Only His (Fool's Gold #6)(21)

“The new librarian,” Annabelle said with a wry smile. “I just got into town yesterday and was driving around, getting to know the place. A plan that ended badly.” She motioned to her left rear tire.

“I can call someone from town to come help,” Nevada said, pulling her cell phone out of her pocket.

“No service,” Heidi said. “We’re hit-and-miss out at the ranch, too. But I have a landline, so I was going to take Annabelle there. Do you have the name of someone we should contact?”

“Sure. There are a couple of good garages. Donna’s teenage son is always looking for an excuse to drive the tow truck, so I’d say call her. He’ll be here in a flash.”

“Donna?” Annabelle asked with a frown. “Donna, as in…”

Nevada laughed. “Something for you to get used to here in Fool’s Gold. We are a town of women. For years there weren’t enough men, so a lot of the traditionally male jobs are held by women. The police chief is a woman, as is the fire chief, most of the sheriff’s department and nearly everyone on the city council.” She held out her hand. “Nevada Hendrix.”

Heidi sighed. “Sorry. I should have introduced you. I’m a little scattered. Some of the wild cows got into the goat pen this morning and scared us all.”

“Wild cows?” Nevada asked.

“The cows that seemed to come with the land. They’re feral, assuming cows can be. They’ve been living on their own for years, breeding. The herd is a pretty decent size. I think they’re trying to influence the goats to rebel and go live with them.”

Nevada looked at Annabelle, who raised her eyebrows. “You’re concerned about goat corruption?”

Heidi laughed. “When you put it like that, it sounds pretty silly. But I swear, every time the cows show up, the goats act weird.”

“Maybe they’re territorial,” Annabelle offered. “Maybe they don’t like sharing.”

“I hadn’t thought of that. I’ve never had to deal with wild cows before.”

Nevada grinned. “You should find yourself a handsome cowboy to take care of the problem. You’d have to import him, because we don’t have any around here, but that could be fun.”

“Maybe.” Heidi sounded doubtful. She shrugged and looked at Annabelle. “Okay, let’s go to the ranch and you can make your call.” She turned to Nevada. “Thanks for stopping.”

“You’re welcome. It’s what we do here.”

“I know. One of the reasons I’m happy my grandfather and I settled in the area. People are very friendly. And they’re cheese eaters, which is good for business.”

“Nice to meet you,” Annabelle told her.

“Let me know if I can do anything to help you get settled,” Nevada offered.

“I will.”

They started to head toward their cars when a large truck pulled up next to them. Nevada recognized Charlie, a tall woman with short-cropped hair. Charlie stuck her head out the window.

“Interesting place to call a meeting,” she yelled, then saw the tire. “No way. Do not tell me none of you are capable of dealing with that.”

“Fire department,” Nevada murmured as Charlie pulled over and parked in front of the string of vehicles.

“She’s going to yell at us for sure,” Heidi whispered back.

Charlie got out of her truck and stalked over. She was nearly five-ten, and looked as if she could wrestle all of them into submission at once. Her features were pretty enough, but she never wore any makeup and her clothes were nothing more than practical. Even Nevada, who generally preferred jeans and a T-shirt to anything fancy, managed to put on lip gloss every now and then. She had a feeling Charlie would rather have a root canal.

“It’s a flat tire,” Charlie announced.

Nevada pointed to the other women. “Annabelle Weiss, the new town librarian, and Heidi Simpson. Heidi and her grandfather bought the Castle Ranch.”

“Goat girl,” Charlie said. “I’ve heard of you. Great cheese.”

“Thank you.”

“This is Chantal Dixon.”

Charlie glared at Nevada. “You did not just say that name.”

Nevada held in a grin. “But it’s so pretty.”

“Don’t make me hurt you.” She turned to the other two women. “Call me Charlie and we’ll get along fine.”

“Why don’t you like your name?” Heidi asked.

“Do I look like a Chantal? My mother had delusions of grandeur when it came to me.” She paused. “She hoped I would be petite and delicate like her. But I take after my dad. Thank God.” She walked toward the car. “This seems simple enough.”

“We were just going to call a tow truck to help,” Annabelle murmured. The librarian barely came up to Charlie’s shoulder.

Charlie shook her head. “It’s a flat tire, ladies, not the end of the world.”

They all looked at each other.

“I’m pretty good with repairing a barn,” Heidi admitted.

“Not helpful if you want to drive.” Charlie turned to Nevada. “You have to know what to do. You have three brothers.”

“My three brothers are the reason I never had to worry about my car,” Nevada told her cheerfully, then laughed as Charlie’s frown turned into a scowl. “Yes, I could have learned how to change a tire. I chose not to. If it helps, I’m great with a backhoe.”