Three weeks fly by as Dan prepares for fall works on the Rockin' Chair Ranch. It is Monday of the last week in October and he can't wait for this week to be over and to start at Hearts Bond. Saddling Hopper he is filled with an anxiousness to get started, fall and spring works are his favorite time of year.

"West Row!" Joseph announces as the cowboys load their horses in the trailer.

Once to the pasture Dan unloads Hopper as do the other hands. Tightening his cinch in the cool morning air he sends up a prayer before stepping into the saddle. Joseph gives out instructions and then the guys ride off in their assigned spots. Dan rides between Joseph and Clyde giving him a extra boost of try. After gathering and driving the herd of cattle to the pens everyone hobbles their horses catches a ride to the main house to eat.

"Where are you going the next three weeks?" Clyde asks Dan as they sit down at the table.

"Hearts Bond Ranch." Dan answers before stuffing his mouth with food to prevent having to say more.

"Ah, with the girl." Clyde chuckles as Dan colors slightly.

"I'm helping out with the works." Dan mumbles becoming slightly nervous with the older gentlemen's teasing.

"Nice of you to help out. I guess I get to cover for you." Clyde is enjoying the game.

"Thanks." Is Dan's simple reply. When he realizes how short of a reply he gave he has a hard not laughing, he reminds himself of Tylee.

***

Tylee drives into town stressing and in a hurry. She pulls up to the feed store and kills the engine of her pickup. As she walks through the door she is met with a ear piercing shriek belonging Becca.

"Tylee! Dan was in here the other day and told me that he is helping with fall works! That's great! It is about time that you get some help, if only you would hire someone full time!" Becca spiels in one breath.

"Becca, let the lady inside." Bill instructs with an amused smile. Becca steps out of the way and walks with an overwhelmed Tylee to the counter. "How have things been going?"

"Horrible. Everything is falling apart right when I need them to stay together the most." Tylee's reply is laced with frustration.

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Bill asks, he has always had a soft spot for the girl with a unimaginable work ethic.

"Becca, could you clean the bunk house up before Monday?" Tylee forces herself to ask for help something that had seemed to becoming a pattern in her life lately.

"Of course!" Becca exclaims happy to be able to play a little matchmaker while still helping her friend out.

"Thanks." Tylee places her feed and supply order before going to the grocery store and picking up sandwich stuff as well as her usual food supplies. The whole idea of having someone helping her for three weeks was causing her to be out of sorts.

After getting the things she needs from town she heads back to the ranch Becca following in her sports car. Tylee shows Becca to the bunk house, which is about two miles down a dirt road south of her house. After showing Becca the small house Tylee goes back to her house and unloads the groceries. With daylight still available when she finishes she drives to the Ground Grain pasture and rolls out five strands of barbed wire. When it is dark she has three of the five in place, she turns the headlights on her pickup on and continues. At three in the morning she is back at her house and getting out of the shower.

Tylee wakes up to her alarm after two hours of sleep. She dresses and saddles Grover a dependable gelding loading him in the trailer. She drives to the west side and gets him out tightening her cinch before stepping into her saddle. She spends hours working her way across the pasture to gather the cows and calves before she drives the cattle to the pasture just south of the one they were in.

"Lets get a drink Daisy." Tylee tells her dog as they make their way back to the pickup.

***

Dan unsaddles Frog on the fourth day, and unplanned last day. Everything went faster than expected allowing them to be done two days early on the Rockin' Chair Ranch. He collapses on his bed in the bunk house with a satisfied sigh. After supper from the main house he throws shirts jeans and other necessities in a bag and walks outside with his phone in hand. He hesitates a moment before pressing the call button on Tylee's number. It had been three weeks since they talked, but it had been over a month since they had seen one another.

Tylee~ Hello

Dan~ Hey Tylee, how have you been?

Tylee~ Okay. You?

Dan~ Good we just finished our fall works today. Anything I can help you with, since we are done I'm free.

Tylee~ That's good. Uh, I have a lot that needs to be done, but you don't have to come help if you're busy.

Dan~ Like I said I'm free and I don't mind helping.

Tylee~ Uh, if you want you can come and help me with stuff.

Dan~ Sure, as long as you're okay with it.

Tylee~ Yeah I'm good with it.

She gives him the directions and he tells Joseph he's leaving earlier than planned. The drive seems to go on forever until finally he crosses through the Hearts Bond gateway. Fifteen minutes later he pulls up to a large house and recognizes Tylee's pickup in the driveway. A large German Shepard barks loudly from his post beside the front door. In a few seconds Tylee walks out the door she orders the dog to lay down as he gets out of his pickup.

"Hi," Tylee says shyly.

"Hi Tylee." Dan responds. The way her name rolls off his tongue makes her feel a feeling she has never felt before, a feeling of attraction.

"Uh, I was just making supper if you want to join me." She says her voice barely loud enough for him to hear.

"I would enjoy that." He says with a big smile. She gives him a shy smile before finishing cooking. They eat spaghetti and homemade garlic toast that she prepared sitting across from one another at the table. After they get done eating Tylee washes dishes while racking her brain as to what a good hostess would do.

"Would you like to uh, like to see the house?" She asks timidly.

"That would be nice." Dan answers. He follows her up the stairs to a large room he assumes to be the master.

"This was... uh this is the master bed room." She hesitates when she almost say 'Granna and Papaw's room'. He follows her to the room just down the hall.

"Let me guess, this is your room." Dan says and a smile spreads across her face.

Her room is painted a light grey and has pictures of who Dan assumes is her grandparents. One picture catches his eye, it is of a little girl with a older man and a little black colt. Tylee follows Dan's graze to the framed picture.

"That's my Papaw and I with Jay." She says softly remembering back to that day.

"You were cute as a baby." He remarks hiding hid smirk. For some odd reason Tylee felt the urge to give him a smart remark back.

"So I'm not now." She keeps a straight face making it appear she was hurt by his comment.

"No.... you are beautiful." The comment catches her completely off guard. She had never had anyone beside her grandparents tell her she was beautiful, besides the fact that she just met the man!

"Thank you." She speaks after a long silence quietly with flushed cheeks. She shows him the rest of the house, but in all honesty he wasn't paying attention, he was watching her.

Tylee gives him directions to the bunk house, once there he grabs his bag and turns to the door. He opens it and walks in to find a well cleaned and kept bunk house. He places his bag by a bed and takes his shirt off as he throws it onto the bed a paper flutters to the ground from the dresser.

Dan,

     I want to thank you for helping my shy friend. She isn't used to guys (or anyone) helping out around the ranch so this is all new to her. Just a heads up she doesn't understand people let alone the opposite gender! So just take it slow, but give her a nudge every once in a while to keep her moving.

                                                ~Becca

Dan let out a hardy laugh and chunk the paper at the bed. Becca is a handful to say the least and he didn't think that Tylee would be very happy to know what Becca had done. Dan goes to bed that night thinking about Tylee.

***

Tylee lays down in her bed and curls up with Daisy. In between thinking about Dan stressing out about the works and the usual business of the ranch was making her head spin. She doesn't know what to think about the feelings she has for Dan, they are new and she's never had them for anyone before.