Page 47 of Rancher to the Rescue

She wasn’t doing such a great job of protecting herself, because she had to agree with both of them. Angel was something special, all right.

Mrs. Firebrand walked to the back door. She stopped and turned. “You know about the will?”

“Brax stopped by earlier,” he said.

“The men are already fighting and their father hasn’t had a proper burial yet.” She made the sign of the cross. “I hope you boys learn from them and don’t make the same mistakes. No good ever came out of fighting for the sake of arguing.”

Prudence couldn’t help but be charmed by Adam’s mother. It had been too long since she’d had one and this lady seemed very special.

“I do my best to get along,” Adam said.

“Keep at it. The others will come around eventually,” she said, before wagging her index finger in the air. “Or they’ll have to live with regret.”

On that note, she took her exit. The woman knew how to leave an impression.

“There’s dog food on the front porch. I better—”

“I can bring it in,” Adam volunteered. He was off before she could stop him. He hauled the bags into the kitchen and then set up the bowls, filling them with water. “When do they eat?”

“I should have asked Randy when the last time they were fed, but they usually eat after dinner.” She thought of Mr. and Mrs. Ramsey. Again, her heart hurt for the losses that had been racking up. “They should be good until morning.”

“Any medicines I need to know about?” Adam asked.

“None. They’re both healthy,” she said.

“We’ll have to watch that one when she goes outside. Can’t have a coyote nabbing her from the backyard,” Adam said.

“I always go with them when they do their business. This guy here is a jumper. Not many fences are capable of holding him in. So I always have to keep an eye on him,” she admitted.

“Have you considered what to do with them on a more permanent basis?” he asked.

She snuggled Miss Peabody. “I’m thinking of keeping them both. They know me and we have a good relationship. We have trust established and I know their routines. It would be an easier transition for them.”

“What about your job?” His dark brow arched.

“I’ll have to figure that part out,” she admitted. One step at a time.

He nodded.

“Speaking of meals, when was her last bottle?” she asked.

“Hour and a half ago,” he said after a quick glance at the clock and even faster mental calculation.

“Did you ever realize how often a newborn fed?” It was probably the stress of the day that made her laugh. It was either laugh or cry.

Adam cracked a smile.

“I had no idea,” he said.

That statement covered so much of what had happened in the past twenty-four hours. The day should have felt like the longest in her life but there was something about being with Adam that gave her shelter in a raging storm.

“Hutch just did his business. Sorry about the front lawn,” she said. “I had no way to scoop without my supplies.”

“I’ll get it in the morning,” he said. “Besides, I’m sure there’ll be others. Though we should probably keep him in the backyard from now on. It’ll give him plenty of room to run and there’s an invisible fence to keep critters out. The reverse will be true with him. He won’t be able to cross it and escape no matter how high of a jumper he is.”

“That’s a relief,” she said.

“We should still keep an eye on the lady, though. Coyotes can get creative when they spot an easy meal.”