awfully tense sitting there clutching your briefcase. You can lean back and close your eyes. I won’t run us off the road.”

Easier said than done, Austin thought. “How much farther is it?”

“We’re almost there.”

A short while later Austin realized that almost in North Dakota was not the same as almost in Chicago. Just as she predicted, the pavement gave way to a gravel road which she drove across at an alarming speed. He could hear rocks hit the underside of the pickup and was tempted to plead with her to slow down. Instead he gritted his teeth and sucked on his horehound drops.

By the time they reached the ranch the rain finally stopped. As she drove through an iron gate arched with the words “The Triple J,” Austin could see a smattering of lights in the distance.

“Am I going to be able to get a change of clothing at this hour?” he asked.

“My sister Suzy runs the western wear shop. She’s probably still hanging around the lodge, but even if she isn’t there, I can let you in.”

The closer they got to the conference center, the less apprehensive Austin became. The building she referred to as the lodge was made out of logs, giving it a very rustic look. At first glance it appeared to be long and narrow, but as she drove around the side he saw that it was actually L-shaped.

“Here we are. Welcome to the Triple J Guest House,” Kacy said as she pulled up under a large canopy. “We’ll check you in at the front desk, get your room key and then we’ll go look for Suzy to see about getting you some clothes.”

Austin nodded and followed her inside where the decor was definitely a style befitting a dude ranch. Dark paneling, thick beams and coach lanterns on the walls gave one the feeling of stepping back in time to the old west.

Kacy walked ahead of him, sliding her arms out of the slicker as she moved, thereby giving Austin a bit of a surprise. The body beneath the rubber rain coat was as near perfection as any he’d seen. She wore a long denim skirt that was unbuttoned to the knees revealing a most attractive pair of legs. But it was the leather vest that garnered his attention. It clung to her bosom in a most delectable manner and brought to his attention that despite the initial tomboy impression she had given him, she was all woman.

She hung the slicker on a wooden coat tree that had antlers for hooks, then led him to the front desk in the lobby. In keeping with the decor, a hitching post separated the guests from the employees.

“Normally there’s someone working here, but I think everyone’s in the lounge listening to Wild Bill Bordon. It’s not often we get a man of his fame here.” Slipping behind one of the posts, she unlocked a drawer and pulled out a ledger, flipping through the pages until she found what she was looking for.

“You’re in number ten—a private, as you requested.” She had him sign several forms, gave him a folder containing the schedule for the upcoming week, then handed him a key.

She checked for messages in the row of wooden boxes behind her on the wall, pulling out a stack of pink slips which she handed to Austin. “Someone’s been trying to reach you. A Daphne Delattre. I guess you didn’t tell her that you’re not supposed to get phone calls here, did you?” Her delicate brow arched with a hint of impatience.

He shoved the messages into his pocket without any explanation, knowing perfectly well that she had heard his phone conversation in the truck.

“The first thing I’d like to do is get a change of clothing,” he stated in no uncertain terms.

“Suzy is probably at the campfire…or I should say in front of the fireplace. We had to move the cowboy poetry reading that should have been outside around a campfire indoors.”

“Oh, what a shame that I missed it.” He didn’t try to hide his sarcasm.

“You don’t like poetry, Mr. Bennett?”

“I’m just wondering what makes poetry cowboy poetry?”

“Why, when it’s about the life of cowboys,” she said with an engaging grin. “And tonight we have one of the best poets in the West—Wild Bill Bordon.”

A man named Wild Bill reading poetry? He had never been a fan of poetry readings when they were done by literary figures, but to listen to a cowboy reading poetry? Austin could feel his discomfort level rise.

“Wild Bill puts so much energy and emotion into his readings his poems become quite powerful,” she told him. “If you’ve never been to a cowboy poetry reading you’re in for quite a treat.”

Austin studied her face to see if she was being facetious. She wasn’t. She truly thought that some guy sitting around reciting rhymes about horses and cattle would be an engaging experience. “I’ll pass on the poetry reading,” he told her.

He saw a flicker of annoyance cross her face, but it was quickly replaced with a cajoling grin and a wagging of her finger at him. “Uh-uh-uh. That is no way to start the program, Mr. Bennett. Come on. This is a great way to get into the western theme of the conference.” She steered him down a corridor lined with portraits and landscapes, all featuring cowboys.

“You like art, Mr. Bennett?” she asked, noting his interest.

“As a matter of fact I do.” He paused in front of a painting of an elderly man wearing a buckskin jacket. The brass plate at the bottom of the frame read James Judd. “Is this your grandfather?”

“Great-grandfather. He was eighty-nine when that was done.” He would have liked to ask her who the rest of the faces were on the walls, but she again was nudging him along.

“You’ll have more time in the morning to look at these. Right now we need to find the rest of your group. Your employees will be eager to see that you’ve arrived safely. Besides, it’s where we’ll find Suzy and you do want to get a change of clothes for tomorrow, don’t you?”

She had him over a barrel. Reluctantly he allowed her to escort him to a lounge in which one entire wall was a huge rock fireplace. Several leather sofas and large overstuffed recliners provided comfortable seating while a large wagon wheel chandelier glowed overhead, giving off just enough light so that the room had a warm glow.

Everyone was silent except for the toughened old cowboy who sat on a stool in front of the fireplace reciting poetry. Although a few guests chose the leather furniture, most sat on the floor forming a semicircle around the poet. Instead of their usual business clothes all of them wore western wear.

To Austin they looked like a bunch of dimestore cowboys in their stiff jeans, yoked shirts, leather boots and straw hats. What was even more surprising was that every one of them appeared to be enjoying the verses the old man recited in a voice as raspy as sandpaper. The only other sound in the room was the crackling of the wood in the fire.

As soon as the poem came to an end, Wild Bill looked over at the newcomers and nodded. All the cowboy hats turned in Austin’s direction and suddenly Austin felt like the odd man out. Not only was his suit wet and wrinkled, it was totally out of place in this setting.

“Well, now. It looks like the head honcho has finally arrived,” the weathered-looking old man commented.

The circle opened with several guests motioning for Austin to come sit beside them. “Are you going to join us?”

“I’d like to, but I need to get something to wear. My luggage is somewhere between here and Chicago.”

A collective sigh could be heard and a blonde jumped up. She was dressed like Kacy Judd in a long denim skirt and a leather vest.

“It won’t matter. We’ve got plenty of things for you to choose from, don’t we, Kacy. You want me to open the shop?” she asked Austin, confirming his suspicion that she was indeed another one of the Judds.

“I would appreciate it.”

Kacy then introduced the woman as her sister, Suzy Judd. As she smiled at Austin, he could see the resemblance between the two. Although their coloring was quite different, they had the same green eyes and a bone structure that many women would envy.

“As you can see, most everyone’s already done some shopping,” Suzy said with a grin, waving her hand in the direction of the other guests. Then she turned to Kacy and asked, “Are you going to come along or do you want to stay and listen to Wild Bill?”

“I’ll stay here. I need to talk to Dusty anyway.” Kacy extended her hand to Austin, giving him all the polite phrases, but he could see that she was about as sincere as a con man. She couldn’t wait to pass him off to her sister. And that thought annoyed him.

He didn’t know what role Ms. Kacy Judd was going to play in his life for the next five days, but of one thing he was certain. If she thought she was going to tell him what to do and when to do it, she was sadly mistaken.

THE FOLLOWING MORNING Kacy was up bright and early. On mornings when there were no guests at the lodge she began each day with a ride. Today she would be giving riding lessons so she would wait to have the pleasure of taking out one of her own horses.

Horses were Kacy’s passion and she never grew tired of being around them. Riding was an experience that satisfied all of her senses. She could feel the wind on her face, smell the grass beneath her and hear the sounds of silence. The steady rhythm of her horse’s hooves was like music to her ear and it was what she had missed most when she had lived in the city.

Riding was like breathing—she needed to do it regularly or she was in trouble. On the North Dakota prairie she could ride without worry that she’d encounter some unsavory character around the next bend. Living in New York she had discovered what it meant to feel unsafe. The two-legged animals walking the streets were much more dangerous than the four-legged kind she encountered on the prairie.

She thought of how startled Austin Bennett had looked at the sight of the moose on the highway and smiled. His visit to North Dakota had not gotten off on a very good start. Losing his luggage, fighting with his girlfriend, getting soaked in the rain. She should have had more sympathy for him, but he was a suit. And an arrogant one at that, judging by last night. Thinking everyone in North Dakota ran around saying “yee-haw.” Daphne Delattre was welcome to him.

Kacy couldn’t help but be curious as to what kind of woman would be attracted to a man like Austin Bennett. Sure, he was good-looking, but he didn’t have a personality. That much was obvious. And no sense of humor. And he liked to tell women what to do. Go to bed? Geesh! What did he think? That he was Daphne’s father?

At the direction her thoughts were taking, she chastised herself, annoyed that he aroused the least bit of curiosity in her. Just because he had a couple of physical attributes that might make a woman’s heart beat a little faster didn’t mean she had to fantasize about the man’s love life.

Maybe some women went for the arrogant type, but she wasn’t one of them. She didn’t mind a man with a “take charge” attitude, but she didn’t need anyone telling her what to do. She pushed all thoughts of the CEO aside and prepared for the day ahead.

By the time she had showered and dressed, blue skies and sunshine alleviated her worries that they would be troubled by rain again today. Normally she would have had a quick bite of breakfast in her own kitchen, but because it was the first day of a new session at the ranch, she joined the rest of the staff for breakfast in the lodge’s dining room.

Suzy, besides running the clothing shop, acted as hostess for all meals, arranging the seating and welcoming guests as they arrived. It came as no surprise to Kacy to find that her sister’s place card was next to Austin Bennett’s. What did come as a surprise was to see the CEO in blue jeans, a shirt with pearl snaps and a pair of oxfords. Kacy had to stifle a giggle. Dress shoes with blue jeans?

When his eyes met hers, he nodded. It was the only sign that he noticed her presence. Even though he appeared to be listening to Suzy, Kacy thought he looked detached, almost bored by everything that was going on around him. The impression only increased her antagonism toward the man.

When breakfast was over, Kacy found herself face to face with him as she left the dining room. “Good morning, Mr. Bennett. Did you sleep well?”

“Yes, I did.”

“And is the room to your satisfaction?”

“The room is quite nice. Thank you.”

One point in our favor, Kacy thought. She looked down at his shoes and asked, “Didn’t they have boots in your size?”

“I didn’t ask.”

“You have some in your luggage, is that it?”

“No.”

“Then what are you planning to wear for riding? You’ll ruin those expensive Italian leather shoes if you wear them.”

“I’m not getting on a horse, Ms. Judd.”

“Riding is part of the program, Mr. Bennett,” she explained calmly.

“That may be, but I am not riding. Now if you’ll excuse me.” Before she could say another word, he had turned and was walking down the corridor leading to the guest rooms.

She had been dismissed! Kacy could feel her blood pressure rising and she was tempted to go after him and let him know just who was running the show. But she didn’t. She simply smiled to herself.

Let him think what he wanted. There was no way some city guy in a suit was going to get the upper hand on her. He’d learn that soon enough.

BENNETT INDUSTRIES HAD enrolled fifteen employees in the program. That meant Kacy and her brothers each worked with a team of five. When it was time for the first scheduled activity—the riding lessons—Kacy only counted four people in her group.

“Who’s missing?” a man named Ed asked, shading his eyes as he glanced to the opposite corners of the corral where the rest of the participants sat on bales of hay awaiting instructions.

“It’s Mr. Bennett,” Kacy answered, looking at the slip of paper Dusty had handed her only minutes before.

“I didn’t think he’d be out here with the rest of us,” another man chipped in.

Kacy looked toward the lodge and felt a twinge of irritation which quickly escalated into a knot of anger when she saw a man walk out of the lodge and head for the pool. She didn’t need a pair of binoculars to know that it was Austin Bennett. Why had the man even bothered to come to the ranch?

Determined to stay cool with the situation, she said, “Maybe Mr. Bennett doesn’t need a riding lesson.”

“It’s more likely he doesn’t want one,” someone supplied.

Ed grinned. “Rumor has it that he wasn’t too gung ho about coming here.”

“Really?” Kacy stated innocently, knowing perfectly well Austin Bennett didn’t want to be anywhere near the ranch. “But we’re going to have so much fun.” She wiggled her eyebrows as she grinned.

“Some of us are a little shy around horses,” another guest admitted.

“There’s no need to be,” Kacy assured everyone. “Riding is an essential component of the work you will do here. And it’s fun. So, I’ll go have a little chat with Mr. Bennett. In the meantime, you can admire Harriet.” She walked over to the fence and lovingly stroked a chestnut mare tied to fence. “She’s a real sweetie. Wouldn’t hurt a fly.”

“Is everyone going to get a horse to ride?” Ed asked as she started for the pool area.

“Oh, yes. We’ve enough horses for everyone. Even Mr. Bennett,” she said with confidence before heading toward the lodge.