Of Horses And Waterfalls

7. Let Me Save You

Pansy knew the name Harry Potter, having read all about the terrible way that his parents had been slaughtered.  The whole city knew who he was.  Fuck, the whole world knew who he was, and she was thanking her lucky stars that the man had ended up on her doorstep of all places.  It was almost as if he had been sent by some other being.  

Draco had asked her for help using her agency to try and find someone who would be able to handle the demands of the ranch.  The universe must really either like her a lot, or Draco, because it seemed that the man could do anything.  And I mean literally anything.  

She would have to take his file and show Draco of course, before hiring him, but that was a minor detail.  The only reason that Draco wouldn't want to hire him was because of his looks.  Draco was a sucker when it came to bulky men, and probably wouldn't want to be distracted by his bulging muscles when he was working, but my God, this guy was hot!

Well, she laughed to herself, maybe it was time for Draco to let go.  And he was a beautiful man himself, with others always throwing themselves at him, but if Draco were to pursue something more concrete, who was she to stand in his way.  She just had to make sure that both men came to the party, and in full swing.  

After the interview, he thanked her for being so honest and to please call and inform him even if he didn't get the job.  It made him not sit around and hope, to which she agreed.  The minute he left, she went to her phone and dialed a number.  It was picked up after the third ring.

"Draco honey, what are your plans tonight?", she asked, twirling a piece of hair between her fingers.

"No plans, although I might drink myself stupid.  Why do you ask?", came the snotty reply.

"No reason.  I have a bottle of wine that needs an expert tongue, can I come over after work?", she asked.

Draco narrowed his eyes, because he knew that voice.  As if she knew something that he didn't, and he wasn't going to let her get away with that!  "Definitely.  Bring Chinese as well", he said and slammed the phone down.  Wondering what had her so chirpy, he went back to what he had been doing, which was going through the bills of the ranch.  His Aunt Bella had sure left the place in a mess.  Financially and structurally.

When Pansy arrived later that day, he could see that she was almost shaking with news that she was dying to share.  And what was that in her hands?  He held the door open for her, and then took the wine and opened it, while she took out some glasses.  They sat on the carpet in the lounge, casual as could be.  He poured the wine and she opened the boxes of take away, so they could start their meal.

After a few bites, he could sense that she was almost at the end of her tether, and with greasy lips, simply demanded to know what was going on. "Spill", he said.

She looked at him and innocently said, "What?"

"Don't what me Pans.  I know when you're hiding something.  So, spill", he said again.

"Oh all right you big baby.  I had an interesting candidate walk through my doors today", she said softly.

"Who?  No wait, don't tell me.  It was Gregory Goyle begging you for a job because he just wants to see more of you and your arse in those terrible dresses you wear?", he sneered.  

Gregory Goyle had been a school friend of theirs and was head over heels in love with Pansy, but she refused to give him the time of day.  He just wasn't her type, but that didn't stop him from trying anyway.  She laughed, knowing that there was no way that Draco would ever guess correctly.  

"No.  Try again.  And for your information, my dresses are not terrible.  They cost a bloody fortune!", she answered.

"Blaise?", he asked.

"Blaise, as in Blaise Zabini.  As in he who has his own construction company.  Don't be daft Draco, you're not even trying", she cried out and took a big sip of wine.

Draco thought some more, and shook his head.  "I don't know.  Why don't you just tell me, I can see you are dying to", he said.

She looked at him and took a deep breath.  She wondered what his reaction would be, at hearing the name again.  

"All right.  It was Harry Potter", she said softly again.  He snapped his head up so fast that you could almost hear his neck snap.  His eyes grew wide and he thought she was having him on.  He hadn't heard that name in a long time.  When his parents had been murdered, it was as if the boy had vanished.

"Bullshit", he said, and when she stayed silent he spoke again.  "Are you serious?"

"Yes I am, and he is looking for a job.  I have his file right here", she said and picked it up to confirm her statement.  "And he is perfect to help out at your ranch", she said in a whisper.

"You would say that about anyone.  You like helping people", he said and finished his wine in the glass with absolutely no flair.  Pouring himself another glass, he just looked at her.

"What's that supposed to mean?  He is the ideal person to help you get this ranch to what it has to be, and better yet, he will be able to do it in time.  You should take a look at his skills", she said.  

Draco didn't really have a reason to say no to hiring Harry Potter, so he held his hand out and waited for her to give him the file.  He put it on the table, and opened it slowly.  He drew in a breath at the sight of what was in front of him.  There was a photo of him, along with all his personal details including his phone number.   The green eyes, the black hair, and that godawful lightning bolt scar just above his eye.

Draco went through the list of what he could do, and saw to his astonishment that Harry Potter would indeed be able to run this ranch single handed.  He could build, mend, paint, construct, had experience in working with animals, and landscaping, the works.  It was as if Christmas had come early.  But Draco knew he had to think about this, he didn't want to hire just anyone and have them leave after only a week or a month.

"Let me save you Draco.  You need him, and he needs this job", she pleaded.  He gulped and took another sip of his wine.  Licking his lips, he looked at the photo again.

"He's, uh.  He's.....", he stuttered out.

"Are you trying to tell me he's hot, because I already know that.  You should have seen the look on Daphne's face when he walked in today.  I thought she was going to cream her cheap old lady panties", she said with a laugh.

Draco smiled, and nodded his head.  "I don't need someone who is hot.  I need someone who knows what the hell they're doing.  Are you sure he's the right candidate?", he asked again.

"Actually there are four that I have lined up for the position as head rancher.  I will bring the other three files with me tomorrow, or I could just call all of them and you could interview them instead of me", she suggested.

Draco nodded his head again at that.  "Yeah, let's do that.  Call them up, set up times but don't make it for tomorrow.  Make it for over the weekend", he said with a sly smile.

"You just want to see who will take this job seriously, don't you.  By ruining their own time, to work on yours", she stated.

"Of course.  You know me too well Pans, and for the record, I hate you", he said with a giggle.

She laughed back at him and asked if he wanted to see all four men together or separately.  He answered that separately would probably be better.  

She agreed, and after cleaning up and saying good night, she got back in her car with the hopes that Draco would make the right choice for the ranch.