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“Hey there,” Patrick said, jumping out of his truck as Arlo came up to help him.

The other man was a few years older than Patrick, his hair starting to go a little gray at the temples, with a neatly kept brown beard.

They’d gotten to know each other when Master Derek had hired Patrick to start coming out and trimming Stella’s hooves after she’d gotten a bad sole ulcer and no one on the Ranch had had the specialty knowledge to deal with it.

Now he came out for maintenance trims… and sometimes just to visit.

Hang out. Be with other Dominants, like Arlo. “How’s it going?”

“Pretty good. When you’re done here, Master Derek wants to talk to you–nothing bad I promise.”

Patrick nodded in understanding. He appreciated the reassurance since his immediate thought was that Derek had decided they didn’t need a hoof trimmer for just three cows and a few goats.

“Thanks. So, let’s get started then,” he said, moving around to the back of his truck so they could get the chute out of the trailer.

Arlo moved to help him. It was easier with two people, though Patrick had enough bulky muscle that he could move it on his own in a pinch.

The large metal chute was what allowed him to do the trims without getting kicked or trampled.

“I figure I’ll do Stella first so that the other two can see what’s about to happen to them. What are their names again?”

“Anna and Elsa,” Arlo replied, chuckling at Patrick’s expression. “Don’t worry, we’re pretty sure Elsa can’t actually control the weather.”

“Well, that’s a relief,” Patrick muttered, shaking his head and smiling. Stella seemed like a much more sensible name for a cow than magical cartoon princesses, but what did he know? He just trimmed hooves; he didn’t own any cows so there was no need to name any.

Stella knew the drill and went amiably into the chute.

Patrick put everything in place and then lifted the strap around her chest. Just as she had the last time, she leaned into it, letting it take the majority of her weight so that she could get a rest. Chuckling, Patrick patted her side before getting her first hoof into place, starting with the front left.

Anna and Elsa let out a series of moos as they watched from the fence, craning their necks and trying to see what was going on. Stella ignored them as Patrick moved around to each of her feet in turn.

“How’s she looking?” Arlo asked after Patrick finished up on her last hoof and had pulled his earmuffs and eye protection off.

“Good, no signs of any problems,” Patrick replied. “Keep up with the dip as she goes in and out of the barn and that’ll help.” He released Stella’s leg, letting it drop back down into position and smiled as he looked at the two back hooves next to each other. They looked nicely balanced.

“Let’s do the other two.”

Elsa went into the chute easily enough, taking a moment to look around and sniff at things as she went in.

Patrick waited patiently until she poked her head through the other side and then he used the hydraulics to close around her neck and hold her in place.

She mooed unhappily but then relaxed, making a little huffing sound that was so human, he had to laugh.

Trimming her up was easy work and then he released her and went to get Anna.

She was more reluctant to make her way into the chute, but he and Arlo got her in there after a few minutes.

The band around her chest lifted her up and she protested.

Patrick got her leg into position and she protested.

Then protested again when he put it back down.

And the next leg. By the last one she seemed to realize that it didn’t hurt and she was perfectly fine and settled into her trim.

“Good girl,” he said, patting her shoulder as she came out of the chute. She made a snorting noise at him and then minced off to rejoin her sister and Stella. Then he and Arlo got his chute back into the trailer and he headed up to the main building.

It was the one he was the most familiar with.

Three stories rose above the ground with a huge porch across the front.

Multiple basket chairs and rockers decorated the length of the porch, creating little sitting areas where people could gather or could stop to sit and relax on their own.

Flowerbeds lined the front of it, giving the whole thing a farmhouse feel, even though it was bigger than any farmhouse Patrick had ever seen.

There were two wings tucked behind it, going back to make a u-shape, but that wasn’t visible from the front.

He jogged up the six steps to the front door of the building and walked into the lobby.

As he went through the door, he pulled off his Stetson.

Straight ahead of him was a double-sided fireplace and two restaurants for the Ranch.

On the left was the check-in desk and the store where guests of the Ranch had access to the regular convenience items found in any hotel along with a selection of sex toys, clothing, and treats for good Littles.

Behind the front desk stood Erika, Derek’s personal assistant who spent as much time behind the front desk as she did in her office, a pixie-like woman with short brown hair and eyes.

She smiled at him, recognizing him immediately, and he gave her a wave as he headed to the right, which was where Master Derek’s office was located.

The fact that she was smiling seemed like a good sign.

He already had Arlo’s reassurance that there was nothing bad to worry about, but confirmation felt even better. If there was something wrong, Erika would know and she wouldn’t have been smiling like that.

There were benches on either side of the entrance of Derek’s office, currently empty, where misbehaving Littles from Rawhide’s Little program sat before being admitted to face the consequences of their actions.

The door to Derek’s office was partly opened, but Patrick gave the wooden doorframe a knock anyway, just to let the other man know someone was there, before peeking his head in.

Derek was behind his desk, which was set in the middle of the office, dominating the space.

Off to the side was a straight-backed armless chair, which Patrick knew was used for discipline.

A couch with some throw pillows took up one corner, and a giant armoire that was filled with whatever one might need while sitting in the armless chair.

It was straight out of someone’s Headmaster fantasy.

“Patrick. Good, just the man I wanted to see today.” Master Derek stood as Patrick came into the room. He was tall and leanly muscled, rangy, and with an air of confidence that even Patrick envied. Though, it probably didn’t hurt that they were in his home territory. “Go ahead and close the door.”

Closing the door behind him, Patrick went up to the desk and shook Derek’s hand in a firm grip.

“What can I do for you, sir?” he asked, mindful of the fact that they were in Derek’s office and the man was currently one of his clients.

Derek waved at him to sit in one of the leather chairs that faced his desk before he moved around it to take the second chair. Raising one eyebrow, Patrick went with him, sitting down and making himself comfortable. Apparently, they were going to have a more informal conversation.

Once he was in place, Master Derek cleared his throat, looking slightly uncomfortable.

“I need to talk to you as a Dom, not as my hoof trimmer.”

Slowly, Patrick nodded, a bit of excitement starting to stir within him. If Derek wanted to talk to him as a Dom, not as his contractor, that sounded like he needed him for something on this side of the Ranch.

“Alright then.” Patrick looked at Derek. Master Derek looked back at him.

“What do you know about hucows?”