Convincing the Rancher. Claire McEwen

on our hands.” Jack glanced toward the truck Slaid had been loading. “And a project. You want some help?”

      “If you’ve got the time to spare, sure.” Slaid went around to the driver’s side and Jack swung up into the passenger seat.

      “These windmills are going to be worse than I thought,” Jack said as they started up the gravel road that led out to Slaid’s farthest pasture. “I knew Tess was here to represent Renewable Reliance, but I had no idea their site was so close to town, or on your land.”

      “Yeah, apparently she forgot to mention that.”

      “She didn’t know either, Slaid. Look, I know you’re pissed. I am, too. But you’ve gotta be pissed at the right people. Tess doesn’t own that company and she doesn’t even want this job. Samantha told me her boss had to twist her arm to get her out here.”

      His gut-churning guilt grew tenfold. Jack didn’t even know the worst of it—that Slaid had pressured Tess to stay in Benson when she’d wanted to go. He let out a long breath. “Yeah, I got that feeling. And I’ll bet Tess said something to Samantha about our argument yesterday. You must think I was pretty hard on her.”

      “Well, she and Samantha talked on the phone a little last night. Tess mentioned that you were pretty angry, but if she was truly upset by what you said, she’d never admit it. Tess doesn’t let on much about her troubles to anyone.”

      Shame combined with the guilt. “Maybe I did take things out on her.” They’d reached the old fence, its posts leaning and rotting, the wire rusted and sagging. Slaid parked the truck and cut the engine. They got out, and he tossed Jack a pair of heavy leather gloves, then pulled on a pair of his own. Once Jack unlatched the tailgate, they started pulling the posts from the back.

      The talk turned to the fence for a few minutes. They pulled the most rotten section out entirely, loading the rusty wire into the truck and carrying the new posts over. Then they set to work digging out a few old posts that were still firmly cemented in the ground.

      “This is crap work, you know.” Jack grinned at him over the shovel. “Don’t you usually pay someone to do this?”

      Slaid slammed his shovel into the hard earth. “Just felt like a little manual labor. When I’ve got a problem to solve, a little sweat and dirt sometimes helps.”

      Jack’s laugh echoed over the quiet hillside. “I know the feeling. I don’t think my ranch was ever in better shape than when Samantha showed up next door. I must have replaced half my fence line that fall. Then I got myself sucked into helping Todd with his crazy wild mustangs, and I even painted Jed and Betty’s barn for them.”

      It was Slaid’s turn to laugh. “Man, you had it bad.”

      They were silent for a moment, chipping away at the unyielding ground. Then Jack spoke. “So if you really want to fight this thing, we could use some outside help. Environmental groups for one. They want green energy but without migrating birds getting injured. They definitely don’t want the Sierras and the wild lands nearby covered in wind turbines.”

      “Okay.” Slaid grunted as he dislodged a chunk of the old concrete with his pickax, the accomplishment giving him a flicker of satisfaction.

      “And we should get the historical society on board. They can make the connection to what’s happened around here in the past.”

      “You mean the water?”

      “Yeah. It makes sense if we spin it right.” Jack jabbed his shovel into the loose dirt left by Slaid’s efforts. “First Southern California steals the water out of the Owens River and just about destroys the Eastern Sierra towns and ranches. Now they’re back, threatening to destroy our last untainted resource—the natural beauty that supports our tourist industry. Just so they can have more power down south.”

      “How do we prove the power is going to Southern California?” Slaid asked, wiping sweat off his forehead with his sleeve.

      “Because I bet when we get a good look at what this project entails, there’s gonna be a lot more power generated than they can sell around here. Trust me, most of it will be going down to LA.”

      “But Renewable Reliance will just say that’s all speculation.”

      Jack’s brows drew together as he considered Slaid’s point. “Well. They’ll have to answer our questions, at any rate. We’ll just hope they’ll answer them somewhat honestly.”

      “Seem as if you’re saying our success might be rooted in how well we tell the story. We’ve got to get the media interested.” Slaid slammed his pickax back into the dirt. “But what if it backfires? I mean, this country needs clean energy. So how do we avoid looking like a bunch of ignorant, backward-looking people who don’t want to do our part?”

      “I’m not sure.” Jack tried to wedge his shovel under the old post. “The thing is, I want wind power—in theory. I want my energy coming from a cleaner source. But do I want those windmills here in Benson? Nope.”

      “I feel the same.”

      “Samantha and I had an idea the other night. I don’t know if it would work for everyone, but we’re thinking of installing solar panels on our roof. Maybe this is a crazy idea, but what if everyone in town did it? We could prove that we’re not just saying no to wind power because we’re selfish. We’d be saying no because we already have our own source of clean energy.”

      “Not a bad idea. It would add to that story you’re talking about spinning. A solar-powered town, threatened by windmills.” Slaid felt more hopeful than he had since Tess had shown up in his office. “What if we worked with the state for some rebates, or even a solar company for a bulk price on panels and installation?”

      “It’s worth looking into,” Jack agreed.

      “I really think it could be a good strategy.” Already Slaid’s thoughts were sifting through memories of everyone he’d met over the years, trying to remember if he knew anyone involved in the solar industry.

      “And it might get us a win.” Jack grinned at him. “If that’s what you want.”

      “It’s what I want. I can’t let this wind project happen on my watch.” Slaid set his ax down and reached into the truck bed for a shovel, using his boot to push it deep into the soil. “I think we should bring it up tonight at the city council meeting. You going?”

      “Yeah, I’ll be there. Can’t shirk my duties as an elected official. Even if I only got a council seat because no one else wanted it.”

      “Hey, plenty of people wanted that seat!” Slaid assured him. “I just wanted you around to save my ass with good ideas like this solar-power plan. I think it could work, though I’m not looking forward to going head-to-head with Tess.”

      “Neither are we.” Jack leaned on his shovel. “I’m sure this whole situation is really awkward for Samantha and Tess. They’ve been such close friends, and for the first time they’re on opposite sides of something.”

      Slaid nodded. “Yeah, well, if it makes you feel any better, awkward is a hell of a lot better than how I handled things yesterday. I made it personal. I can’t make that mistake again.”

      “I guess we can’t help it being kind of personal,” Jack said. “But if the council likes our idea, I think someone should tell Tess about the plan. It’s best to be up front.”

      “That someone being me, I guess,” Slaid said. “The dirty work goes along with being the mayor. But I doubt that’ll be an enjoyable conversation.”

      Jack jabbed his shovel under the post again, managing to tip it partway over. Slaid reached for it and wrestled the old wood out of the ground. “You know, Samantha mentioned that you and Tess...”

      “Yep.” No way was Slaid talking about sex, even with a guy as easygoing as Jack. He grabbed his pickax and walked over to the next post, putting his full attention on loosening