Down The Alley

by Caelsto, Mary Kit

  She couldn’t focus on that now. Her goal was to make sure she moved onto the next rounds. Placing high enough to get money, well that was just a bonus. Clint had taken his horse back to the stalls. He’d come watch her run, but she couldn’t count on him being here. Not that she needed any coaching. Just seeing him, knowing someone out there was rooting for her, would be nice.

  Arden went, and as usual she rode perfectly, coming in with a blazing fast time. Either that had been her plan, relying on the time between these heats and the final rounds for her horse to rest, or her horse had run faster than she’d expected. That put her firmly on top.

  “We got this, Lolly.” Lora shifted her weight in the saddle, moving forward until she was the next to go.

  The rider before her ran a decent pattern, though they got bogged down in some footing and didn’t make a good time. Lora doubted that pair would move on.

  Then she got the nod, and it was all up to her. She backed Lolly down the chute, then set her free, firing her like a stealth jet down the alley. They burst into the arena to the cheer of the crowd. With four legs firing like pistons beneath her, it was like riding a rocket ship. Fighter jet pilots probably felt like this, only with more adrenaline and g-forces. They wrapped around the first barrel like cellophane, moving onto the next one in the blink of an eye.

  Lolly knew her job and did it well. Lora guided, keeping the mare focused and forward, gliding them over the footing and out of the trouble spots. They eased past the second barrel, then turned for the third. Damn, this run felt fast. The strap held her helmet on; a cowboy hat would have blown off long ago. And then they turned around the third barrel, heading straight for home.

  The crowd’s roar grew louder. They knew they were witnessing something great. Lolly raced between the beam of the laser timer, stopping it.

  “Lora Caughley with 13.82 seconds. Give her a round of applause. That time moves her into first place…” The announcer moved onto introducing the next rider, and Lora pumped her fist in the air.

  “Good girl.” She patted Lolly’s shoulder and led them back toward the stalls. The times would be sorted, and she’d find out soon enough how she did. She swapped Lolly for Badger, then pulled him into the end of the line. They had one more chance to hit the boards. She’d make the most of it.

  ~* * *~

  That afternoon Lora checked the postings. She’d made the final round on Lolly, placing first so she’d ride last. Badger just missed being in the top ten, though they’d come close. He’d had a wrong step, and she planned on watching his front leg carefully and hoping nothing more came out of it. He moved well and didn’t seem to have any lameness, so she hoped. Clint had done well, placing nicely toward the top of the leader board.

  “I heard she kicked Billy out as soon as he had his crash. He couldn’t win her money, so she cut him loose.” The whispers came from the stalls behind her, loud enough that she could hear. If they knew she was stabled here, and the floor plan was available to anyone who wanted to look, then they weren’t being discrete at all.

  “I’d let him convalesce on my couch anytime,” someone else said. “Can’t believe she tossed him to the curb.”

  “Tammy left him too. Guy can’t catch a break.”

  Lora bit her lip to avoid speaking up. Eavesdroppers never heard anything nice about themselves, but the rumors swirling around the venue, especially as the rodeo participants arrived and settled in, grew louder and louder. She sat on a stool in the tack stall, checking her phone and mentally going over her plans for the evening.

  “Think she’s trying to turn Clint into a little mini-me. He sure seems infatuated with her. Don’t know why. She’ll toss him aside just as soon as she gets tired of him. That’s what I heard anyway.”

  Lora’s back straightened. Clint had gone to find them some lunch at the concession stand. Thankfully, he wouldn’t be here to hear all of this. And yet, what if he did? What if this changed their relationship? She hated to think it. Surely, they were on more solid ground than that. And Clint knew how gossip flew around rodeos.

  “There’s a reason why he doesn’t rope anymore. I hear…” The woman’s voice dropped.

  Now that was news to Lora. Not that she asked Clint about his past very much. That was his story to tell; she refused to pry. But if he’d been a roper and judging by some of the things the women said, a very good one, then there had to be a reason why he came over to barrel racing. She wouldn’t ask. It mattered little to their event here, and as long as he was forthright with her, any future partnership didn’t rely on it either. Still, the gossip bothered her. She’d hoped that by getting away from the rodeo circuit for a while after her divorce that it’d stop. It seemed her absence only made the gossip more vicious.

  Shaking her head, she finished what she was doing, then left the stall, checking all the locks. She peeked in on the horses, making sure they rested comfortably with full hay nets and fresh water. Then, she decided to go find Clint. She found him not far from the main concourse carrying a bag which judging by the smells coming from it had two burgers and fries. He held a drink carrier with two large drinks.

  “Sorry there was a line,” he said. “I got you an unsweet tea just as you asked.”

  “Thanks.” She accepted her drink, poked one of the straws through the top and took a nice long drink. The tart bite of lemon along with the tea was refreshing. “I felt like stretching my legs. Want to eat at the trailer?” They’d have a longer walk, but hopefully being outside the barn and away from everyone else would quell the gossip. At least any that she could hear.

  He gave her a look, then nodded. “Yeah, sometimes it’s nice to get away from the noise.” The way he said it made her wonder if he’d heard anything.

  “Good to get the head on straight before the big runs. Thanks for understanding.” They walked together out of the barn and to the trailers. She wondered if things were different, if the situation with Billy had gone down differently if maybe they’d have done something else. Gone to different shows, maybe even had their relationship further along. She couldn’t second guess things though. They reached the trailer, and he unlocked the door and opened it for her. She carried the drinks inside and set them on the table.

  Clint closed the door behind them and set the food on the table. He rustled in the bag, handing her the burger meant for her and a stack of napkins. “So any reason why you didn’t want to eat in the tack locker. Did it have to do with those two busy bodies parked behind us? I heard them too. I know they were talking about us. You shouldn’t let it bother you.”

  “No, I shouldn’t. But it does. I’m blocking it out for our runs. There it’s just me and my horse and any checks we write in the arena, we can cash. I know it. But with the rodeo being here…” She drew a deep breath. “I thought I was ready. I guess I was wrong.”

  “I understand. My buddies are going to be here too. It’s been a while since we all shared a venue.” Regret passed through his expression. “You’re not the only one with a past you want to put behind you. I’m good now. And we’re all good. Still friends, and I’ll be cheering them on just as much as I’ll be cheering you on. But yeah, I get it. There are ghosts in the arena. Every single one of them. It’s up to us to move beyond them and not let them bother us.”

  Lora bit into her cheeseburger, knowing everything Clint said was true.

  “You’re not going to let them derail whatever we got going on here, are you?” He smiled, swirled his fry in some ketchup and brought it to his mouth in a surprisingly sexy move for rodeo concession stand fare.

  “No, of course not.”

  “Good. Then don’t let them live rent free in your head. You’ve got a good thing going on here, and I’m not just talking about me. Your horses are running fast. You’re winning. You have your own place and are moving up. They’re just jealous. If they can use your ex or me to try and put a crack in your armor, they will. Ignore them. Arden may have introduced us, but I’ve had my eye on you for a while no
w. Things just didn’t come together until recently.” He focused his attention on his food. “Eat before it gets cold,” he said.

  They sat in companionable silence while they finished their lunch. Once the wrappers were empty, Clint gathered up the trash and threw it away. He reached across the table to take her hand between his. He stroked along the outside of her thumb, the callousness of his fingers doing something strange to her insides.

  “We’ll take this as fast or as slow as you want to. But I am not going to be scared away by some stupid gossip. I’m here because I want to be, not just because Arden introduced us. If you don’t want to stay for the bull riding, that’s okay with me. We’ll pack up the horses and head back tonight or tomorrow. Whatever you want to do. Just focus on your rounds tonight. You and Lolly got this. I know you do.” He lifted the back of her hand and brushed a soft kiss against it.

  She swallowed hard. It’d been so long since a man had supported her, encouraged her, beyond his own ambition. She nodded, not quite sure she could trust her voice at the moment. “Thank you,” she whispered.

  “Anytime, darlin’. Anytime.”

  ~* * *~

  Clint’s friends came by to say hello, though she was focusing more on Lolly and their run tonight than the handsome cowboys accompanying Clint, so she missed their names. A couple good-natured teases about if barrel racing had someone as pretty as her to offer, then no wonder he’d quit roping with a bunch of smelly calves and even smellier guys. She sensed nothing bad-tempered about their comments, just some jokes among friends. She finished rubbing down Lolly, then saddled her, taking care of leave the cinch loose.

  “Okay guys, let’s go so the lady can work.” With a tip of his hat in her direction, he sent his friends into the stands. He lingered long enough to lean into the stall and plant a good, hard kiss on her lips that left her rather breathless. She watched him go, not quite able to believe that this was real. Except it was and she had a run to put down.

  She cinched Lolly’s saddle, swapped the halter for a bridle, then put on her helmet and led the golden palomino mare to the lineup for the racing. She’d be last. No sooner had she ridden to the line-up and checked in, then the first girl went. Straight out and back, with no barrels knocked over, and it was clear, they’d have to go fast if they wanted to even think about placing.

  One-by-one the riders rode the proscribed pattern. A few barrels fell over, but not nearly as many as had happened in the first rounds. Whatever jitters the contestants had about the small arena and the fact that the wall came up fast, had been cleared away by making it here. The noise from the arena proved deafening. Had Clint been standing next to her, she probably couldn’t have heard him say a word. Probably a good thing then that he had gone with his friends to watch.

  Finally it was her turn. She eased Lolly into the alley, pointing her at the gate. The mare snorted and stamped a hoof. The order came to go, and she wasted no time. Giving Lolly her head, Lora opened the door as she liked to think of it, giving with her hands and shifting her weight forward. Lolly jumped into a gallop and powered into the arena.

  The crowd cheered. A few whistles, and she thought she heard Clint call her name, but then they were at the first barrel and easing around it like a hot knife through butter. Lolly kept her shoulder lifted and her ears pricked forward. She knew her job. Lora hit the pocket for the second barrel, coming around it so close her knee was less than an inch from the barrel. Nothing to worry about though, because Lolly kicked free and raced toward the final barrel.

  Lora focused on her goal—get around the barrel and get home. Her internal clock told her she hit all her marks and no doubt would be sub fourteen seconds. That might not be good enough to get a check in this round. They’d do their best though.

  Lolly spun around the final barrel, as if she too knew she needed to kick it into another gear in order to win. She burst down the straight away, the wind whipping her mane back into Lora’s face. Lora kept her head down, not even tapping Lolly with the mecate on the end of her reins. The mare knew her job and ran as if the devil himself was after her.

  They passed through the timer and the clock stopped.

  “Ladies and gentleman, Laura Caughley just won this round with a 13.74, a good three hundredths of a second faster than Brittany Caleb in second place.” The announcer’s voice cut through the cheers and hollers erupting in the arena.

  “We did it,” Lora breathed, patting Lolly’s neck. “Oh my god. We did it.”

  “Let’s go take that victory lap.” The rider on a pretty black and white palomino led the way as Lora turned and galloped around the arena waving to the crowd. She finished her victory round, then dismounted behind the cutes and led Lolly to her stall. She deserved a good night’s rest before they headed back to the farm.

  ~* * *~

  It hadn’t taken long for Lora to untack Lolly and brush her down, then hurry to the rodeo office to pick up her check and get her buckle for winning the round. She accepted congratulations from several people. Even missed seeing her ex fall off his bull at the five second mark. Yeah, Billy had a lot of work to do and she didn’t think he’d be putting in the time to get his strength back. That, however, was between him and Tammy, who ended up placing third in the round. A little bit of sweet victory there, to beat her ex’s current flame.

  She returned to the trailer, exhausted from the day’s ride. Lolly was tired too. The mare slept in her stall when Lora passed. She checked on her and on Badger, satisfied that they’d be just fine for the night. She and Clint planned to pull out early in the morning.

  She returned to the trailer to find Clint already there, putting the two big tack trunks with their saddles into place. She’d completed her business in the show office, alerted the barn staff that she’d be staying overnight as planned. She admired the way his muscles moved as he worked. The tight fit of his jeans caught her attention, as did his broad shoulders. Normally amped up after a good run like that, her body told her exactly what it wanted her to do with the excess energy. She pulled her lower lip into her mouth, wondering if she should act on it. The smart thing to do would be to crawl into bed and go back to the farm, deal with everything there. She’d never done the smart thing when it came to men and that was how she’d ended up with a bull rider for an ex.

  Clint turned and smiled at the sight of her. “Congratulations. I didn’t get a chance to see you after your run. My friends wanted to hang around for a while, but they’re packed up and heading out for the next rodeo.” He pulled her into his arms for a big hug.

  She leaned into him, the slight aroma of barn mingling with his body wash and she closed her eyes to steel her senses against his onslaught. “Thanks.” She hugged him back, then started to step away.

  His hands remained around her, sliding down to rest at her waist.

  Her hands lingered on his arms. The feel of his firm muscles beneath her touch almost had her pulling him closer and maybe going to the bed to see just how good it could be between them. Except, something felt off. She wanted whatever was going to happen between them to be done with a clear mind, not with all the adrenaline of a kick ass show and the fact that her ex-husband had been in the arena after her. She wiggled out of his embrace, hoping she’d been at least kinda graceful about it. “Thanks for the help with the tack.”

  “Figured you wanted the good saddles out of there for the night. We can go back and get more if you want. Pack up and make sure things are ready to go. You want to leave about six, right?”

  “Yeah. Thanks.” She glanced at her cell phone. “If you don’t mind, I think one trip, maybe two, and we can get it all done tonight.” And I’ve got energy to burn.

  “Sure.” He followed her lead as they returned to the barn. The security guard greeted them, asked what they were doing. They flashed their competitor badges and explained they were packing up. Traffic inside the barn aisles had slowed down, though a few competitors from the big barrel event were there packing up.

  They
worked in silence, filling both tack trunks. They rolled them to the trailer, put them away, then returned for the final few items, leaving just a muck bucket, manure fork and the halters there for the horses. Then, they returned to the trailer.

  Lora realized she hadn’t eaten, and it was too late to go find some supper. She really didn’t want fast food and concessions had shut down as soon as the rodeo closed out. She opened the fridge, made herself a lunch meat sandwich and opened a bag of chips. Not exactly the dinner of champions, but it was getting late enough that she didn’t mind. Clint helped himself to a sandwich.

  “I’m going to clean up and go to sleep. We’ll be getting up early in the morning,” she said, hoping that by speaking the words aloud, she quiet her body’s desire to take their relationship to the next step. A few kisses, some soft caresses had her aching for more. Her mind told her she needed to wait until things were different.

  “I’ll be back. I need to stretch my legs.” He stepped out of the trailer.

  Apparently, she wasn’t the only one aching. She stripped and showered as quickly as possible, dragging on an oversized t-shirt, and crawling into bed. She lay there, a night light burning by the sink so he’d have something to see by when he returned.