Chapter 12
As the weekend draws near, I’m sure Miss Lucille will change her mind. If Boss Daddy knew me as Natalie, there would be no problem with us picnicking together. If I wore a dress instead of pants, no one would care if we spent time together.
But ranch hand Nat Allen has to abide by the social convention, and it isn’t right for an unmarried couple to be alone together. Even if we were courting—which we’re not, at least, I hope we’re not—even then we’d need to have a chaperone with us. There is no such thing as friendship between men and women. Not with an upstanding young woman like Miss Lucille.
Maybe she thinks I’m going to try to talk my way out of it, because she doesn’t linger around the water pump when I wash up in the evenings. If I see her, she nods and smiles, but noth
