Chapter 4

Tess

Everyone here is so friendly! I guess I should expect that from a Dude Ranch. I honestly have never set foot in a Dude Ranch, and I don’t even know what it is. The place looks almost like a resort, kind of like how they’d set up a hotel restaurant, but at the same time it also looks like a rustic hometown kitchen.

They have a regular landline here. Like attached to a cord and everything. There’s a receptionist and a front desk. She brings the phone up from under the desk and hands me the receiver.

“Do you have the number you need?”

“Yeah,” I tell her. “I just don’t seem to ever have any service on this stretch.”

“That happens a lot. We have the landlines, and there are a bunch of boosters on the property for the guests to use the internet.”

“You don’t text or call each other around the property?”

“We have some internet programs for that but mostly we use walkie talkies.”

She shows me the one on the desk. What have I stepped into? I dial Lucas, and I’m grateful when he answers. He wouldn’t know the number.

“You okay, Tess?”

“I’m fine. I just lost service once we got down the road a bit.”

“We?” my brother quizzes.

“I was rescued.”

“Like a damsel in distress?”

“That’s so funny, it’s what he called me too,” I say with a mock laugh.

“He?”

“This guy, not important. I’m calling to tell you I’m safe and that I’m at the Lone Star Dude Ranch.”

“Oh, I know that place.”

“You do?”

“How could you not? I swear, Tess, you don’t know anything going on in this town.”

“I work a lot,” I throw back.

“You do.”

“Anyway, what’s going on with my car?”

“I got you a tow down to my friend, Levi’s, shop. We’ll get it fixed up for you quick.”

“Good, I need my car.” I mildly panic not knowing how long I’m going to have to be on foot.

“I know. Do you need a ride?” Lucas asks.

“No, I’m gonna call Allie. She’ll get me to the club.”

“Okay, see you Sunday then. I’ll drop off the car at Mom and Dad’s.”

“Works for me,” I agree.

“Have fun at work!”

“I always do!” I sing-song in return.

I hand the receiver back to the receptionist, and she immediately hands it back to me.

“Didn’t you say you have to call for a ride?”

“Oh, right.”

I queue up Allie’s number in my phone and dial it in. The number keypad is right on the receiver, like one of those retro 90s phones, but beige. Allie answers on the fourth ring.

“The Castle,” she answers in a flat tone.

“Hey Allie, it’s Tess.”

“Oh, hey, are you gonna be able to make it in tonight? How’s your car?”

“Being towed to the auto shop as we speak. And yes, if you can come get me and give me a ride home later. I’ll need a ride in tomorrow too.”

“I can probably do that, sure. Where are you?”

“Lone Star Dude Ranch.”

“Oh, that place down the road a ways from us?” she asks for clarification.

“Does everyone but me know this place is here?”

“Most likely, yeah. It’s pretty popular, especially with tourists.”

“Well, I’m not a tourist.” I have to be careful not to show my annoyance of my displacement through my tone.

“Obviously. Okay I have to finish up some paperwork, and then I can head over. I’m dungeon master tonight, so we both need to be here when it starts to pick up.”

“I’m dressed. I need a few minutes to freshen up and brush the dusty off me. Why are horses so dusty?” I ask like she knows all things horse.

“Horses? What have you been doing?”

“I’ll tell you about it when you get here.”

“Okay I’ll be there in about twenty minutes. You’ll have to freshen up quick and get right out on the floor.”

“I’m good with that,” I confirm.

She hangs up without a goodbye, normal for her. She was kind of frosty with me when I first started at The Castle, but she warmed up eventually and now we’re friends, even though she’s still my boss.

I look around and see that there are tables, a dinner buffet being set up, and a small counter similar to the way a diner is designed. I take a seat there and look around to see if anyone is available. Parker had said they’d get me something to eat, but I don’t want to bother anyone.

A middle-aged man in a chef hat comes out within a minute, baggy black pants, a chef coat, and a tiny bit of buzzed gray hair visible on the back of his neck where the chef hat ends. He smiles at me and hands me a cup of coffee, then pulls out a little caddy with sugar packets and those little creamer cups.

“Parker radioed in that you’d be stopping by. Can I get you something to eat?”

“I don’t want to be any trouble,” I say, but I am hungry.

“I promise you, it’s no trouble at all. It’s what we do here.”

“I can pay for my food.”

“Really, there’s no need. We got it covered. What can I get you?” he asks with a gentle smile.

“What would be the fastest and easiest for you to make up?”

“How about a turkey melt with some cheese and fries?” He suggests, and my stomach rumbles at even the thought of the delicious food.

“That would be easy?”

“Yep, I’ll have it up for you in a jif.”

“Ok then!” I exclaim.

He walks away through a little door behind the counter where I’m assuming the kitchen is, and I pull out my phone. I still don’t have any service. I pull up the internet connection settings and find their guest WiFi but decide against connecting at the last minute. What do I really need to do on my phone right now?

The man in the chef hat comes back with a large plate that has steam coming off of it. I check the time and see I still have about fifteen minutes to eat. He really did put that together fast. He even put a nice sized ramekin of ranch dressing on the plate. How did he know I’d want ranch with my fries?

The turkey melt is delicious, and I practically drool as I devour it. I forgot to eat lunch (again), and I probably won’t have time to eat much for dinner, so this is perfect. As I move on to my fries, I check the time again and see I have ten minutes.

“Do you need to make another call?”

The man in the chef hat asks as he continues setting up the area behind the counter.

“No, I’m fine. I just don’t have service here, and I don’t want to make my friend wait for me when she gets here.”

“They’ll come in and let you know as soon as she arrives, don’t worry.”

“Okay, thanks. She’s actually also my boss,” I say.

“I understand that. We’re all friends around here too.”

“That’s how you know Parker, right?” he questions.

“Yep.”

I eat a few fries in silence, contemplating all I’ve learned in the past hour or so. The time went by slower than that. It feels like this day has lasted a week. I can’t help myself when I ask the next question. I have to know what this place is about.

“What exactly is a Dude Ranch?”

He chuckles. “It’s basically a western theme resort, but it’s also a working farm.”

“This is like a real restaurant then?”

“Yes, we have a buffet and a menu. The staff eat here too, usually right after the meals are served to the guests.”

“So, people come here to do, what? Like ride horses and stuff?” I’m generally curious.

Another chuckle. “Yes, that’s the gist of it. We have other activities, some special experiences, events, and themed parties. Sometimes people rent the place out for corporate retreats or weddings.”

“People have weddings here?”

“Oh yeah! One of the barns is a full event space,” he says.

“And what does Parker do?”

“He’s one of our best ranch hands, here before Casie took over the place. She’s our current owner.”

“I see.”

A man in khaki pants and a green shirt with “Lone Star Dude Ranch” printed above the left breast comes up to the counter. He turns to me.

“Tess? Your ride is outside.”

“Oh!”

I grab my phone from the counter and hop down from my stool, dipping one last fry to eat on the way out.

“Thanks so much for the turkey melt! Are you sure I can’t give you anything to cover that?”

“I’m sure. You have a nice night now, ya hear?”

“Will do!”

Allie barely lets me shut the door before she’s driving off. I put my seatbelt on as we pull out onto the main highway, back to The Castle after my long detour.

“In a hurry are we?” I ask, looking straight ahead.

“Yes, Deb called out, so it’s just you and me on the floor.”

“I need to be hostess and play coordinator too, then?”

“Yes,” she says.

“I can handle that.”

“Okay, and you have private bookings later too, right?”

“I do, but Taylor should be in by the time I have to go to the back. She can take over hostess duties.” I mentally run through the schedule I saw earlier today online.

“I hope so. She’s not great at multitasking.”

“You can help direct her. Just stay in character while you do, and you’ll be fine.”

“Right, okay. We can handle this.”

“We can.”

At this rate, I’ll only have a few minutes to gather myself before we get there. Allie is driving like a fiend, but I get it. I can’t afford to lose the money from tonight’s bookings whether Deb called out or not, especially with my car needing work. This is my element. I know what I’m doing in this situation. As I always say, Tits up, Tess. I got this.