“I play with the customers. But only the pretty ones. Unfortunately, single pretty ladies don't turn up very often. So when they do, I pounce. Especially if they've got red hair.”
“Lucas, you're so sweet.” She gave him a mock punch in the arm and planted a kiss on his cheek. “Tell me something. What the hell are you doing here?”
“Oh don't get me wrong. I love it here. It's a great life. We go hunting, riding, swimming, and canoeing in the summer. We eat well, and even drop by town now and then for a little partying. The winter's hard though. Being snowed in can be difficult to bear for months on end. We do have a couple of motorised ski sleds and the dog sleds as well, but it's sixteen miles to town. It needs to be worth it!”
They began to walk back to the ranch, towards warmth and light, and soon arrived at the door.
“I'm just having a quick smoke. You go in.” Lucas lit up and stood outside while she made her way in. Inside, the room was empty, apart from the clatter of work going on in the kitchen. She popped her head inside to say hello.
“Hi, I'm Maddy. Thanks for the lovely dinner.” She walked in and Shane and Samantha looked her way with a smile.
“You're welcome love. We all like our food here. In fact I think it's our sole reason for existing sometimes.”
“I imagine it's hard work, cooking for a bunch of ravenous people all the time?”
“It's not so bad. I used to work as a chef in a busy restaurant. I managed five hundred meals a day. This is easy compared with that. But I did have a lot more staff there.”
“Oh really, where was that?”
“New York. In the Financial District.”
“And you came here... Why?”
“Yeah we all wonder that sometimes, don't we Sam?” He laughed and they gave each other a knowing look. “After a holiday in the Rockies, I fell in love with the place. I met Aden in Calgary. I worked there for a while first.”
“Do you ride the horses too?”
“Now and then, but I don't get a lot of time. Three meals a day plus getting the supplies is full on.”
“How do you manage in the winter?”
“We have massive freezers. We can last for months if the weather is bad. Dried food, canned, plenty of beer, and of course some excellent company.” He smiled at Sammy and she blushed a little in response. “Plus I love watching movies. There's nothing nicer than being curled up in front of the fire with a great story unfolding before you, is there?”
“Oh, I know. I love sci-fi and horror and anything that gets my blood racing.”
“You do? There's plenty of that kind here. Take a look in the study area, by the computer. We have hundreds of movies. Watch them in your room or on the big screen. It's got a great sound system.”
“I will, thanks for the tip.”
“Fancy a nightcap?” He asked.
“If you're having one.”
“I always do, to relax. Take a seat. So, what'll it be? Wine, beer, whisky...? We've got everything.” He opened a cupboard to reveal a lot of bottles. “It's the cookhouse personal supply,” he sniggered.
“Wine please. Red if you've got it,” she replied, taking a seat.
“What do you do, Maddy?” Sammy asked, sitting down at the table opposite her. Maddy examined her in a subtle way. Her eyes were her best feature, although her whole face was quite pretty. They were very expressive, large and grey, with thick dark lashes. She wore her chestnut hair in a plait to the side, and had several piercings in her ears and a little diamond one sat on the side of her nose.
“I work in TV advertising. In Calgary.”
“Sounds like fun,” she replied with an interested look.
“It can be. It's busy and the days go by pretty fast. The pay is fairly good as well. I'm buying my own place. I'd rather be here though. I'm very envious of you. This is my ideal life. Out here in the wilds. Horses, space... fresh air. I'd give up advertising in a second if the opportunity came to work somewhere like this.”
“You'd need to be very serious about it, we don't get paid much, if at all!” She laughed. “It's more a labor of love. Food and board and a few dollars for essentials. Everything the ranch earns is put back into it, keeping it in top form. It's a massive task as you might imagine. We have two hundred acres. Our land stretches down to the lake one side and the river the other, you know?” She explained proudly.
“Really? I thought it was just the ranch house and paddocks.”
“No, that's only about ten percent of it,” Shane interrupted the conversation as he placed three glasses of red wine on the table, sitting down to join them.
“And Aden owns it?”