“Ha! I don’t see that happening.”
“Hey, never say never,” Grant said. “I didn’t think I’d ever be living here. And here I am. Strange things can happen. It’s good to see you again, Knuckles.”
Ryan chuckled. “Same to you, Patriot. Hey, I hear you also got a shotgun shoved in your face when you knocked on Brady’s door.”
Grant rolled his eyes. “Brady, you really need to stop doing that.”
“And you guys need to stop knocking at my door at unearthly times in the morning.”
After the coffee, I said goodbye to the guys and made my way over to Sloan’s hotel. It was the day of the rodeo, and I was feeling excited and a little nervous. I’d never taken someone with me before. I hoped she was going to enjoy it.
She was waiting outside when I arrived, and I smiled at the sight of her. She was wearing light blue jeans and a small yellow shirt, which she’d tied at the waist. She had on brown boots and a cowgirl hat.
“I’m loving this look,” I said to her as she hopped in the car.
She giggled. “I’m really getting into it now, hey. I’m going to miss dressing this way.”
“Come on; you’ve got to keep it up in New York. I promise you; you’ll start a new trend.”
“I’m just not sure it will feel the same,” she said and sighed. “So, are you excited about today? I am. I woke up so early because I couldn’t sleep. I mean, I never thought I’d actually ever go to a real rodeo.”
I liked her enthusiasm. “I’m excited. And I’m glad you are too. You’re going to love it. I used to go all the time to watch before I got into it myself. It’s such a fun crowd to be in. They’re very supportive.”
“You most definitely have my support today. I’ll be screaming the loudest.”
I chuckled at the thought. “I’ve never had a cheerleader before,” I said. Especially one as pretty as you.
When we arrived, I decided to take her backstage first to show her around and to introduce her to some of the other guys. I saw Trace and took her to say hello. Trace’s eyes lit up at the sight of Sloan. Then he went pale, and I thought he was going to faint. For a man that spent a lot of time hanging around beautiful women at clubs, he didn’t seem to know what to do with himself. I tried not to laugh at the sight of him.
“Trace, I’d like you to meet the lovely Sloan. Sloan, this is my rodeo partner, Trace.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Trace,” Sloan said and stuck her hand out.
Trace took her hand. I could see him trying to find his voice. “Sloan Hill. Wow, I never thought I’d see the day. It’s a pleasure to meet you too. You’ve come to watch the rodeo?”
She nodded. “I have. I’ve never been to one before.”
“You’re going to love it.”
“Come on, I’ll show you around some more,” I said. Then I looked at Trace. “See you soon.”
He stood there, mouth agape as we walked off, and I laughed.
“It must be so strange to leave people speechless the way you do,” I said. I couldn’t imagine what that feeling must be like. It must be quite powerful.
She just shrugged. “It’s got nothing to do with me as a person. They’re only speechless because they’ve seen me on the big screen. So it’s not very real. And they get over it pretty quickly.”
I sensed frustration in her voice, so I decided to change the subject. Instead, I took her around and showed her all there was to know about rodeo.
“Oh, look at the bulls,” she said. She stood in shock. I could almost feel her trembling beside me. I’d been around these animals for such a long time that I’d forgotten how menacing they could be to someone that wasn’t used to them. Especially to a city girl.
I laughed. “Come on; I’ll introduce you.”
“I’ve never seen one up close before.”
“And you’d never ridden a horse before you met me. A lot of firsts. Aren’t they incredible, though? This is the one I will be riding.”
“Wow, he’s huge. I had no idea they would be like this. I mean, I knew they’d be big, but I didn’t realize that they’d be this big.”
“I know what you mean. They’re very different up close. I thought the same thing. But you get used to them.”
“I’m not sure I could get used to something this big. Also, he looks awful mean. Are you sure you want to ride this one? It was obvious that Betty was a nice horse the moment I saw her. But this guy looks like he wants to fight. Why don’t we take a walk around and look for a bull with a kinder face?”
I chuckled. “I can’t do that. He’s the one that’s assigned to me. And trust me, none of them have kind faces. But that doesn’t mean that they’re horrible. They’re just a little scary up close is all. But don’t worry. He’s a good bull to ride. I’m used to him by now. I’ve had a lot of practice.”
“I sure hope so,” she said.
“Okay, so it’s the team rope first. I’m with Trace. Would you like to go into the crowd or do you want to watch from somewhere closer? I have a place I can take you where nobody else will be.”
“Close would be great,” she said, and I could see her visibly sigh with relief at the idea of being alone.
“Okay, come with me,” I said.
I took her up into the stands where only the staff members are usually allowed, and I found a seat for her. This way she’d get the chance to watch me without everyone looking at her for a change. I could see that she was grateful for this. I was starting to realize how difficult it was for her sometimes, and how much she often craved normality. Even in this small town, there were so many people that kept following her and taking her picture. It was better now that she didn’t dress as much like a celebrity anymore, but I knew she still got recognized a lot.
I made my way back to Trace, who couldn’t stop talking about how beautiful Sloan was and how lucky I was to be spending so much time with her. He was practically drooling while he was talking about her. I told him that he would have to get a grip and concentrate on the rodeo if he wanted to do well.
“I can’t man, I can’t stop thinking about her,” he said.
I groaned. “You are impossible. Come on; you’ve seen beautiful girls before. I know she’s famous, but she’s still just a person. Okay, how about this . . . she’s there in the stands right now, about to watch us. So, make sure that you do everything you can to impress her, okay?”
He chuckled. “Okay, you got me there. I better not make a fool of myself. Come on,” he said as he stood a little taller, “Let’s get out there and show her what we can do. We’ve got this.”
Trace was better than usual that day, and so was I. It was clear that we were both trying to show off in front of Sloan, and thankfully it had worked. We took first place in the team rope and beat our competitors by far. I was elated that she had seen us do so well. I would’ve hated it if we had failed miserably in front of her. Afterward, I went to check on Sloan, and she squealed with delight and told me how exciting that had been.
“I’m glad you liked it. Trace was showing off big time for you,” I said.
She smiled. “Only Trace?”
“Yeah, just him. I’m always that good,” I said and chuckled. “Anyway, I have to go. I just wanted to come up and see how you were doing. It’s the bull riding competition next.”
She pulled a face. “That bull better be nice to you.”
“He will be.”
As I was turning to go, she called me back.
“Yeah?”
She pulled me closer and gave me a small kiss on the cheek.
“For good luck,” she said.
I grinned at her and walked out. But as I walked away I had to stop and catch my breath. What was going on with me? Why did that one small kiss on the cheek feel so good? I was starting to behave like Trace, and I had to physically shake my head to stop thinking about her. I walked out and saw Trace waving at me.
“You look lost,” he said to me.
I smiled. “I’m
fine. Just thinking about the competition.”
“You look like you’re thinking about something else. Or should I say, someone else,” he said and grinned.
“A little,” I admitted.
“Come on then; it’s my turn to get your head in gear. Shake it off. You can think about her later. This is not the time for you mind to wander. Get out there, get on that bull, and show her what you’re made of.”
I laughed. “And so,” I said, “the student becomes the teacher.”
I climbed onto the bull and made my way out. I wanted to look for her, but I knew that it would only disorientate me, especially as I didn’t have the time to do anything but ride the bull. So I did my best to concentrate on what I was doing. I’d done this a million times before, but this was the first time that I’d had so much on my mind too. I held onto the bull and listened as the crowd cheered me on. I was doing well, and I could almost feel Sloan smiling down at me.
Then, just as I imagined her smiling face, I could feel that something was wrong. I was losing control of the bull. I tried to concentrate on what was happening, but before I knew it, my body was in the air. The bull had thrown me off. I landed down on the sand with a thud, and it took me a while to realize what had happened. I knew that I needed to get up and get out of there the moment I saw the bull running toward me. But before I had a chance to get up, he’d made his way right over to me, and trampled on my arm.
I felt a shooting pain run up my arm, and I cried out in agony. Everything seemed to blur around me, and I couldn’t quite figure out what was going on. But judging from the reaction coming from the crowd, I knew that it was bad.
Chapter Twenty
Sloan
I gasped. Brady had just been flung from the bull and thrown to the side. For a brief second, I thought he was dead because he just lay there. A hush went over the crowd as we all watched the scene in horror. Then, we saw him move, and we all sighed with relief in unison. I saw the bull running toward him, and the crowd cried out in horror as it went straight for Brady and trampled his arm. I burst into tears at the sight.
I was just about to run out when I saw him stand up. He wobbled slightly, and we all waited with baited breath to see what was going to happen. Thankfully the bull had been restrained. I leaned forward in anticipation. Brady finally managed to steady himself, then he took off his cowboy hat and tipped it to the crowd for one of the loudest standing ovations I had ever heard or seen.
I ran back down to see him while the crowd chanted “BRADY! BRADY! BRADY!”
“Where is he?” I asked Trace, who was standing on the sides looking like he’d seen a ghost.
He turned to look at me, his eyes wide and his skin pale. “He’s on his way. I thought we’d lost him for a minute.”
I nodded. “Me too. That was the scariest thing that I’ve ever seen in my whole life.”
“Here he comes.”
Brady walked right up to me, and I wrapped my arms around him. I didn’t care that Trace was there or that a million other backstage people were hanging around. I kissed him squarely on the mouth for as long as it took for me to stop shaking again.
“I told you that bull was a mean one. You could’ve killed yourself.”
He smiled. “I’m okay. I think even the bull was trying to show off in front of you.”
“Are you really okay?” I whispered.
“I’m fine. But I do need to see someone about this arm of mine.”
Trace walked up to us. “Dude, you had me so worried. That was crazy. I hope someone recorded that. You won’t believe how far he flung you. I can’t believe you’re still walking around right now. Come on, let’s go to the medic.”
Brady turned to me. “Will you wait here for me? I’m sure it won’t take long.”
I nodded. “Of course I’ll wait for you. Take your time. Get yourself put back together first and foremost.”
I walked to the back and took a seat where there were not too many people. Thankfully everyone was so concerned with what had happened that they didn’t seem to notice that a celebrity was sitting amongst them. I tilted my hat down just in case and waited for Brady to return. I still couldn’t quite get over what I had seen. Brady had almost died in front of me. The thought was too awful to even contemplate.
Brady returned about twenty minutes later sporting a clean t-shirt and his arm in a brace. I ran up to him to see what was going on.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I’m going to be bruised for quite a while, but I’ll be fine.”
“I cannot believe you are still smiling after what happened.” I knew that if I were in his position, I would be in tears. “You don’t have to act brave, you know.”
He laughed. “I’m not brave. They’ve given me so many painkillers. Right now, I’m just in a bubble of happiness.”
I chuckled. “You’re crazy; has anyone ever told you that?”
“Oh yeah, all the time,” he said. “So, would you like to spend the day with me?”
I frowned. “What do you mean? Shouldn’t you go home and rest?”
“I told you, I’m on happy pills right now. And I don’t want to sleep. I want to spend the day with you. There’s a fair going on right now. It’s all part of the rodeo, and it’s a lot of fun. Well, at least it will be with a pretty girl like you on my arm. My other arm, of course,” he said and laughed.
I shook my head. “You really are on happy pills. Are you sure, Brady? I would love to go with you, but if you want to rest, I honestly don’t mind.”
“I’ll rest later. The only thing on my mind right now is eating candy and winning you a stuffed animal.”
“With that arm? I don’t think so mister.”
“I have two arms you know. Come on; I’ll prove it to you.”
I chuckled and followed him out to the fair. I felt like I was in the middle of a movie. The sounds of laughter and the smell of sweet candy filtered all around us as we walked. A jolt of happiness rose up inside me as I took everything in.
“This is incredible,” I said as I admired the view.
He looked at me with arched eyebrows. “Don’t tell me this is also your first fair?”
“It is.”
“Wow, Sloan, you really do come from a different world. We have these at least three times a year.”
“You do? That’s so cool. The whole community comes out for it, from the looks of it,” I said as I looked at the swarms of people around me.
“They do. But I’m sure you have plenty events like this in your hometown, too.”
“Yeah, maybe,” I said. But I knew I wouldn’t go to them even if we did. When I got back to New York, I’d be re-entering a world of high fashion, constant shopping, and skinny lattes. When had that started to lose its appeal to me?
“So, Miss Sloan, are you ready to see all the great strength and power I have in my one arm?”
I chuckled, happy that Brady had put me back in a good mood. I wasn’t used to seeing this side of him. I thought back to the Brady that I had met that first day of shooting, quiet, solemn, unimpressed with the world. But here he was, laughing, joking and more talkative than ever before. What was going on?
“Oh, I’m ready.”
We walked over to the stall where a stuffed animal could be won by hitting a button with a rubber mallet. The man explained that as long as the indicator reached the red line, the stuffed animal was ours.
“But let me tell you,” the man said, “it’s not easy to win one. We had to make it hard, otherwise we’d be giving all our stock away.”
“Oh ye of little faith,” Brady said.
“Are you sure you want to do that after what you just went through?” the man said to Brady.
“Oh, I’m sure.”
“He’s on happy pills right now,” I explained to the man.
“Ah, well. They might make you happy, but I’m not sure if they’ll make you strong. Two dollars to enter, please.”
Brady handed him the money,
and the man handed him the mallet. He looked at me, grinned, and hit the button so hard that the indicator shot way past the red.
“Whoa! Maybe happy pills do make you strong,” the man said. “Congratulations. So, Brady, what animal would you like?”
Brady looked at me. “What animal would you like?”
I looked at the choices on the wall and then pointed to a small stuffed horse in the corner. It wasn’t the most attractive of all the animals, but it was the one with the most meaning. The man looked at me as if I was crazy but didn’t say anything. The horse was clearly not the most popular choice, but he was probably grateful to be getting rid of some of his unwanted stock.
“Thank you, Brady,” I said as I hugged her toward me. “I’m incredibly impressed by your great strength. This is Betty by the way.”
“Wow, Betty has gotten small,” he said.
“Betty is a good horse. She doesn’t throw people off her.”
He laughed. “Yeah, you were right, that bull was mean.”
“You see? You should always listen to me.”
“Oh yeah? Okay, what should we do next then? I am at your mercy,” he asked.
“How about we add an overload of sugar to your already happy state?”
He giggled. He was looking a bit woozy, but it was only making him look cute. So far, he’d been masculine, sexy, hot, infuriating and brooding. This was the first time that I’d ever thought of him as cute. I liked it.
“Sugar!” he said. “Yes. Let’s do it. I like that you’re eating sugar now by the way. You do NOT need to diet,” he said loudly.
I shushed him and chuckled. “Don’t say it so loudly. But thank you. Who needs to diet with all this stress?”
“Why are you stressed?”
“I’m stressed because you fell off a bull and almost got yourself killed. I need sugar.”
He grinned, and when I walked off, I could have sworn I heard him say, “And I need you.” But when I turned to look at him, he wasn’t saying anything. Perhaps I was just imagining it, I thought to myself.
After a fun day out at the fair, I decided to take Brady back to my hotel room for a little while. He couldn’t drive in his state, and I couldn’t drive at all. I got the driver to take us to the hotel. I made us both a cup of coffee, and we sat on the bed chatting. I could see him getting sleepy, and I was just about to suggest that he got some rest when I saw blood seeping out of his shirt. I lifted it up and gasped.
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