Alpha of the Ranch

Mrs. Monroe

“Thank you! Come again!” Victoria said as she waved to the sweet couple walking away. She wiped her forehead with the back of her hand before turning and smiling wide at her companion. “Not too bad huh Neil? I think bringing extra eggs was a perfect idea. They’re selling out like hot cakes!”

Neil just gave her a slight smile and shrug which was exactly what she expected. It’s why Victoria brought him along. Out of the few ranch hands she had, Neil was the best for the market. At 21, he still had a shy boyish demeanor most had lost by now, especially given his good looks. Soft green eyes, dirty blonde hair, and a tan one only gets from working in the sun, Neil was for sure a heart throb for the young women of Aurora. Unfortunately for them, Neil seemed unaware of his effect on the women (and a few men) around him. Victoria would often notice young women standing near the stall listening to him talk to other customers. A few bold ones might come up and introduce themselves to him, but quickly dissolved into a fit of giggles before rushing off with friends.

After another hour at the farmers market, Victoria had pretty much sold out of everything. The decision to have a stall at the market was such a good idea, and over the years it seemed to grow bigger and better. With another successful day done, Victoria and Neil packed up what little they had and made their way back to the ranch.

The drive back was beautiful and quiet. Victoria was able to allow her throughs to roam and just enjoy the beautiful fall weather. Driving into the front gates, she could see the other guys at work, moving the cattle over to new pastures. Victoria pulled up the drive of her house, then she and Neil both hopped out and unloaded the coolers.

“How was it Mrs. Monroe?”

Victoria rolled her eyes before turning around. She hadn’t seen the man when she pulled up, but what else was new? “Joe. Stop calling me that and just call me Vicky. Or Torie. Or hell, Victoria! You’ve been working here for over a year now.”

Joe gave her his 1000 watt smile that made his sweet brown eyes crinkle at the corners. He shrugged his broad shoulders at her and looked sheepish. “I can’t help it, Mrs. Monroe. It’s how I was raised.”

Victoria sighed. This was a conversation she'd had too many times and wasn’t that excited to have it again. “You could at least drop the Mrs.” she muttered under her breath.

Joe pretended not to hear her. “The cattle have been moved to the new pasture, and the chickens have been put up for the evening. Max and Chris checked the vegetables and said all is good. They got that one sprinkler fixed and everything.”

Victoria nodded. Joe was a major life saver these days, helping her balance everything when she refused to cut down. This ranch was a life goal and she didn’t have any plans on backing down from it now. No matter what happened.

“Thanks Joe for holding it down while we were gone. I’ll unload this stuff in the freezer out back, but it looks like we’re done for the day. Tell the guys they have the rest of the day to themselves when they’re done.”

If possible, Joe’s smile got even wider. Could the man be more of a sweetheart? His sepia skin seemed to just drink in the sunlight and his muscles had some of the older women who visited swooning. He clapped his big hands a few times and gave a yip of excitement. “A rest day? Mrs. Monroe, you are just too kind.” He turned and walked off, giving off one of his patented shrill whistles that always impressed Victoria. She’d commented before how sometimes it sounded like a wolf or coyote yip, but he just laughed his hearty laugh and said “You give me too much creative credit Mrs. Monroe.”

“It isn’t even a whole day.” She said to herself as she took the smaller cooler into the garage and unloaded its contents. She smiled though. Joe just had something about him that brought joy to everyone. She snagged a steak for her dinner then moved inside, making her way to her bedroom.

She was tired. No matter how much she loved what she did, Victoria was always surprised by how exhausted she was at the end of the day. She started the shower and let it get warm while she gathered some comfy sweats and a shirt for the evening. The weather was just starting to turn cooler, but it was still too warm for a thick sweater. Stripping down she stepped into the warm water and let it just flow over her. Her mind went blank and she just enjoyed the feeling of the droplets rolling down her skin. She eventually stretched her hands up to her natural hair and worked the shampoo into her curls, washing out the sweat from the day. Feeling lavish, she washed herself and decided to deep condition her hair, leaving the sweet smelling goo in and wrapping her hair before dressing herself.

Once downstairs again she made a small dinner for herself and poured a glass of red wine. Carefully balancing the tray she made her way to the small table she had on the patio. She loved to sit outside and enjoy nature, especially on particularly nice days and evenings like tonight. The moon was full and absolutely gorgeous. It cast it’s pale light on everything, allowing Victoria to make out a few things in the darkness.

“The moon is beautiful tonight isn’t it Micah?” She whispered. She glanced over at a framed photo leaning against the window sill. Reaching out she dusted off the glass and gazed at the man smiling back at her. “The market stand is doing really well too. Mr. and Mrs. Garcia stopped by again today. Can you believe their granddaughter is turning 10 already? Apparently she specifically requested things from our stand for her birthday. You just keep bringing light to people's lives, Micah.”

She took another bite and chewed slowly. In the distance, she heard a wolf let out a loud, long howl. It didn’t worry her; she knew the animals were safe and the ranch hands were nearby in case she needed anything. Yet she couldn’t help but feel something stir inside of her at it. “It sounds so lonely.” She murmured. “I know how that feels.”