MidReal Story
Ranch Romance: Forbidden Love Amidst the Wild West
Scenario: A cowboy and a maid at the ranch are in love.
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Jack Thompson, seasoned cowboy at the Lazy J Ranch, and firstperson protagonist of the following story, found himself intrigued by the arrival of Mary Johnson, a new maid working at the ranch house.
As a man who had seen many women in his day, Jack felt a spark of curiosity as he observed the petite brunette with kind eyes.
Her presence stirred up quite a buzz among the ranch hands, who all seemed to be eager to catch a glimpse of the “city girl” from Boston.
However, it was Jack who truly felt drawn to her from the very beginning.
I’d seen plenty of women come and go through the gates of the Lazy J Ranch, but there was something about the new girl that caught my eye.
She was from Boston and came out West alone to work as a maid in our big ol’ house.
The other cowboys were buzzing about her like she was a shiny new toy they couldn’t wait to play with.
When I saw her step down from the stagecoach, I felt like I’d been kicked in the gut by one of our wild horses.
I’d never been one to chase after skirts, but there was something different about this one.
She was small and delicate with wavy brown hair and big eyes that looked like they could swallow me whole.
Even from a distance she had a sweet smile, but it was when she turned around and I saw her backside that I knew I needed to know more about her.
I went about my day as usual, tending to the horses and catching up with my buddies after I’d been on the trail for a few days.
I did my best to keep my mind off that little maid, but try as I might, I couldn’t help thinking about her.
I overheard the other cowboys talking by our watering hole as they took turns rinsing off their faces and getting rid of some trail dust.
One of them had been lucky enough to have an excuse to go inside the house, and he gave us an earful about what he saw.
She’s pretty, but she’s so small and dainty,” he said.
I heard she’s from Boston.
Why would someone like her come all this way just to work at our house?”
There are rumors that she has a man back home and that her family didn’t approve of him, so she left.”
So, she’s free and clear now?”
Well, I don’t know what her story is, but I’m going to make sure I get a piece of it,” another cowboy said.
The others laughed and continued making lewd comments about the new girl.
I’d heard enough.
I didn’t know what it was about her, but I felt a connection that I’d never felt with any other woman before.
I didn’t want anybody else getting a “piece of it” before I had the chance, so I made up my mind then and there to go introduce myself.
I walked up the steps of the big house and knocked on the door.
I heard footsteps and the click of the door unlocking before it creaked open.
The same cowboy who had been bragging about getting a closer look at her earlier looked at me with surprise and annoyance.
“What do you want?”
“I’m here to meet the new maid,” I said.
“Maybe I’ll go into town tonight and see if I can find her first,” I said.
There were a few groans of disappointment as some of the other men realized that I was serious.
He snorted and shook his head.
“Good luck with that, buddy.She’s not going to have anything to do with a dirty cowboy like you.” The other man turned around and closed the door behind him before I could ask him any more questions.
I didn’t care what they thought.
I headed back towards the barn and found myself thinking about the new girl again.
I knew that someone had to look out for Mary, and I wanted to be the one to do it.
She’d only been at the ranch for a few days, but she’d already made quite an impression on everyone, myself included.
The closer I got to the house, the more anxious I became about seeing her again.
There were always women hanging around at the Lazy J Ranch, many of whom I suspected were there for reasons other than just providing companionship for the cowboys when they were in town.
It seemed silly since I’d only just met her this morning, but there was something about her that made my heart race in my chest.
They wore too much makeup and their dresses were too tight and flashy for my liking.
Maybe it was the fact that I hadn’t been with many women over the years and was starting to feel lonely.
But Mary was different.
Or maybe it was the way she’d looked at me earlier—the way she’d smiled and made me feel like I was the only man in the world who mattered.
She was fresh-faced with a natural beauty that I knew was hard to come by in a place like this.
Either way, I needed to get a grip on myself before I did something stupid.
As I walked closer to the house, I saw Mary step outside of the barn and start making her way back towards the house.
I had a feeling she’d never spent her days working in the hot sun or getting dirty like we did.
I knew that most of the women who came through our gates weren’t exactly ladies of the evening, but they definitely weren’t the type of women I’d bring home to my mother, either.
She must have been taking care of the horses while the rest of us were working in the fields.
Her blond hair glowed in the fading light of the sun and I could swear I could smell lilac in the air all around me.
They were rough around the edges with thick skin and were used to being treated like a piece of meat.
I stood there, rooted to the spot as she drew nearer.
It was just a fact of life out here in the Wild West.
We worked hard and played hard, too, and I was no different than any other cowboy in that respect.
She was even prettier up close than I’d remembered, and the way she carried herself made her seem almost regal.
It was like she was born to live in a place like this.
I’d had my fair share of run-ins with the local women, but somehow I knew that Mary wouldn’t be interested in playing those kinds of games.
The other men were right about one thing—she was too good for a guy like me—but it didn’t stop me from wanting to know more about her.
“Hey, Jack, what are you staring at?”
I spent the rest of the afternoon finishing up my chores before heading back towards the house for dinner.
one of my friends asked as he came up beside me.
My eyes were practically popping out of their sockets as they took in Mary’s form-fitting dress and rosy cheeks.
The sun was starting to set, casting long shadows over the ranch as I walked.
“I think she’s here,” I said breathlessly as I started to walk towards her.
The other cowboys were sitting around our campfire, sipping on whiskey and talking about Mary again.
“Did you guys hear that she’s a runaway?”
I knew that it was probably a bad idea to speak with her since Mrs.
she left Boston in a hurry because she got herself knocked up by some wealthy businessman and her family sent her on the next stagecoach out here.”
Hadley would most likely chew me out for not finishing my chores before dinner, but I didn’t care anymore.
I didn’t want to miss my chance to talk with her.
“How is it possible for such a sweet girl to be so unlucky in love?”
another cowboy asked mockingly.
“Hey, Jack, where are you going?”
“She’s not as sweet as she looks,” the first man said.
one of my friends called after me.
But it was too late—I was already halfway across the field and almost to the barn by then.
“I heard her tell one of the other maids that she was planning to go into town tonight.”
“Well, we’ll just have to go into town and find her before she gets into any trouble,” another man said.
As soon as I reached Mary, I cleared my throat and smiled at her.
“I just wanted to say hi,” I said.
I felt my jaw clench at the thought of Mary being surrounded by all those rough and tumble men in town.
She looked surprised for a moment before she returned my smile.
I couldn’t imagine her lasting long if she was planning to go out to the local saloon by herself.
“Hello, Jack,” she said in her soft, gentle voice.
“I don’t mean to be rude, but I’m on my way back to the house right now.
The sun is setting and I need to get cleaned up before dinner or Mrs.
Hadley will have my head.”
I eyed her suspiciously.
“Don’t worry about Mrs.
Hadley,” I said.
“The rest of us are still working in the fields and won’t be finished for another half hour or so.
You still have plenty of time before dinner.”
Mary looked at me for a moment before she broke out into a wide grin.
“Okay, then,” she said.
“I suppose I do have a little more time than I thought.
Did you need something, Jack, or did you just want to talk?”
She was so sweet and kind, I could hardly believe my luck.
She reminded me of a little angel with her golden hair and gentle smile, and I knew right away that I wanted to spend more time with her.
But before I could respond, I saw Mrs.
Hadley coming towards us from across the field.
