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Six
     
     
    “You sure you’ve got this?” Ty asked Jolene the next day.
    She narrowed her eyes and cut them from the wild horse to stare at her new boss. “I’ve got this. It’s what you hired me for, so stop your worrying.”
    She could tell by the way his jaw clenched that he might be regretting hiring her. This batch of wild Mustangs he’d taken on to tame had a few mean ones in the mix. Jolene had intentionally picked one of them for her first assignment. And this was exactly why; she needed to lay to rest any hesitancy he or her fellow coworkers might have about her.
    “You sound as stubborn as my Mia,” he said, referring to his wife. Though Jolene hadn’t met her yet, she knew through cowboy circles who he’d married. A rodeo star in her own right, Mia Shaw had gotten hurt and ended up in Mule Hollow and Mrs. Ty Calder.
    Ty was a good guy but truth be told, Jolene wasn’t so sure she’d ever be ready to hand over her identity to someone else. She couldn’t imagine being Mrs. anyone.
    “Then you should know I’m not backing away from this. If you don’t have confidence in me, then it’s all the more reason for me to prove you didn’t make a bad hire.”
    “That’s not what I was thinking.”
    “Well, it’s what I’m thinking. So, boss, if you don’t mind, I’ve got a herd of cowboys paying close attention to what’s going on in this pen and I personally feel like making a bunch of doubters pay up big on the bets they’re more than likely shooting around right now.”
    Ty’s lip hitched into a crooked grin. “Well, if you put it that way, then I’m not going to stand in your way.” He started to walk away and paused to turn back. Quietly he added, “And Jolene, I never said I doubted you.” With that, he tipped his hat and strode toward the arena fence, chaps swishing as he walked.
    She eyed her rough stock, figuring the best way to work with him. He eyed her right back, probably trying to decide what was the best way to not work with her.
    “You gonna ride him or make eyes at him?” someone heckled from the fence. Chuckles followed.
    “You fellas do have a job, right?” Ty drawled, warning in his tone. “There won’t be any riding today. The horse hasn’t even had a saddle on its back yet. So get to work.”
    He was right, and the men knew it; they were just messing with her and she understood it. They were just having a little fun. Not all of them but there were always a few in every bunch. Still, even those who weren’t taunting were wondering whether she was as good as she was supposed to be. And she was supposed to be good.
    She worked with Dimples for the rest of the morning. Walking him in the round pen, working him with her long pole that was used to reach out and direct the horse to react a certain way. She’d always been enthralled to watch the breaking process. The ten-foot long, half-inch thick pole had intrigued her as she’d watched the men on the ranch where her mother had taken a job as the cook.
    A cook. Are you the new cook? Austin’s words rang in her ears.
    She had run out of that kitchen as fast as her mamma would let her loose each morning. She had horse breaking to watch and eventually horses to break herself.
    Of course, it hadn’t been that easy.
    She still remembered the first time she hit the dirt after a ride. It had broken more things than she’d hoped but it hadn’t broken her spirit. And as soon as she was able, she’d climbed back on another unbroken horse and held on for dear life. And then she’d hit the dirt again.
    Today there would be no hitting the dirt.
    Oh, it happened. It was part of the job description but she wasn’t wet behind the ears gung-ho any longer. She was patient, kind, and persistent.
    Let them make their bets. There were going to be a lot of light pockets by tomorrow evening…that is, if they were betting she couldn’t break the horse. If they were betting she would hit the ground, then she didn’t plan on it but