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 Want to bet? Red asked.  They love this stuff! If you rub it on your arms, they ll attack you in
droves.... Where are you going, boss?
Mallory just chuckled as he walked away. He didn t even answer Red.
Morie let out a sigh of relief as she wiped harder at her face. She shook her head and gave Red a
rueful wince.  Well, that was a surprise, she murmured dryly.  Thought I was going to be an ex-
employee for sure.
 Naw, Red replied.  The boss is a good sport. Cane got into it with him one time over a woman
who kept calling and harassing him. Boss put her through, just for fun. Cane tossed him headfirst into
one of the watering troughs.
She laughed with surprise.  Good grief!
 Shocked the boss. It was the first time Cane did anything really physical since he got out of the
military. He thinks having one arm slows him down, limits him. But he s already adjusting to it. The
boss ain t no lightweight, he added.  Cane picked him up over one shoulder and threw him.
 Wow.
He sobered.  You know, they ve all got problems of one sort or another. But they re decent, honest,
hardworking men. We d do anything for them. They take care of us, and they re not judgmental. Red
grimaced at some bad memory.  If they were, I d sure be out on my ear.
 Slipped up, did you? She gave him a quizzical look.  You, uh, didn t throw pesticide on the
boss?
He shook his head.  Something much worse, I m afraid. All I got was a little jail time and a lecture
from the boss. He smiled.  Closest call I ve had in recent years.
 Most people mess up once in a while, she said kindly.
 That s true. The only thing that will get you fired here is stealing, he added.  I don t know why
it s such an issue with the boss, but he let a guy go last year for taking an expensive drill that didn t
belong to him. He said he wouldn t abide a thief on the place. Cane, now, almost jumped the guy. He
shook his head.  Odd, odd people in some respects.
 I suppose there s something that happened to them in the past, she conjectured.
 Could be. He made a face.  That girl, Gelly, that the boss goes around with has a shifty look, he
added in a lowered tone.  There was some talk about her when she and her dad first moved here,
about how they got the old Barnes property they re living on. He grimaced.  She s a looker, I ll give
her that, but I think the boss is out of his noggin for letting her hang around. Funny thing about that
drill going missing, he added with narrowed, thoughtful eyes.  She didn t like the cowboy because
he mouthed off to her. She was in the bunkhouse just before the boss found the missing drill in the
guy s satchel, and the cowboy cussed a blue streak about being innocent. It didn t do any good. He was
let go on the spot.
She felt cold chills down her spine. She d only seen the boss s current love interest once, and it had
been quite enough to convince her that the woman was putting on airs and pretending a sophistication
she didn t really have. Most men weren t up on current fashions in high social circles, but Morie was,
and she knew at first glance that Gelly Bruner was wearing last year s colors and fads. Morie had
been to Fashion Week and subscribed, at home, to several magazines featuring the best in couture,
both in English and French. Her wardrobe reflected the newer innovations. Her mother, Shelby, had
been a top model in her younger days, and she knew many famous designers who were happy to
outfit her daughter.
She didn t dare mention her fashion sense here, of course. It would take away her one chance to
live like a normal, young single woman.
 You went to college recently, didn t you? Red asked. He grinned at her surprise.  There s no
secrets on a ranch. It s like a big family...we know everything.
 Yes, I did, she agreed, not taking offense.
 You live in them coed dorms, with men and women living together? he asked, and seemed
interested in her answer.
 No, I didn t, she said curtly.  My parents raised me very strictly. I guess I have old attitudes
because of it, but I wasn t living in a dorm with single men. She shrugged.  I lived off campus with a
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